You might think a pergola is a pergola. It is not. They range from ugly to really ugly to stunningly beautiful. If you're looking for the stunningly beautiful type, here are 10 great options to inspire you.
Here's the thing with Canada. As soon as spring hits, the catalogues and flyers start showing up in the mail with pictures of happy families standing around a grill grinning like lunatics. In some photos they're sitting stiffly on outdoor furniture with sweaty glasses of lemonade in their hands. Everything look shiny and clean and wonderful.
It's all a lie. If they wanted to portray real Canadian outdoor living in their catalogues they'd show a photo of a woman with her head out the car window screaming at everyone to get out of her way as she runs 15 consecutive red lights in an attempt to get home before the surprise rain storm hits and soaks all of her family's outdoor cushions to the point that they weigh 742 pounds each.
You never see a photo like that.
Canada you see, is not really meant for outdoor furniture. Not the upholstered kind anyway. The only way around it is to throw a tarp over your furniture when you're not using it *just in case* it rains or to build a pergola and throw a tarp over that.
Most pergola's from home improvement stores come with a cover over them or a retractable shade but ... those aren't recommended for heavy rain or leaving out in bad weather. You're supposed to wind them up out of the way to protect them. Even though they're supposed to be protecting your outdoor cushions so you don't have to wake up in the middle of the night to thunder, trudge outside, get into a fight with a raccoon, trip on the hose and bust your lip while attempting to cover your furniture with a tarp.
Uh huh. As you may know, I built myself a copy of the Restoration Hardware Aspen collection furniture a couple of years ago. Here's the post on it. The furniture cost very little to build. A few hundred dollars if I remember correctly. The cushions? They were somewhere around $1,000 to have made.
That's just with regular foam and fade resistant fabric. I could have opted for waterproof fabric and foam but that would have jumped the price of my cushions up to around the price of a 5 vials of Martian eyeballs. So I cheaped out.
This is the area I want to protect with a pergola.
"Now I am that woman screaming home to throw a tarp over her cushions. I am that woman kickboxing a raccoon at 1 in the morning. I don't want to be that woman anymore. Which means I have to build a pergola.
And then I have to figure out a way to make it waterproof without blocking any sunlight into my house and keep the cost under a nuclear warhead. Good luck to me."
Those are the words I said to myself 4 years ago. FOUR YEARS.
I spent a lot of time on Google and Pinterest marvelling at all the pergolas I couldn't afford to build. But they did provide some great inspiration which I've ignored for the past 4 years. I just haven't had time to build or buy a pergola.
However, a couple of nights ago my sister and brother-in-law showed up at my house at 9:30 at night with 4 pergola pillars. Not an actual pergola. Just 4 black pillars that at one point belonged to someone else's pergola.
I believe they found them at my favourite store - the garbage. That was all the incentive I needed. THIS is the summer I make a pergola.
It turns out there are more pergola designs out there than you can shake a catalogue at. And now that I have 4 pillars to turn into a pergola I have some decisions to make.
I could leave them as is, or cover them in wood, make them modern, make them traditional. Whatever I want. Having 4 random pillars also gives me the opportunity to make the pergola the exact size I want. I don't have to stick with a store bought 10 x 10. Or 12 x 10. If I want I can make my pergola 12.74 feet long by 8.45 feet wide. I won't. But I could.
I'm looking for something rustic and modern at the same time. These (including the one at the top of this page) are 10 of my favourites.
no source for this image other than the spammy site I found it on, which I refuse to link to.
I love the shape and harshness of the design of this one up top.
Designed by Marnie Lewis
I mean this is just something else. From the chairs that are bums to the cantilevered steps leading to the outdoor fireplace. It's stunning. Nothing at all like I could have but it's still inspirational.
I really like this. I like it a lot. This retractable awning is soft and if made out of a waterproof fabric could actually ... dare I say it ... be a viable option for me.
All I have to do is figure out how to make a retractable roof for my 4 pillars.
