We all have that one moment during the rainy season when we pick up our trusty umbrella, gathering dust in a storage somewhere, and find out it is totally broken. And then there are times when we just don’t want to bring them anymore because for some reason they look old and tired. Time to get a new one, perhaps. Or maybe you can make one, who knows?
But before you throw that good old umbrella out the door, you might want to consider an upgrade. This weekend, try to busy yourself with some DIY projects that will help you get through the rainy days. Whether it matches your outfit or not, you need protection from the rain and all the coughs and colds associated with it. Along with rainy season recipes to keep you warm and healthy, umbrellas are a condo essential especially at this time of the year.
Stay dry this season with some DIY umbrella projects that will surely sweep the rainy day blues away.
Personalize with paint
Have you ever walked into a store to look for an umbrella but felt like everything looked the same? Was there any point in your life that you actually felt excited about buying one? You probably felt an ounce of excitement when you were a kid, with all the fun cartoon designs. But as you get older, you knew you had to settle with neutral-colored umbrellas.
But that doesn’t mean you can’t do anything about it. The easiest way to make an umbrella look cheerful and interesting is to give it some fresh paint. Most umbrellas are made of nylon material and fabric paint would adhere to it perfectly. You can trace sophisticated geometric shapes on them or have letter stencils. You can even paint your own favorite rainy day quote to keep things interesting. Something like: “Rain is just confetti from the sky.”
The best thing about this is that you can personalize your umbrella and not make it look like everyone else’s. Plus, your kids can trace their favorite shapes using their favorite colors too. Now, everyone in the family has an umbrella that they won’t mind bringing along all throughout the season.
Make it fruity
This still involves paint but it is so fun that it deserves its own segment. If you want your umbrellas to remind you of summer (even if it is raining pretty hard), go all out and give ordinary looking-umbrellas a taste of summer. Turn them into a lemon, kiwi or watermelon.
All you need is a plain-colored umbrella. It could be green, orange, yellow, pink, and so on. Then you will need a painter’s tape and fabric-safe craft paint. This is one of the best DIY umbrella methods because they are sure to make someone smile amid the gloomy weather.
Use the tape for clean lines and paint within those lines, working from top to bottom. Then, peel them off. If you think you need to paint some seeds or a curved bottom, just go ahead. Tape, paint, and peel. And then you have a fruit slice umbrella, perfect for the rainy days.
Hang it like a wreath
You don’t have to wait for Christmas to make wreath a fitting decoration. You can make one out of your old, probably broken umbrella that is just perfect for the rainy season. This is also a departure from the traditional round wreaths and will surely make condo living even more chic and interesting.
If you’re wondering how to make a DIY umbrella wreath, don’t worry. You don’t need screws and bolts for this. You just need an old umbrella and some blooms. Tie it in the middle with a ribbon so it looks like a bouquet. Then, get some fresh flowers (plastic will do, too) and arrange them at the top. Then, let it hang out the front door as if welcoming the rainy season. Five minutes is all you need.
Up in the air…or ceiling
There are streets in Asia adorned with hanging umbrellas or parasols. Now, why don’t you get that idea off the streets and into your home?
Suspend colorful umbrellas or paper parasols (upside down or not) in your living room or your kid’s bedroom. You can go for vintage, funky ones to suit your granny chic design sensibilities or you may opt for fun, bright ones for your kid’s room.
Hanging umbrellas are especially recommended for homes with high ceilings. You don’t see a lot of ways on how to make your ceiling look more vibrant, and this is definitely worth a try. This is also good for homeowners with a porch or backyard. Line up the umbrellas along with a string of lights and they will be a sight to behold.
Make a ceiling lamp
We all have that broken umbrella stored somewhere around the house. It’s time to dust it off and create something extraordinary out of it. You will need just the shade for this one. Take off the stem and the handle and hang a bulb instead. Put it up in the ceiling and now you have a lamp.
Don’t feel sad for the old umbrella skeleton. It could actually make for a good chandelier. Decide on the diameter that you want and then put some halogen bulbs and crystal. This DIY umbrella project is sure to brighten up the mood.
Fun in a play tent
Your kids need not feel bad about not being able to go outside and play during rainy days. You can always bring their playground inside the house. And all you need is an old umbrella.
Take the fabric out of the metal structure of an average sized umbrella. You need to attach this to a hula hoop and a panel of curtain. With a bit of sewing, you’ll have a roomy tent for the kids to enjoy.
Now, your kids won’t have to sing “rain, rain go away” anymore because fun never stops in their umbrella play tent.
Umbrella shopping bag
This is the ultimate way to repurpose an old umbrella. And the upside of it is you get to do the environment a favor by reducing your use of plastic bags.
This DIY project involves some sewing skills. But the good thing about using the umbrella fabric is that it is durable and very easy to sew. It also has lines and designs that will make the process easier. And the fabric is obviously water-resistant so you can carry it just about anywhere.
The rainy days shouldn’t make you feel sad and dreary. All you need is to get creative with your good old umbrella and you would certainly find more reasons to cheer up.