Last week I did a little shopping and asked on the An Inch of Gray Facebook page which of these we should keep, and which we should return:
1) 11 ft solar telescoping umbrella from Bed Bath and Beyond
Or
2) 9.5 x 9.5 Metal Pergola from Home Depot.
I am in love!
Definitely the right choice, even with one caveat.
Here's the thing:
It looks terrific, but it doesn't provide any rain protection for our furniture. I don't like heading to the deck in the morning with the doggies and my tea and getting a wet rear end from rain and dew. The kind of tent/canopy I was looking for originally would have provided rain protection, but none would fit on the side of the deck.
Here are two examples of what I originally wanted, but were just too big for the only rectangular space on our deck.
So, with our deck size/shape, it was either pergola (and only sun protection) or umbrella (rain and sun protection, but the potential for it to blow away).
Go, Team Pergola!
It makes such a cozy space, and we have eaten dinner there the past few nights. It's going to be a great place to sit with a cold beer. Truthfully, on the hottest Virginia days, it will be too hot, and on rainy days it's a no go as well. But that doesn't mean I'm not smiling every time I walk by and look at it!
Ta-Da!
Shade cover pulled back:
I'd love to add a rug, but Tim is against having a wet rug sit on a wet deck. As you can see, we need to re-stain the deck. Thoughts?
P.S.
If you like the look of a pergola and have an even smaller deck area, this (8 x 8 one) might work for you:
