We’re celebrating the end of the year with a round-up of 12 great items from our assortment. In the line-up, we have some of our employees’ most recommended items for 2019, as well as fan-favorites we can’t ignore.
The selection includes favorites found in categories we’re learning more about, like cushions and hammocks, and explorations in how we can provide a more holistic product experience, like the awesome grilling accessory sets we have for bbq grills and kettle grills, as well as the products we know inside-and-out and have a special affection for — patio furniture covers and accessories for fishing and RVing.
Foam cushions that add comfort
Montlake cushions are the perfect way to add comfort to your patio. The Heather Indigo colorway is a crowd-pleaser and the chaise-style cushion one of our best-sellers.
The perfect place to relax
This hammock personifies style and
fun-in-the sun. The collapsible spreader bar design lets you roll, stow, and go.
Don't let the catch-of-the-day swim away
The perfect compliment to a float tube, these fins will help propel you to the fishing destination of your dreams.
Tasteful seasonal outdoor storage solutions
Store yard games, pillows, and more in a weather-resistant storage box that coordinates with Ravenna furniture covers.
Captain seat style
Revitalize the look of your cabin and the feel of your captain (and co-captain) seats. Available in grey as a 2-pack.
A smokin' hot cover
Classic Accessories smoker covers help keep your favorite appliance clean and ready for a roast.
Practical and stylish
The Ravenna grill cover will push a patio from pleasing to perfectly poised, even in the off-season.
The perfect way to round out your grill accessories
Grilling enthusiasts and backyard chefs love this accessory set that combines a protective cover with useful cooking utensils.
Out-of-sight and top-of-mind
Sometimes it's the little things that make a big difference. Spare tire covers keep things clean and fresh.
Veranda loveseat cover
Veranda is the collection with the most selection, a timeless standard for patio. Our employees like the simplicity of these two-tone outdoor covers.
Practical pick for RVs
Our employees are particularly familiar with this long-standing product. It provides parked RV wheels with protection from damaging UV rays and prevents the accumulation of dust, dirt, and debris in the off-season.
Wrap things up with holiday-inspired storage
Keep your decor off of the floor with Seasons holiday storage. We love the embossed berry details on this festive fabric.
Find these picks and more great products on our main site.
Covers are often an afterthought for a purchase, something you add on to prolong the life of a product, or something you realize you need when the weather becomes less than ideal. Most companies make covers that are treated as half-hearted commodities, made solely to fill the purpose of covering. They don’t speak to the value you place in your home, the unique conditions you face in your yard, nor your personal preferences. Our patio furniture covers are different. They’re more than fabric. They are unique: designed for you, your needs, and your home.
Patio furniture covers have the primary function of providing protection for your outdoor furniture. At Classic Accessories, we’ve been working on digging deeper, to create covers that keep the end user in mind while maintaining the quality that we strive, as a brand, to uphold.
Every season, we strive to bring something new, interesting, and useful to the table, expanding and improving our cover selection. Selecting developments to make our covers more personalized and unique, ready to adapt to the conditions they will face in their future homes, and ready to be everything you need them to be.
A Legacy of Innovation
It Starts with Covers
Traditionally, covers have been focused on their passive performance. From materials to construction, it’s been about functionality: fitting and shielding.
Does it work? Is it really made for what I’m covering? Can this cover stand up to the elements? Does it protect the underlying materials? Will it enable the object it’s covering to last longer?
Covers, to really be covers, need to own up to those answers.
With Design in Mind
For us, design became a focus for our covers, because aesthetics is such an important factor in any home-bound purchase.
Even if this “works”, does it work for me? Do I like it in my yard or next to my home? Does this feel right? Is it my style?
We’ve spent years creating covers that look carefully at both functionality and design. Covers don’t have to be drab; They can have color, incorporate design lines, and fit into the aesthetics of your home. Our collections, from the two-tone, capable classic that is Veranda™ to the highly protective fabric in an indulgently dark color that constitutes Madrona®, our covers have personality and don’t compromise on protection.
For a quick view of our patio furniture covers and to find the right collection for you, you can consult the lovely chart heading the Patio Furniture Covers page.
