For high quality outside furniture, I would recommend Pelican if you have one close enough to you. It has a great selection, very high quality, but on the expensive side.

We recently purchased a cast aluminum set at Fortunoff's Backyard Store. They've been running some really good sales lately. The set we got came with 4 chairs, plus 2 extra chairs, along with Sunbrella fabric cushions, which we are storing in a Rubbermaid plastic deck box when not in use (we've stored our PB cushions in the deck box for the past 4-5 years, and they held up great--bone dry, no musty smell, perfect condition). The set was supposed to come with a bonus umbrella as well, but we opted to take a credit for that and special ordered an umbrella in the matching Sunbrella fabric (s/b here in another week or so).

We purchased a full set cover from Fortunoff as well, which is supposed to be large enough to cover the table, all 6 chairs, as well as the little end table we had also purchased on sale (we'll store it stacked on top of the dining table). This way we can leave the set sitting out on our deck during the winter months (we are in southern NYS).

HTH!

thanks for the responses, both these places are within driving distance so i will check them out.

do u think if i go later in the season, they will be cheaper?? do they run sales in the winter or late fall??

thanks again,

e.

I definitely think so.....if you don't need the furniture for this summer, I would wait until the season is over to buy it. I would look now, so you can see the selection and then just keep checking back (both places usually send out flyers) to see when their big sales are. We looked at both Pelican and Fortunoff (we live in North NJ) and found that they had relatively the same price point. Def on the expensive side compared to other chain stores, but worth the quality. There is also Branch Brook which sells alot of swimming pool products, but has a pretty big selection of outside furniture too. I didn't think their quality was as good as the other two places.
We bought a wrought iron table with chairs and bought the huge cover to fit over it. We bought everything from Pelican, but I think you could probably find the cover cheaper on Amazon as long as you know the right measurements to fit the table and chairs.

You might pick a style or manufacturer that you like then call the manufacturer and ask them for dealers in your areaa and then shop those dealers. A far as leaving it outside one good option is to cover it and leave it under a raised deck if you have one otherwise you could also cover with a furniture blanket available at Home Depot then place a sheet of plywood over it then cover it again. You can leave outdoor furniture out all winter with just a cover but the added prtoection should make it last longer.

thanks for the replies.

i don't have a raised deck or any roof for protection as of now. hopefully we will have that done next year (roof)and then i will some protection for the furniture.
i don't have anywhere inside to store it.
i need furniture that can stay outside, with a cover, and it will be ok.

i do like some of the styles from both above mentioned places. just waiting for them to go on sale....

thanks again everybody!!!