Sunday, September 11, 2011

DIY Sunday: $5.00 Umbrella Stand (& End Table too!)

Hi Everyone!

I am writing this on Sunday, but probably won't submit it until Monday...just so you don't get a blog over load! It was quite a busy weekend with the craft show, but I did get one craft in. And for all of those people out there that ask me how I do this all with a full time job I have two things to say, 1) I don't sleep or clean as much as a should and 2) My husband is super awesome. I get up at 6:00 am, leave for work at 7:00, get there at 8:00, work until 4:30, get home at 5:30, play with my daughter until bed time at 7:00 or 8:00, craft or do a project while my husband studies until 9 or 10, then go to bed. I am a tired girl! Thankfully my husband does things like watch my daughter while I finish something up, paint a display at 10 pm at night or lets me take a nap on the weekends.

This week's project was a necessity for the craft show, but I'll be using it at home too. This was my first outdoor show. I didn't want to get a tent quite yet since I don't know how many outdoor shows I'll be doing, but I still wanted some shade. So, Tami from Cozy Trends had an umbrella I could use, but I didn't have an umbrella stand. So, why not make one? (or two?)


Umbrella Stand

Materials:
Quikrete Quick Set Concrete (The kind in the red bag!) $5.00 per 50lb bag which is good for two stands.
Bucket/Old Planter (I had these sitting around the house. Very easy to find secondhand) Free
PVC Pipe (I had some sitting around. You only need a very small piece) Free/$1.00
Duct Tape (Had sitting around)
Rubber Gloves (Concrete and hands don't mix well)

Optional: Wood Circle, Rocks, Various Pretty things

Total Cost: Less than $5.00


My new favorite product!


Planter we had sitting around...


Bucket and PVC pipe from old photo backdrop display I made a few years ago.

Directions

1. Cut PVC Pipe

Stick your PVC pipe in the middle of the planter. You will want it to be level with or slightly below the rim of your bucket and planter. You can use any kind of saw you want to cut it (I've used hand saws in the past) If you measure before you leave the house or are buying a planter new, the employees at most home improvement stores will cut the pipe for you too. (And if you buy the pipe by the yard/feet or whatever, this is a great idea.)

2. Tape & Center

Use duct tape to tape the bottom of your pipe close. Get a piece of tape as wide as the planter/bucket and tape the pipe into the center of the planter/bucket.


How backwards is this? Black PVC pipe and white duct tape.


Pipe taped into position.

3. Pour & Water

This is why I LOVE Quikrete. You don't have to mix. Put your gloves on. Pour the powder into the bucket around your PVC pipe. Add the recommended amount of water. (About a 1/2 gallon for 1/2 the bag) Let it set. Seriously. That's it! It will harden within 20 minutes and be strong within 4 hours. I only used a half bag of concrete so the concrete only fills half the bucket. If you fill the bucket to right below the PVC pipe, you don't have to do anything else. As it drys, make sure it's smooth on top and you'll have a (heavy) end table/umbrella stand.

This is where you can get creative. If you want to decorate your concrete, let it get drier and put things in the concrete...jewels, carve words, tile...whatever! You could also fill the bucket with a pretty rock or even cut holes on the side to drain and make the whole thing a planter!


Bucket ready for water.

My father-in-law cut me a circle out of wood that is just a bit bigger than my planter with a hole in the middle to match my PVC pipe. (out of scrap wood he had sitting around) I'll just have to set that on top of the planter and instant outdoor end table!

If you use a bucket and you don't need an end table, you can do what I did for the craft show. I just put a piece of fun fabric over the bucket and tied a piece of ribbon around the outside. It's a portable stand too because I can lift it with the bucket handle.


Ignore the ugly duct tape I used to keep it in place and the sloppy job with fabric. I was in a hurry that morning. It's much more pretty!


Umbrella stand finished.




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her latest blog said...

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