For a more in-depth look at some of the design differences that make our long-standing collections unique, check out this blog post.
Conditional Awareness
We’ve refined and incorporated the quality-focused features and technology that go into our covers to make covers that fit your needs. Seeking these catered improvements has led us to several lines of covers constructed with features to address specific conditions that affect your yard and home.
Condition: Nowhere is safe from the sun Solution: FadeSafe®
FadeSafe® fabrics stay strong against sun exposure
Certain environments experience more sun than others, causing materials to weather and fade, losing their luster far too soon.
We wanted to create covers using fabrics that would stay vibrant longer, despite being outdoors. FadeSafe® fabrics, which are solution-dyed (made from material spun from colored yarn, rather than materials dyed after being woven) for colors that last longer against sun exposure. FadeSafe® fabrics are used throughout our Montlake® collection, from the patio furniture covers, cushions, hammocks, umbrellas
Condition: The rain doesn’t go away Solution: RainProof™
RainProof™ lines have critical seams taped
Sometimes it rains. Sometimes it pours. Sometimes, you need a little bit more in the water-resistance arena than what is available in a standard cover. Rather than break out something in the pure plastic (tarp) family, we took a hint from human rain protection and sealed our seams.
In our Madrona® and StormPro™ RainProof™ lines, we reinforce the weather- and water-resistance that most of our cover materials have with special attention to the water-repellency and durability of the fabric using taped seams. Taped seams are common in waterproof garments and tents, involving the application of a sealing tape over seam lines to prevent water from permeating the fabric through holes made in the stitching process.
Condition: Windy weather stirring things up Solution: WindLock®
WindLock®: a convenient attachment system
We want our customers to be blown away by our quality, but don’t want our covers to follow suit. Windy conditions (as well as other, non-weather-related conditions) can make wanting to secure your cover important.
We included buckles, rather than ties, to make fitting and securing covers easier. Taking the buckle a step further, we developed the WindLock® Attachment System (Patent 9155397 B2). This system allows you to secure the cover in a more versatile manner through a hem tunnel system that does not cause the bunching that comes with tying down an elastic hem. It’s a major feature of our Ravenna® collection.
Improving Interactions
These were strides forward, addressing concerns on aesthetics and weather-tolerance. We wanted to go beyond the aesthetics and begin to address the act of covering. Several of our grill cover collections released within the last year, SideSlider™, Porterhouse, and StormPro™, provided touch points to improve your interaction with the cover; covering and uncovering.
Problem: Covers can be cumbersome to put on and take off, and grill covers can see a lot of action over time Solutions: SideSlider™ , Porterhouse™, and StormPro™
SideSlider™ provides an easy on/off process through the adoption of a full-height zipper and the use of reinforced materials that can withstand the sliding process.
Avoiding buckles all together, Porterhouse™ uses large, WrapTite™ panels with multiple points to secure the cover with hook and loop closure strips.
StormPro™ grill covers adopt a split-access skirt that provides access beneath the cover while in use as while simplifying cover installation and removal.
Along the train of thought of seeking better experiences with covers, we arrived at an interesting juncture. We had started to cover what happens when the cover’s on a product, but…what happens when it’s not?
Experience Matters
There is a growing focus in the industry on managing the full life cycle of a product, from use to reuse and beyond. We took a step in that direction, asking how can we best help people who have covers, when the covers aren’t in use.
What do you do with a cover after you take it off?
Fold it. Well, we do, at the least. This is especially true amongst our Design and Creative teams. It’s impressive to watch our long-tenure designers take down an RV cover and get it back to nearly the factory-fold. However, those teams spend inordinate amounts of time with the covers, draping, designing, measuring, staging, photographing, and more. The finesse we have comes from constant interaction.
Our consumers would only be dealing with covers on a seasonal or environmentally-biased basis. If folding isn’t simple or intuitive for someone, confusion and chaos generally ensue, in the form of great swaths of wadded fabric. It’s less tasking to just shove covers into a storage container for the season; we even know that some people use our cushion storage bags to this end. Stuff-to-stow is an easy answer and acceptable for some; however, the end result is rarely pretty and leaves some dissatisfied, if the quantity of inquiries we get to Customer Support regarding how to fold covers is any indication.