I don't love all the squiggles on the roofing material but I do like the use of 2"x8"s (or whatever they are) as the posts. As a nature lover and someone who will choose to be outside rather than inside 99% of the time I'm embarrassed to say I'm digging the television outside.
I used to have a tv in my backyard and there's nothing like watching a baseball game out in the backyard.
no source found :(
This one is kind of a problem solver. It's a pergola with a glass roof. But glass seems kind of risky what with the raccoons prowling and pooing and my regular roof.
This pergola roof seems to be some type of wire mesh which would give a tiny big of shade. But no protection for cushions.
source
I can't quite tell from the photo but this room (take a closer look, it's all encased in glass) could have either a glass roof or a polycarbonate roof. A lot of pergolas and gazebos are being outfitted with polycarbonate roofs lately. They're a plastic material in sort of a honeycomb pattern that comes in clear or a variety of colours allowing light through them but no rain.
sources all spammy
Yeah. I can't have this but I like it. I have a thing for concrete fences and walls. I love them. I'd do exceptionally well in prison.
again ... all sources spammy
This is a real combination of contemporary with a traditional pergola style in terms of the roofing. Maybe too traditional for me, but I do like the black.
Why all this worry? All this debating and planning? Why put up a pergola at all?
- Function. Like I said, having a way to protect your outdoor furniture and cushions from the rain and other elements is a necessity in this climate. Depending on where your patio furniture is located in your yard, protecting it and you from the sun is also necessary.
- Defining the space. Putting a pergola around an area of your yard instantly creates a focal point and
- Enjoyment. Half the time in the summer when it rains, it's just raining. It's not a massive thunderstorm with squirrels flying through the air. It's just a bit of rain. With a pergola that has a roof on it, you can be outside cozy in your little outdoor room in the rain.
Watching baseball.
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Kristin Ferguson
If you look closely at those cantilevered steps, they lead to an outdoor bathtub!
I built a brick patio a few years ago, because our house came with an ugly, completely exposed (south-facing=brutal sun), cheap wooden deck. I hired a guy to tear out the deck and build me a wooden pergola, and then I built the brick patio around it. I went the traditional route with river rock pilasters and old school lines to match our 1902 house. When I finished the patio we planted roses and wisteria at the pilasters and they have grown in nicely.
Leslie Russell
Wow are there a lot of comments. So of course I have to add mine. I've used the corrugated aluminum panels on a few roofs And it's become my go-to for covering anything. It comes in colors as I think clear as well.
Carole
I think the whole "outdoor living" concept is pretty bogus when it comes to protecting furniture from the elements or making outdoor kitchens desirable. As Jeff Goldblum said in Jurrassic Park, "Nature finds a way."
Short of an enclosed outdoor room, I don't think you can guarantee your cushions will be protected from not getting wet. The options that include closing louvers or moving sliding awnings - you will still be racing home to do make sure they are protecting your furniture if a freak storm comes up (unless you can "SmartHome" them to close with a remote through the internet).
Eileen
Sailrite has great how-to instructions and videos on making a slide-on-wire canopy and sail shades. They sell extra wide fabric and supplies for the project. https://www.sailrite.com/How-to-Make-a-Slide-On-Wire-Hung-Canopy-Video
Em@dustanddoghair
We spend our Bflo summers under an awning with screens all around, aka “the black box.”
I wouldn’t call it beautiful from the outside (hence the name) but it’s wonderful from the inside and ABSOLUTELY has a TV!!! We’re hicks, tv is essential.
Anywho, if you’re jazzing the retractable awning, check out Sailrite.com, they sell all supplies and have instructional videos out the waz.
Kathleen Murphy
Hi Karen, you are The Bomb, Lady. Love your blog so much, in fact your writing was practically the only online stuff worth reading this past year, and your adventures and tales give us so much laughter, useful information, and joy through the covid dark days. Thank you! And Betty too. Now, about hollow-core polycarb...
