5 balcony styling ideas

Whether you’re considering selling your home and want to increase the resale value or you want to revamp the look of your balcony for summer entertaining, there are a number of simple and inexpensive ways to makeover your outdoor area.

Here are some easy decor ideas to consider to help transform and freshen up the look of your patio or balcony that have potential to make a great DIY project this weekend.

1202/181 St Kilda Road, St Kilda, VIC.

1. Vertical garden.

One of the hottest trends in balcony styling and gardening at the moment is vertical gardens or green walls. This trend is especially good for apartment dwellers that have limited outdoor space and don’t want to miss out on the fun and aesthetic appeal of having a garden at home.

There are a number of great low maintenance and affordable vertical garden options that suit compact balcony spaces. Take a look at Vertical Gardens Australia  and Bunnings Warehouse.

Some vertical garden friendly plants include:

• Ferns
• Bromeliads
• Begonia
• Wax flower
• Baby’s tears
• Limelight bower wattle
• Peace lilies
• Geraniums
• Succulents

(Image: Vertical Gardens Australia )

2. Soft furnishings.

Add durable weatherproof soft furnishings to instantly spruce up and refresh your balcony. Think durable rugs, seat covers, throw rugs, colourful cushions, tablecloths and napkins for outdoor entertaining.

Adding soft furnishings is a great way to add much needed dashes of colour to your balcony but also warm up the space during cooler months. Target has a great range of inexpensive outdoor rugs and funky cushions. Bed, Bath N’ Table has a beautiful range of napery to stock up for summer entertaining.

3. Edible garden.

Most balconies and patios extend off of living and kitchen areas, so it can be very handy to plant herbs, fruit and veggies in freestanding planters. Potted small citrus trees can also be a nice addition. Not only do they add life and greenery to your balcony but they also smell great!

The type of plants you should plant on your balcony will depend on the orientation of your patio and the amount of sunlight the space gets.

Suited to full sun:

• Cherry tomatoes
• Rocket
• Thyme
• Strawberries

For part shade:

• Lettuce
• Rocket
• Chives
• Basil
• Parsley
• Chillies

For full shade:

• Mint
• Watercress

4. Paint.

There’s nothing like a fresh coat of paint to liven up and make a tired old balcony feel new again. Spring and summer are the perfect times of year to play with bright colours in your balcony decor. Try giving railings and balcony walls a fresh coat of paint.

If you’re after a less drastic change you could try painting your balcony accessories to add pops of colour here and there (such as pot plants, barbecue units, chairs or benches). Before grabbing a paint brush make sure the paint you select is weather resistant.

61 Mort Street, Balmain, NSW.

5. Seating.

A comfortable place to sit and admire a view, eat dinner with friends, have a morning cup of tea or read the Sunday paper are just some of the varied and versatile uses a balcony affords us. So an easy chair is an essential addition to any balcony.

If space allows you could think about adding a hanging egg chair, day bed, a rocking chair or hammock. Check out Hangingout.com.au for amazing outdoor furniture designs. If space is a bit tight you could consider building a bench seat with comfy seat cushions that doubles as extra storage space.

(Image: Hanging Out )

For more inspiration on balcony decor check out our Balcony Decor Trends Pinterest board.