Get your glazed balcony ready for winter
You don’t have to retreat indoors just because summer is over. When the snowy landscape glistens, you can bring that same atmosphere to your glazed balcony in your rental home. Here are some tips for creating a cosy winter vibe!
1. Clean away the summer
Out with the summer, in with the winter! The first step in preparing the balcony of your SATOhome for winter is cleaning up after the summer and autumn. Take any wilted summer plants to the bio-waste bin at your building. Clean the balcony glazing of street dust, pollen, and leaves. Vacuum and mop the floor, but use water sparingly to avoid it dripping onto your neighbour's balcony. Once the balcony is clean, it's much easier to decorate it for the new season.
2. Protect your perennial balcony plants
Your glazed balcony may not have the natural insulation that snow provides, but with a few tricks, you can help outdoor plants survive through to spring. When the floor starts to feel cold underfoot, it's cold for the plants as well. Place a rug, a styrofoam sheet, or a bundle of newspapers under the pots. As the first frost bites, cover the plants with frost cloth, and during severe frosts, add thick blankets. However, keep in mind that very frost-sensitive plants are better off indoors for the winter.
3. Decorate with evergreens for winter
Update your balcony for winter by adding evergreen plants – they belong to winter like a carrot to a snowman's nose! Evergreens remain lush throughout the winter and are perfect as year-round balcony plants.
The most frost-resistant include junipers, dwarf spruces, arborvitae, and boxwoods. Pines also thrive outdoors all year round.
Place the planting pots in metal or woven baskets and arrange them on wooden crates or logs. This will complete the winter look.
4. Warm up chilly toes
While a glazed balcony is always a few degrees warmer than the outside, its floor can still feel icy in the winter. A balcony rug or insulated thermal mat will save your cold toes. The mat also adds seasonal colour to your balcony. Winter tones like white, natural shades such as beige, and frosted hues of pink and blue work particularly well. Place warm slippers by the door so you can slip them on before stepping out onto the balcony.
5. Create a cosy seating area
A glazed balcony is like an extra room in your home – even in winter! Simply swap out the light summer fabrics for more substantial ones and create a cosy nest for sitting. Thanks to the glazing, blankets and cushions will stay dry even in winter.
Wrap yourself in a soft blanket, settle into a chair draped with a sheepskin, sip a hot drink, and admire the wintry view from your balcony.
6. Add extra warmth with a heater
If your balcony has a plug socket, you can add warmth with a floor-standing outdoor heater. It heats surfaces and skin directly, rather than the surrounding air. Modern electric heaters are also energy efficient. By keeping the heater – or any electrical appliance – on only when you're in the space, you avoid wasting energy and maintain fire safety.
7. Light up darkening evenings
As the evenings start to get darker, it’s time to add some cosy lighting to your balcony. Battery-operated LED candles, lanterns, and string lights are easy to arrange among your plants. Wrap string lights around evergreen plants or hang them on a drying rack. You can even make your own light decorations using dried branches, for example.
8. Decorate the balcony for the holidays
Finally, you can tweak your glazed balcony to match the season. What’s your style: a spooky Halloween or a cheerful winter wonderland? If you hang curtains on your balcony, we recommend light colours to maintain the uniform look of the building's façade. You can even decorate a Christmas tree on the balcony! You can admire the tree from indoors, and on your glazed Christmas balcony, you can sip mulled wine in comfort, even on cold days.
A seasonally decorated balcony creates a magical atmosphere that extends through the window into the indoor spaces of your home.