There are people who want to fold the covers, but it’s neither an intuitive nor simple process. Frustration with the covers, and/or spending unseemly amounts of time trying to fold the covers neatly, for storage or presentation, are not great experiences. We weren’t okay with that. Great experiences are what we strive for, and we were leaving some customers behind.
Solving the Problem
A more nuanced look at the “why”
for folding covers informed our answer. For some, folding covers is part of the
process of beautifying their home, ensuring that things are neat and tidy at
all levels. A folded cover is smaller and easier to manage. It takes up less
room while in storage and is easier to bring out of storage, especially if it’s
part of a larger organizational system. Poorly folded covers do not fit in the discrete
cabinets or other storage options already at home in and around the patio. Folding
covers is about simplicity, neatness, and organization.
For the people who do fold, or
want to fold, we determined three key puzzles to solve:
How to fold a
cover simply
How to make
the folds in such a way that the folded cover is neat and small
How to make
this easily repeatable
Creating how-to-fold tutorials was the simple answer—and is something that we might pursue moving forward, for people who love our covers, in any category, but struggle with storage neatness or fitting the covers into their current organization system. This answered the “how-to” question, potentially the “neat” question, and was repeatable. It was not, however, the most elegant solution; certain materials and cover configurations simply cannot be folded down to a small size. The cover itself prevents it. Covers are designed to fit furniture, not to be folded.
We needed a cover that was
designed to be folded.
Intentional Design
The solution took time. We wanted to design something that was able to be folded consistently and intuitively, without compromising on the quality of the fabric, the fit, or the aesthetics.
Our designers looked at cover handling, how people interacted not only with covers, but with the touch points on the covers. How someone might approach taking off a grill cover as opposed to a chair or sectional.
Once key interactions were determined, the puzzle narrowed into a game of constructing the cover in such a way that when the fabric was lifted away from the object it was covering and was subject only to gravity and the natural deformations caused by the material, folding was intuitive. Happening almost in response to being removed from the furniture.
Handling Covers
The handle became a focal point in the process. Handles are, in name and function, what people reach towards when starting to uncover furniture. The best way to organize the steps of cover folding was the strategic placement of handles on the cover. In Storigami™, the handles were placed in locations that were easily reachable, instinctively part of lifting the cover, and naturally causing the fabric to begin to gather in an encouraging way.
“Intuitive” became our focus. We wanted to create a cover that folded naturally and used gravity for that purpose.
-Delina Wells, Designer and Market Trend Analyst
An Answer in Seams
Handles would give people a first step, something to grab onto to begin their interaction with our cover. It was simple. How to intuitively drive the next step took more strategy. Most fabrics do not have a shape that they hold on their own. The form of the material is determined by its attachments and interactions with other pieces of fabric. Getting the fabric to act the way it needed to in order to be simply folded required experimenting with seams. It required discovering which constructions would cause the fabric to fold the way we desired it to fold.
Determining the seam placement and types of seam took time. Patterns our designers were familiar with could serve as templates in some cases but proved inadequate in others. The fabric had to cover the intended object completely, but the fabric panels and seam lines needed to work together so that there were even, graceful folds.
Storigami™ was a unique design experience. Each style had to be approached in a different way and each provided its own challenge.
I had to figure out the best construction and seam placement to achieve the folding function in an intuitive and accessible way. Starting was always the hardest part, it wasn’t always easy to see how an item would fold, and it would take some time to find the best method of folding that was both intuitive and easy to use.
The best part of the process were the “eureka” moments, ideas would come up out of the blue and it was always exciting when I found the best way to fold a style.
–Jose Derteano, Associate Designer
Our design team spent over a year perfecting the design of the covers, ultimately creating something truly special, Storigami™.
Storigami™
Storigami™ is debuting as our newest patio furniture cover collection; however, it’s more than a cover. It’s an exploration, a new way of thinking about experiences in outdoor living spaces.
