Outdoor cushions for Greek island terraces, courtyards and built-in benches

Sun, sea glare and the meltemi

Greece is Mediterranean in the plainest sense, hot and dry in summer, mild and wet in winter, though its mountains give it eleven climates in all. The light is generous. Athens gets about 2,192 hours of sunshine a year and southern Crete more than 3,250. The Hellenic National Meteorological Service called the summer of 2024 by far the warmest on record, with average summer temperatures as high as 90°F (32.0°C).

Everything around a Greek cushion reflects. The white walls are there to limit heat absorption, and the sea adds its own glare: the WHO puts sea foam at about 25 percent UV reflection. A cushion on a roof terrace is lit from above and from the side, so saturated colors fade first and dark cushions get hot to sit on at noon.

Then there is the wind. The meltemi blows from about mid-May to mid-September, most often in July and August: north to northeast over the northern islands, northerly in the middle, northwesterly in the south. It can reach force 7-8 on the Beaufort scale, peaks in the afternoon and often drops at night, though sometimes it runs for days. A loose cushion on a roof is a small sail.

• Tie what can be tied. Ties at the back corners of chair pads; ties at the ends of a bench cushion where there is a frame.
• Grip what can't. A masonry bench has nothing to tie to, so ask for a non-slip base.
• Carry the rest in. Throw pillows and thin sunbed pads go inside when the afternoon wind rises.

See tie placement and how to stop a bench cushion sliding.

Benches the house was built with

The traditional Cycladic house began as a single-room cube of about 10 x 13 ft (3 x 4 m) and 8 ft (2.5 m) high, with walls 24-31 in (60-80 cm) thick and small openings, often facing southeast. Walls that thick leave deep window niches that make natural seats, and many terraces and courtyards have masonry benches built in, rendered and whitewashed along with the house.

Masonry is honest but rarely square. Measure the front and the back, both ends, and the depth at each end. If the numbers disagree, send a paper template or a photo with the tape measure lying on the bench. Where a bench turns a corner, decide which cushion owns it; the U-shaped cushion hub covers the geometry.

In Athens, summer living moves out to wide apartment balconies and pergola-shaded courtyards: bistro chairs, a daybed, a long bench. Treat all of it as outdoors. A pergola slows fading; it doesn't stop rain.

Island blue, chalk white and the colors the sun leaves behind

Blue and white is the obvious palette, and it works, but choose the blue with care. Pure cobalt beside chalk-white walls is loud at noon. A softer indigo, washed denim or faded cornflower sits down more gently and forgives a season of sun. Let one color speak and the others listen: a blue body, white or sand piping, one terracotta or caper-green pillow.

Sun-bleached palettes are the other island answer: sand, driftwood gray, olive, sponge yellow, the oatmeal and warm taupe on our hero terrace. They start where the sun would take them anyway, and they let the sea be the loudest blue in view.

Stripes need a direction for every cushion. On a long bench they can run along the length, as one buyer's did; on the matching chair pads, across. Write it down piece by piece, and check colors outdoors, never only on a screen. Start with outdoor cushions, outdoor fabric and the stripe direction Pattern. Which blue is already on your doors and shutters?