The verdict is out: I NEED to make my own canopy for the backyard.
Don’t get me wrong, I love it here in the UK but it is still a tat early for sitting outside in the garden for any stretch of time. It’s not so much that it is too cold or that the sun is not yet strong enough ( ~ I have been told that it gets so sunny here you can burn your face).
Rather, I need a cheery solution to better handle those surprise 5 min rain falls.
You know …
You walk outside with your coffee, tablet, portfolio of ideas and a small box of home-baked cookies. You sit down and make yourself comfortable. You just get into things, and …. all of a sudden you have to bring everything inside. If you don’t you and all your belongings will get s-o-a-k-e-d!!! But, very shortly after, you could bring everything out again. But you don’t. Sad. Something needs to happen!!!
DIY Canopy for Backyard, Deck or Porch
To avoid all that hassle, a super – simple garden canopy such as this one depicted here would be be sufficient. While a round tent-shape cloth canopy would better match the organic patio shape in my back yard, the rectangular nature of this model here is the easiest ever: no measuring, no cutting: use that fabric as it comes off the roll!
And the general idea of making your own cement-based planters in which to place elegant bamboo sticks is brilliant.
The construction of this canopy in the picture is super-sturdy as the 4 planters are filled first with some cement (handmade by you), then some gravel (poured by you) and then topped with soil and decorative plants (planted by you). Just before you pour that cement, have a friend or your daughter hold a wide pvc pipe in the center of the pot. Use this pipe to put the bamboo poles in. So clever and tidy. And verrrryyyy easy to do. I am all inspired.
This is an easy, budget home decorating solution.
photo credit | project source: AllYou (read the howto tutorial here with more detail)
How to Make Your Own Canopy
This canopy is held down by 4 sturdy bamboo poles that are anchored down by a total weight of 240-lb of cement and 40-lb. of gravel. Plus the weight of the 4 pots themselves. Say 300 lbs. all up. Heavy, right?! Well, this is the sort of weight that you will need if you are having a canopy of this size: 3 yards of 54” wide fabric. It’s outdoor quality fabric, probably some sort of canvas, which tends to be rather heavy.
I am spelling this out to you because you will probably make a canopy to suit the size of your patio or backyard. I do.
While there are many variables at play: if you make your canopy to be less than 3-yard, it is probably sturdier. You could add a 5th pole at the back in the middle.
I think that a round design is sturdier again, but then you will have to sew that fabric in triangle shapes, making this project a lot more work.
Another factor to keep in mind is the wind. If you live in a windy zone, you will want to go for lighter-weight fabric and heavier bases to hold it down. I am not saying this flippantly. We now live by the sea. Ok. They say we had the worst storms in hundred years, but the reality was that we experienced some severe wind a few weeks ago that knocked the bike shed of our neighbors over. So, unusual or not, it may be a reality for you and me, and so we might as well design things properly with our reality in mind. And besides the weight management to hold that large piece of canopy fabric down, be sure to also use sturdy fabric fasteners to attach the fabric canopy to the support poles.
OK. There you have it. My insights on how to build your own canopy from scratch. I may add future instructions as I go along. But this is it for now.
Garden & Gardening Projects
Be sure to enjoy our entire outdoor living section!!!!! We have featured so many good tutorials for outdoor DIY & craft project now, that I really want to highlight this blog section!
Choose between:
Or, simply search for ‘porch’, ‘patio’, ‘outdoor’, ‘garden’, ‘gardening’ etc., and you’ll get to browse around for yourself and find even more garden crafts & DIY projects.
Be sure to find the DIY outdoor shower (so cool!), the recycled tire swing, my favorite porches, how to make a garden path, wooden or stone garden benches, DIY eco-friendly fire pits, vertical garden tutorials. And my latest article, how to make your own seed bombs.
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