Storigami™ was a proof of concept that demonstrated the innovation that comes from exploring customer experiences and designing to enhance product interactions and use.
In Storigami ™, you have a collection of covers with thoughtful attention being given to your personal preferences for product storage and upkeep. It’s a collection for the neat-at-heart and tirelessly organized.
Resonating deeply with our desire to provide thoughtful solutions for our consumers, the Storigami™ collection is a milestone for Classic Accessories®.
When looking for a cover, don’t settle. Classic Accessories offers a variety of covers made for you and your furniture. Whether you want a cover that fits into your organizational style, a cover with features catered to your home’s weather conditions, or a cover that simply speaks to you aesthetically, we’ve got you covered.
We are loving the weather we’ve been experiencing this week. It’s a welcome relief, both in that we’ve gotten a dip in temperatures, putting us closer to our normal for this time of year, and that the wind is currently blowing in such a way that we are (for now) largely free of smoke from the fires around us. We’re hopeful that our neighbors in the Cascades, Northeast Washington, British Columbia, Oregon, and California get relief soon from the actual blaze soon.
If you are able, we still think it’s a great time to get out and enjoy some of the summer sunshine. Late summer and early fall means it’s time for school, sports, and weekend adventures. Your patio will soon be seeing a different crowd of people. Friends and family will visit for Labor Day, friends from school and their families will join you for dinner or after game gatherings, and your family may find themselves truly looking forward to their evenings in the backyard as time spent together away from work and school.
There’s still time to make a change to your patio to carry you into an autumn of relaxation and lounging. To help celebrate the end of the season and continue our celebration of the introduction of cushions to our Ravenna Collection, we’re having a sale on all Cushions, Umbrellas, Hammocks, and Frameless Furniture. Save 20%* through the end of September on items in those categories using the discount code: OL2018 at checkout on our website. We think that both Montlake and Ravenna offer a great selection of colors. The Henna fabrics of Montlake ensure a pop of color with subtle complexity offset by the solid Antique Beige and Light Charcoal color ways, while the neutrals in Ravenna cushions add an especially warm and inviting ambiance to any yard that you can enliven with Spice, Mallard Green or Empire Blue.
If you haven’t gotten a chance to check out these products, which stemmed from our larger cover collections of the same names, we have pages that take a deep dive into the overarching features and feelings behind the collections, look books to inspire your patio.
We’ve shown you the Montlake FadeSafe Collection page before; the Ravenna Collection page is new and features Ravenna Cushions and Covers (as well as some lovely lifestyle images orchestrated and photographed by our in house Creative Solutions team).
You several options to experience the collections:
Dive right into the product pages with “Shop the Collection”
Learn more about the Covers, Cushions, etc. by clicking those categories on the Desktop version or “About …” on the Mobile version.
Explore the lifestyle imagery by clicking “Shop the Look”
Both collections are excellent choices, as two of our top patio cover collections (and fabrics). Montlake is more durable and is geared to a modern crowd, while Ravenna nods to a sophisticated style that is more simplistic, yet feature-rich.
We hope everyone has a wonderful Labor Day weekend filled with both with fun and relaxation.
*Exclusions may apply; subject to change based on availability.
It’s been quite a busy and hot week; we’re ready to welcome the weekend. Overdue for some quiet relaxation and anticipating long nights enjoying the cool off that comes with sunset? Make sure your patio is ready for some sitting time.
Last week we reviewed and ranked patio furniture materials, and brought up Ravenna Cushions as a solid option for taking any patio furniture material to the next level of comfort, with recommendations for cushion color by material.
Ravenna Cushions make use of the color palette you see on the Ravenna Covers, with the addition of several new, more diverse hues that coordinate with the existing neutral tones in the fabric and webbing of the collection (Dark Taupe, Mushroom, Espresso). Overall Ravenna has a rich, yet reserved color scheme of warm and inviting hues. It works well with colors naturally in your yard as well as the tones you typically find in patio furniture.
