While we all love the long days and warm weather that accompany the summer months, come August the heat can start to feel like too much of a good thing. This is especially true considering the weather we’ve experienced thus far. Shunning the outdoors altogether is one solution, but with just over a month of summer left, it’d be a shame to spend those beautiful weekend afternoons cooped up indoors. Luckily, in this case you really can have your cake and eat it too. All you have to do to achieve the best of both worlds is to create a little paradise on your own porch, and using the tips below as a guideline to get started, we intend to show you how to do exactly that.

Cool Breeze: Above the other comforts that will make your porch the perfect paradise, the number one obstacle to tackle is the heat. In the sticky outdoors, though, using a traditional fan is a fool’s game as that will only blast you with hot air. The real craftsman will modernize the climate control game with misters that not only blow a nice breeze, but also include a bit of water to make the airflow cool and refreshing. These rapid cooling fans won’t break the bank and the mist rings can even be attached to your existing fan, meaning the only work left to do after purchase is to attach the easy-to-mount adapter and enjoy.

Cold Cans: No, it has nothing to do with being lazy. You work a long hard week, you earn your relaxation, and after you sit down on the porch to enjoy a drink, sometimes it’s nice if you don’t have to get back up to fetch another. Rather than having to bother the Mrs. with your request or spend time training the dog to fetch cans, Coleman makes comfortable cooler chairs that hold up to four cans. Not only are the chairs functional, but they’re portable as well, so when football season kicks into gear the perfect porch chair becomes the perfect tailgate chair. Simple.

Palm Frond Paradise: While the interior decorating of the home may be a job best left for the wife, giving your porch a real ‘paradise’ feel with a bit of your own décor is going to win you points with everyone that gets the chance to enjoy it. Potted palm trees are easy to maintain and bring the tropics straight to you. Not to mention your personal vacation requires no plane ticket and lasts the entire summer long. Add some portable speakers and music to the mix, and you might as well be sitting pretty on a deck in Key West.

TIP: Apply WD-40® Multi-Use Product to any metallic plant holder to keep the moisture from rusting the pot.