Rattan is a cane grown in the far east and western Pacfic region, mostly in Indonesia but also in the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Malaysia, and Bangladesh. With a superficial resemblance to bamboo, rattan is durable, light, and somewhat flexible, making it both easy and ideal for fashioning into furniture. Rattan patio furniture has been popular for a long period of time and lends an understated tropical feel to any deck or patio, open or enclosed.

Many people mistake rattan furniture, patio and otherwise, for wicker furniture-at first glance. What they may not know, in fact, is that wicker itself comes from the inner core of the rattan cane. Rattan also accommodates numerous paints and stains similar to wood, and you can find it in numerous colours shaped into numerous styles.

But rattan patio furniture includes barstools and tables, chaise lounges, basic dining sets, and deep seating sets. The Grenada set offered by Rattan Shack is a good example. It comes in what the company calls a viro antique finish with anodised aluminum frams and includes frosted glass inserted into the table top, with stackable armchairs that do not require seat cushions, though many if not most rattan furnture seatings come with such cushions as standard features.

South Sea Rattan’s Key West series features a sofa, a loveseat, a chair, and an ottoman, with cushions for all seats as well as the ottoman and a glass-topped coffee table. This set lists for $3,299, but South Sea Rattan is now offering it for $2,876.

Eho Studios’s rattan patio dining set has the look and the feeling of contemporary art, featuring two chairs with rounding in the back of the seats and mounting extended from the front edges with no rear supports. The stands resemble sandal tops, and the set includes a small table with a slightly recessed top. You can choose red, black, or white seat cushions for this set, which lists for $1,579 but is being sold now for $979.

If you go online, make sure to visit Amazon.com where you would find a huge selection of rattan patio furnitures in prices that would suit any budget. One featured rattan furniture collection is that of the Anderson Colllections Bellagio dining set which is now worth $2,999. The set includes a rectangular table, different styles of chairs which comes with white cushions.

If you like sectional seating and have a taste for rattan patio furniture, Echo Studios of Minnesota makes a large, three-section rattan patio sofa with thick backs, slender cake-like seat cushions, and a matching round glass-topped coffee table. The set lists at $2,969 but you can buy one through several online outlets beginning at $300 less.

Find out more about Rattan Conservatory Furniture and Outside Wicker Furniture at Anthony Pinitmontree’s site