While outdoor furniture has undergone its fair share of aesthetic transformations over the last century — from natural wicker to synthetic resin, Adirondack chairs to sleek lounges, curlicued wrought iron to ribbed aluminum — it has almost always looked, in the end, like it was purpose-built for the great outdoors. In many ways, this was a function of practicality, as it’s incredibly difficult to build a piece of furniture that can actually withstand the elements, from ongoing dirt accumulation to full-on inclement conditions (which, if you have a sprinkler system, is pretty much every morning around 4AM). But something began to happen in the last decade or so, accelerated by the pandemic into a full-fledged trend: Brands began to treat outdoor furniture as simply interior pieces with different materiality, reimagining some of their most iconic works for outdoor use.

A certain level of indoor-outdoor fungibility has always existed — did you know that the Eames Aluminum Group was originally developed as an outdoor seating element for the Eero Saarinen and Alexander Girard–designed Miller House? But the idea of weather-proofing our favorite living room furniture has gained traction over the last few years as we’ve (often necessarily) spent more and more time outdoors. While these adaptations often come in the form of historical reissues that get the moisture-resistant treatment, contemporary studios are realizing the benefit of bringing the indoors outside as well, with backyard pieces that could hold their own in the most sumptuously designed interior. When we heard that one of our favorite brands, Ellison Studios, was launching a capsule collection of some of their most beloved designs in outdoor-friendly fabrics and materials, we realized it was time to round up some of our favorites in the game.

1. Muse Sofa by Ellison Studios

Perhaps no Australian furniture brand has infiltrated the American space as much as Ellison Studios. And while some of their best-known pieces, like the Chromeo lounge and the Float sofa, remain indoor only, the studio reimagined a capsule collection of favorites for outdoor use last year. As of today, the collection is available through Ellison Studio’s American sales partner, Design Within Reach. There’s a chunky-legged coffee table in molded concrete and a sculptural dining chair in UV-resistant molded plastic, but our favorite piece is the modular Muse sofa, which comes sheathed in a durable fabric over a quick-drying foam filling and galvanized aluminum frame. The modular Muse can be configured as a two- or three-seater, or an armless unit with an ottoman, but the most patio-friendly offering is probably the corner sectional unit, for maximum lounging.

2. Marenco Sofa by Mario Marenco for Arflex

The Marenco sofa, with its distinctively plump cushions that whittle to a knife’s edge, is just one of the many 1970s-era Italian sofas that’s been experiencing an absolutely wild resurgence over the past few years. In 2021, for the 50th anniversary of Mario Marenco’s classic, Arflex smartly decided to release this modular king in weather-friendly fabrics.

3. Utrecht XL Chair by Gerrit Rietveld for Cassina

In recent years, Cassina has gone all-in on transforming some of the most beloved pieces from its catalog for outdoor use — using hydroformed steel rather than wood for Gio Ponti’s Superleggera chair, or reskinning Le Corbusier, Pierre Jeanneret, and Charlotte Perriand’s cube-shaped 1928 Fauteuil Grand Confort with a water-repellent fabric and painted metal frame that’s impervious to the elements. One of our favorites is Gerrit Rietveld’s Utrecht XL Outdoor, which preserves the original’s unmistakable blocky De Stijl aesthetics, but with recycled PET filling, a removable water-repellent canvas, and raised and adjustable feet that allow the seat to perch on a patio without absorbing water and dirt.

4. Pacha Armchair by Pierre Paulin for Gubi

Originally designed in 1975, Pierre Paulin’s cloudlike Pacha chair sits low to the ground and has a puckered seat that embraces the user — perfect for cozying up al fresco with a book or aprés-swim. The outdoor versions feature a specially developed membrane that is both water-resistant and breathable to ensure quick drying after exposure to rain, plus a swivel base made from moisture-resistant material to provide increased protection in humid conditions.

5. Roly Poly chair by Faye Toogood for Driade

Faye Toogood’s Roly Poly chair was released in 2014 and was initially available in materials from fiberglass to gold leaf, and more. A few years later, the chair was licensed by Driade and made available in an indoor-outdoor friendly rotational-molded polyethylene. There’s a reason this chair is ubiquitous: Its ability to shape-shift both indoors and out is part of its appeal.