We live in Youngstown, NY, not too far from you across the Lake, so similar weather patterns. Just wanted to offer a comment about polycarb as year-round roofing material. We built our own home and were encouraged by our contractors to use ollow-core clear polycarb roofing to cover the pergola area over our front entry way. It was lovely for about two years, then the edges began to get water leaching into the honeycombs somehow (water always finds a way), which got moldy and dirty looking and then bees and ants found their way into those tiny channels. And those channels are impossible to clean out. Now all that crystal clear beauty is just kinda grungy looking. So if you do decide to go that route, I would just offer you the heads-up that you might want to plan on replacing it every couple years if your experience turns out to be anything like ours. Oh, and it sounds quite loud in a rain storm, and yes, it can be damaged by northern-climate hail and snow weight.
I hope you guys are able to fully open up again soon over there, and that all things covid-ish finally calm down for our Neighbors to the North.
Keep on keepin' on and thanks for all you do!
Kathleen
Eve
I also don't quite "get" pergolas- wonderful for defining a space, but they need to have a solid roof to keep out rain... a few beams and a vine do not an umbrella make! If there's anything clear enough to let you see the clouds, it also lets you see the bird poop and pollen. I solved the problem with some super comfy waterproof chairs in navy blue faux wicker, and a waterproof table. for big parties I also set up some plastic banquet tables with tablecloths and mason jars of flowers. If it rains in the night, I have no worries beyond a wet tablecloth! We also have a big covered front porch, and that's where we sit during rainstorms, sipping wine, or snowfalls, wrapped in electric blankets, sipping cocoa.
Richard Heilman
This is very timely for me. We just moved six months ago to the Prescott area (15 miles north in Chino Valley). We are finishing up expansion of our backyard patio to a final size of 25x30' and the new addition will need some type of framework and covering both for the wind in the spring (25-45 mph constant blowing March-June) is common, hot, dry sun in summer (can get close to 100 degrees here, even at 5000') and snow/cold in the winter (it can get down to 5 degrees). I am still in a quandary regarding what it should look like and if it should be for year-round use. These various style give me a lot of ideas and, at this point, I am leaning towards one like the model with retractable awning, although that would exclude winter use. The existing 16 x 10 section is covered by a shingled roof extension I really don't like the ones with solid glass or plastic panel roofs, so will have to compromise in some way. Thanks, Karen, for some inspiration.
Vikki
Whatever else, you gotta get you some butt chairs!!
Kat - the other 1
I thought it said "Perogies" at first.
I'm a little disappointed. Lol ;p
Stefanie
Pierogi over Pergolas!!
No... Pierogi UNDER pergolas!!
Now I'm hungry.
Kat - the other 1
Let's have Karen make us some perogies!
& we'll eat them sipping sangria under a pergola... ;)
Cathy Reeves
Now that we’re in Arizona and our brickyard is in total sun till about 4 pm my
Fella has been percolating ideas from pergolas to cantilever umbrellas, to shade sails. Because of the 30-40 mph winds a pergola buried deep into the ground seems like our best option however blocking the Mountain Views for us as well as neighbors is not.
We’ll probably go the shade sail route and hope they don’t take flight.
We’re praying for rain to end our drought.
Monica
We're in the same boat in South Dakota. We have a river, but it's almost dry. I'll pray for your drought as well.
Twyla Laakso
The pergola with the wire mesh? Bet that’s in a place that gets hail.
Take it from me. I’m in a place that gets hail. A lot.
(Calgary)
Maran
Hi! Love your blog! Have you ever heard of SolaWrap? Super tough stuff used to cover greenhouses but I don't see why it couldn't cover a pergola.
Catherine Powers
Hi Karen, himself and I built a pergola and had the retractable awning installed. We said the same wonderful things about it that you mentioned. Lovely. For a month or so. Then we realized that even when the cover was retracted the leaves and cones and dirt filled the little hammocks in the awning. Yuck. Taking it down to clean it required more than one person and more than an hour. We live in California and after several seasons of wildfires and the ashes we gave up and removed the awning. Just some food for thought.