Hands down, we think the best feature is the waterfall construction. That, in combination with the fabric’s water resistance, makes sure that Ravenna cushions are ready for quick cleanups after some of life’s small spills. Check out our Product Manager’s quick clean demo:
Ravenna also has click-close straps for easy adjustment and to keep the cushion in place and uses the Classic Accessories foam for added cushion comfort. To see the cushions in action check out the full video below or shop the cushions now.
This past June, some of our Business Development team was sent down to Lake Oswego in Oregon to do a photoshoot. I asked Dorik how that shoot went and was even able to get my hands on some candid shots of the team working to get the right angles. Here’s what Double D had to say about their trip down south:
“The team consisted of myself (Dorik or Double D), Heather, Brad, Jake and Kristian our photographer.
To back up a little bit when we were first looking for home to rent, we were tasked to look for homes where we could do multiple patio collections. Boy did we find a great home!
The plan was to shoot Madrona, Montlake and Ravenna patio collections. Why not throw Montlake cushions and Umbrellas? Sure, why not!
Started to plan what furniture props we would need to bring, product we would need to order from the warehouse and how we would transport all this stuff to Oregon. Mutiple cars maybe or a big moving van?
Idea alert!: What if we were able to rent one of those Class B RVs. Yep, you guessed it, we would be trying to do a lifestyle RV photo as well:
Trip down to Oregon was pretty easy, a cool 3 hours. House was tricky to find but we all arrived safely.
The following 3 days are what I’m truly grateful for.
Photoshoots are challenging due to sunrise, sunset, bright sun, shadows, clouds, electrical failure and hunger just to name a few.
Up at 4:45AM with the last camera shot around 9pm.
These are long days and the team never stopped making things happen. Everyone helped:
Building furniture, staging furniture, setting up a cover collection shot, steaming wrinkles from fabric, discussing where to shoot the next shot, filming new video ideas, making it rain and somehow put together food at the end of the day. (thank you Heather!)”
Check out the final photos from the shoot:
Take advantage of our 25% off our items NOW through the end of September with discount code: PREFALL at checkout on classicaccessories.com
Kent, WA; November 5, 2015 – Classic Accessories is excited to announce that they have been awarded a patent on the buckle system found on their Ravenna Patio Furniture Cover Collection. Charlie D’Amato, Classic Accessories’ Product Development and Design Manager, states, “Our patented buckle system is designed to enhance a tailored, custom like fit around 4 legs with a lateral connection belted bottom that is fully adjustable. This addition tidies up any extra fabric which lends to a clean and crisp look.”
All legs, front and back, are taken into consideration in the buckle system with easy glide straps making it easier than ever to make small adjustments to the neutral yet stylish design that will fit perfectly into any outdoor space with over 40 sizes to choose from.
The US Patent states, “Prior designs can be unsightly and difficult to remove. Accordingly, there is a need for an improved furniture cover that maintains positive aesthetics while increasing the ease and usability of the cover, allowing it to securely connect to the furniture and ensuring the cover will remain in position in all kinds of environments and conditions.”
The Ravenna Patio Furniture Cover Collection by Classic Accessories combines a striking tailored style with durability, fade resistance and convenient features. The Ravenna Collection adds style to your patio and will protect your outdoor furniture for years. Available at major home accessories retailers, the Ravenna Collection is a new approach to furniture cover design blending a distinctive look with exceptional durability.
We all have moments when we look out in our backyards or back patios and think it’s time for a change. Whether it is simply rearranging outdoor patio furniture, seasonal gardening, or maybe a major project, changing things up in the patio can be a great and rewarding way to maintain variety at home.
This is very self-serving, but one thing we’d like you to consider is the effect that patio furniture covers can have on the look and feel of your space. With tons of different options to choose from, our covers can make a huge difference in how you see your patio when it’s not in use (the covers are very handsome) and when it is (all your furniture is super clean).
So keep us in mind when you’re thinking about what to do to make your patio catch your eye or that of your neighbors.
Here are a few examples of what your outdoor space could look like:
This past June, some of our Business Development team was sent down to Lake Oswego in Oregon to do a photoshoot. I asked Dorik how that shoot went and was even able to get my hands on some candid shots of the team working to get the right angles. Here’s what Double D had to say about their trip down south:
