My local Wal-Mart is selling Shade Cloth, "Coolaroo" Brand, available as either 70% or 90% shade shade factor. Coolaroo claims at least 10 years of UV resistance. I believe that Coolaroo is mostly an Aussie brand (manufactured in China and sold worldwide), so it is usually promoted as protecting people from excessive UV exposure. I really don't understand why Aussies worry about skin cancer; I just thought that Crocadile Dundee would just pull out his 12 inch knife and, all by himself, dig out any funny looking moles saying, "Ah melanoma, no big deal."! The late Crocadile Hunter (may God have mercy on his soul) would just hold out his kid in front of a crock saying "Here crocky, here crocky, bite out that melanoma, that's a good crocky, that' it". And any suburban Aussie, would just rub their pet toxic cane toad above any melanoma. Oops, I digress from the topic of this post. Sorry for the American stereotypes of Aussies. The Coolaroo display box also sells accessories, such as a sewing kit with a roll of black UV-resistant (my assumption) cord plus a special sewing needle. Shade cloth is available in two forms: woven or knitted; the Coolaroo product is knitted and does not fall apart if you cut it. I purchased a roll of green 90% shade. I attempted two methods of fabrication: sewing or silicone glue (caulking). Using the Coolaroo sewing kit with their 90% shade cloth is quite difficult. Both their cord and needle are just too big; in contrast, their needle and cord should be fine for the 70% shade cloth. Sewing the 90% shade with a smaller needle and a more light weight cord, or using an aluminum wire, are alternatives that may work. Using sticks of hot glue melt may work; but the sticks carried by Wal-Mart are not resistant to UV, as far as I know; I have not tried them for that reason. I also fabricated cylinders by pumping 1 or 2 strips of silicone caulking onto a two inch wide strip of the fabric, and pulling the fabric around over the silicone caulking and pushing down to form a 2 inch wide glued seam. There was plastic film underneath the seam to protect the garage floor from silicone. I pushed a seam roller (ie., those used for wall paper) over the glued joint. The pressure from the seam roller causes the caulk to ooze out from both layers of shade cloth- the two strips of plastic film intercept this ooze to form a thin layer of silicone on both outer surfaces of the seam. I soon remove the top plastic film so that air will induce the silicone caulk to cure. Once the silicone caulk cures, I remove the second roll of protective plastic film. Note that silicone does not glue the polyethylene (or polypropylene) shade cloth per se. Rather, as the silicone oozes around the plastic threads, a continuous matrix of cured silicone forms a mechanical layer that physically traps the two layers of shade cloth together. Gee... I'm going to have to photograph this gluing process to explain it. Be careful with the silicone. Some tubes, especially those for bathtubs, contain a biocide to kill mildew; who knows what that will do to plants or those that eat the plants. Silicone, as far as I know, is inherently resistant to mold; but silicone is not inherently toxic to mold, so mold can grow on top of silicone. Nothing prevents mold from growing on top of silicone in a bathtub, unless controlled release biocide is added. Silicone for aquariums would be best, but may be pricey. Since Wal-Mart didn't have the Aquarium Silicone; I bought the "all purpose" tube for $2.65, and a cheap caulking gun. The silicone method is the easiest method of fabricating cylinders of shade cloth from pieces cut from the roll. Now I have to figure out how to fold one end of the cylinder into a bottom of the pot. Either that, I cut out a circle and attach it to one end of the cylinder. Stay tuned for further adventures with shade cloth.

WOW Tracy you have had the creative juices flowing! Great design and great post. I love working with pvc, but have not seen couplings which allow the pipe to continue thru without cutting. I do not see any tell-tale glue or primer stains at the joints. Primer and glue should add some strength by bonding pipe to coupler. You may also want to move it next to the wall and attach it with a simple bracket or screw into a stud. I like the way you planned for future expansion. If you get more than 2 rows, the center bins may become difficult to harvest. If you can get some burlap sacks, you could soak them and use as a lid! I get mine free from the local coffee roaster. I think you did an awesome job, and can't wait to hear about the next one! Hail to the wormy queen!!! ;)Pete

You can go on Joanne's website and search for Crypton. Link below. There are a number that are on sale now at half off. And the starting prices seem lower than on the Crypton website or on 'designer' websites. The 25% coupon is there on the right side of the page. Good only through today. But the offer does come back now and then - fori is right about that. In their stores there is often a 40% or 50% off sale for one cut of fabric. Other sites have Crypton for way less than you were quoted. DIYupholsterysupply.com has a huge selection, overhwelming really, at around $30 - $38 a yard. No Crypton currently in their closeouts ;( Newtoto.com has some great pricing on Crypton, $10-15 a yard, but maybe only 80 or so selections to pick from. Great deal if they have something you like. Smaller remnants of several yards are as low as $7 a yard. Good for a chair or chair seats. They send free samples promptly, and offer a $4 color chart so your take on the color is more accurate (Brilliant idea! I bought one). Warehousefabricsinc.com has good pricing and selection but more for drapery weight. I haven't figured out how to search for Crypton there. Schindlersfabrics.com also has good selection, especially higher end stuff, but again not the easiest to navigate if you are looking for something specific. There is a 25% off anniversary coupon good through 1/31/13. Could make hunting worth it... Good luck. Here is a link that might be useful: Joanne's Crypton fabrics

Thanks, cat mom. I've been looking on the various brand web sites and am really surprised at the dearth of facts on their products. Right now I have a Home Depot solar shade taped up on an east facing window. It has a 15% openness and seems to be vinyl but the label doesn't say. It cuts glare but is extremely unattractive. I don't know whether this is a function of the type of material or the fact that it is just rock bottom inexpensive. Your Hunter Douglas shades sound fabulous so maybe it just depends on the brand selected. When I searched the web for general info nothing much turned up there either. Maybe I'm not using the right search terms. If anyone knows how to search for fact based info on solar shades I'd appreciate your advice. Thanks.