Your fans here in Ca will be anxious to see what you do!
Mary W
Florida here - where it doesn't rain so much as downpours between clouds and once summer is here, it will be every day. Since I HATE spiders, the thought of them hanging down and jumping on me - we regularly have 5" spread beasts all over the back yard and in the pool and sneaking into the open doors. A pergola would be a gift to them. The glass/plastic covering ones would be nice as they would protect somewhat, but our DEW is so heavy, everything is wet, every morning. So besides the sideways rain, pergolas are not something I would ever want to be under. I can say that the shade, waterproof slats seem like they would be water proof allowing any rain to sit in the dips until they evaporate - and stain. The glass would be very hot here in FL but I could imagine would keep some of the rain off but not the dew. IDEA - pull your TV to the window, sit in a comfy chair that you pull from the shed and watch with the fireplace on but always check the cushions for spider eggs. I had one hatch while I was sleeping on the inside couch at a fancy hotel and woke to thousands of tiny spiders covering me while it's mother sat in the corner watching with all her eyes at the ensuing show I put on. I did really like the polycarbonate roof picture but wouldn't have walls as - Florida you know.
Alberta Karen
Oh your spider stories are horrifying! I am crossing Florida off my list of places to visit. LOL
Mary W
Always a pro for each con. The warm springs and winters are gorgeous and the flowers so pretty. The beaches and sunsets/rises are breathtaking, the alligators very real and dangerous, the mosquitos horrible, the scenery worth the trips and so worth a trip - but you have to choose theme park, city, country, swamp, fishing, or beach since it takes time to visit each thing properly. Bird watching is very popular and I hope my spider stories (although real) don't stop you from enjoying something you really want to do. Good luck and have fun.
Anita
Hubby and I just putting up our pergola structure with retractable awning. We've had the awning system for 15 years and love it. We remove it in the Fall put it away dry and clean and it's ready for the following year.
We had a cedar structure for 18 years and started seeing ants and bugs and so did the woodpeckers, who then started destroying our structure hence the rebuild this year. I wish I could share a picture of our handy work. Even during a heatwave it's lovely under the awning ❤️
Good luck with your pergola 👍
Danni
I extended the posts on my deck up to 8’, built a crossbeam to that, and came out with wire from house to crossbeam. Five wires w turnbuckles supports four spans of fabric attached with swivel claw clips. Fabric spanned from house to crossbeam, then down 5 ft to just past the deck railings. With the clips I could have them all the way down and effectively have a room, fold half up and attach at crossbeam for partial coverage but a sight line, or pull all the way up for only a “ceiling”. Whole thing including wires come down at end of season and get put away. Turned and unusable space into one we use all the time.
I think
I discovered turnbuckles from you! It was the missing puzzle piece!
Susan Stillwell
I pondered and Pinterested this issue last year for a long time. I put up a 12 x 12 canopy in the yard, trying to figure out what I wanted. The wind came like we've never had it and the canopy was ruined. I staked out the size and location. My husband pointed out the problems with building a porch there but said he'd build a deck for me, and did. Nice, but it didn't solve the problem. So he put a roof over it. It's wonderful and we spend a lot of time out there. The dogs love to watch the chipmunks, who taunt them by running underneath the deck. However, even though it's pretty big, it still gets wet in there with rain blowing in from the sides. I still keep Pinteresting and Googling, trying to find perfect furniture solutions.
Ann
Have you thought of a pergola with solar panels for the top? The concept is intriguing to me, but the beauty might be somewhat wrecked by the angle the solar panels would need to be in order to catch sun all year. However this would be not only a way to protect what is beneath from rain, but also make energy at the same time and hopefully look cool.
Just would like to know your thoughts on such a pergola roof. I have an image of one that is beautiful but not seeing a way to upload the image. The website is not worth linking to.
Karen
"I have a thing for concrete. If do exceptionally well in prison"
😂🤣😅