Cosby 4 Seater Reclining Dining Set in Natural

Do I actually need recline at the dining table?

Yes, for what happens after the meal more than the meal itself. Most dining sets stop being used the moment plates are cleared: someone gets up to make tea, everyone follows, and the evening moves indoors at six. We designed this set differently.

You tilt each chair back from the upright eating position to a relaxed angle, so the same seat that was right for cutting through Sunday roast turns into the seat that is right for sitting on while you finish a glass of wine and the conversation runs on. That post-meal hour is what keeps four people outside until eight or nine in the evening instead of moving indoors after dessert. For an established couple who use the patio properly through the summer, it is the difference between a dining set that gets left unused most evenings and one that earns its place.

Will the natural rattan fade in the sun?

Hardly at all, because the weave is treated against UV. Fading and brittleness show sooner on lighter tones than on dark grey or brown, so UV stabilisation matters more on a Natural set, not less. The cheap PVC weave on the budget end of the dining-set market dries out, turns chalky, and starts cracking at the joints inside a couple of summers. Our UV-stabilised synthetic rattan doesn't fade through sustained sun.

The colour is also a warm match for traditional paving, warm brick, sandstone, or established planting, which is why customers choose it over the charcoal default when their garden palette already leans classic rather than contemporary.

Is it really all-weather, no cover needed?

Yes, for the frame and the rattan. The frame is aluminium, which cannot rust, and we use a 0.2mm powder coating, two to three times thicker than what most aluminium garden furniture carries, so the coating doesn't break down through wet winters and freezing nights. The hand-woven UV-stabilised synthetic rattan won't fade, rot or go brittle when left outside year-round.

This means you can leave the structure outside through the whole year, so you are not wrestling a cover on and off every time it rains, and you save the £50 to £100 a cover would cost. The cushions are the part that needs the only routine: store them between sittings, indoors or in a storage box outside. In our experience, customers come back ten or fifteen years later saying their rattan is just as good as when they first bought it.

How does this compare to other reclining dining sets at this price?

Cheaper reclining dining sets at the budget end of the market use steel frames that rust at the joints and bolt holes within a couple of wet winters, and they pair the steel with PVC weave that goes brittle in the sun. The cheaper recline tends to be a push-back style that springs forward every time you shift your legs. You'd be back shopping for a replacement set inside three years, and there'll be orange streaks across your paving in the meantime.

Considering a brand-name reclining dining set at £2,000 or more? You'd be paying mainly for the marketing and the polished website. The actual furniture is almost exactly the same as ours: aluminium frame, UV-treated rattan, comparable cushion depth. Cosby is one of our newer Leicestershire-village ranges in a line we have been building from our family-run showroom since 2001, and we design our own ranges and sell them direct without the excessive markup of big name brands.

How much assembly is required?

Very little, and only on the table. The chairs arrive fully assembled. The table goes together in a few minutes with the screws provided.

Delivery is included in the price, 3-7 working days to mainland UK. Your furniture is delivered on pallets via our courier, and we'll email you a timed delivery window so you're not waiting around all day.

Worth knowing: our courier delivers to the kerbside or driveway, they won't take items around the back of the house, and the pallet and boxes are left with you. If you'd prefer a white-glove delivery with set-up and rubbish taken away, get in touch and we can usually help.

We dispatch from our Leicestershire garden centre. "In stock" means we have it here, ready to send, not drop-shipped from a third-party warehouse.

Returns: if you're not happy, let us know within 7 days and you can return it within 30 days for a refund (minus return delivery costs). The furniture must be in its original condition and packaging, and we'll arrange the collection with you.