Garden Parasol rant!

Mr B loves a parasol, we seem to collect them, an even bigger one ordered yesterday. He then fixes them into the concrete on the patio using a special drill, drives me nuts.

Thank you, Henetha. It works both as an umbrella and as a parasol, win win!

Another lovely idea Blinko. That sounds so pretty.

Auntieflo

*henetha*, glad you mentioned hand held parasols / sun shades. I have a very pretty royal blue , white spotted umbrella to which I have stitched a narrow white lace, all around the edge. It is now my summer parasol and works well.

I have a ‘wedding umbrella’ which I use as a parasol. It’s cream and has a lacy cover, so looks pretty too. There’s a website www.thebrollystore.com I think..

That sounds brilliant Auntieflo. What a good idea. I will have a look at my umbrellas (I think I have three) and see if one is suitable to pretty up a bit and use as a parasol.

I have had our parasol base for years it is filled with sand and stays put what ever the weather.

Sorry didn't realise it would fit

New base arrived later yesterday !!! Although I used my old one ( did realise it would fit, that blew over so decided to put it through my table ... much sturdier , also as my parasol tilts still covers me when outside ... thought I would just mention as during a breeze still stays up & not topple over

henetha, glad you mentioned hand held parasols / sun shades. I have a very pretty royal blue , white spotted umbrella to which I have stitched a narrow white lace, all around the edge. It is now my summer parasol and works well.

I am having parasol problems.
We needed a new one, and I bought one from Waitrose garden centre, again, the base was at least as expensive as the parasol. Erected it, it was one of those cantilever ones, and it seemed completely unstable, even a gentle breeze was sending it all over the place, I emailed Waitrose to ask if we were doing something wrong, but they were completely unhelpful so I decided to return it, which we had to pack up and send back, not easy!
Since then I’ve looked at several, but haven’t been able to decide, to be honest none of them look very sturdy.
Some don’t look too bad online, but if I had to return it again, it’s a massive hassle.

yes out concrete base of parasol broke as it was carried in to house knocked it.

Just had my parasol Yeah ! Ordered a new base , not arrived yet fits in my old base ! Depending on parasol may need a heavier base , or in some cases to fit their decor , yes bases last much longer than a parasol

I agree with you Oldwoman70, that a strong & durable base costs a lot. But as other GNs say here, it is likely that a good base will last a great deal longer than a parasol. We have a Kettler parasol & a friend gave us a (not Kettler) heavy iron parasol-base that they no longer needed. Sadly this base was simply not strong enough to keep the parasol secure in a strong breeze. So two years ago we bought the (very heavy but slim) Kettler parasol-base at £100 - and it's been brilliant. (We have no connection with Kettler except as customers.) I can see that this base will last us forever!

This time last year we bought a large parasol and a concrete ornnate base, on carrying it into the garden my husband dropped it and it broke to a dozen pieces.
Not wanting to spend again for a new one, I looked on Market Place and found a really nice one for free!! They had two or three for sale for less than £10.

This is interesting and has a section on bases:
shadespecialists.co.uk/blog/parasol-buyer-guide/

The side-shade cantilever ones are good for Jacuzzis. A holiday villa we stayed in once had one. Not over a jacuzzi though. The base was extra heavy and the cantilever had a swivel on it so you could angle it as you required.

I also saw some outside a hotel over a fancy dining area too.
They do look very stylish I think.

I can understand that some people may still have a base and just renew a parasol - but why does the base have to be so expensive - surely £50 plus is a bit over the top for a small piece of metal

Talking of parasols, I was thinking yesterday how nice it would be if we could buy pretty little parasols to protect ourselves from this heat. It just isn't the same carrying an umbrella on a hot day.
{apologies for high jacking your thread]

If it's on a bit of grass, a ground screw (pretty cheap) can work as well or better than a weighted base. There are different ways of anchoring a parasol, so including base might a waste.

Yes, it does seem a bit daft but some customers may have a table with a central hole which might fit it, I suppose. That's the only excuse I can offer.

In John Lewis yesterday I saw a great (and large) parasol which had a fancy base. It was suspended sideways from a pole iyswim and would fit the bill as my garden sounds like yours Oldwoman. I fear that the wind would catch it and as it was enormous it could be quite unwieldy to move about. I'm tempted but have stayed my hand just yet.

NotSpaghetti is correct, the base lasts longer than the parasol, the fabric rips and perishes over time, we are on our third parasol now.

Some people replace the parasol but still have a working base.
I would guess this is the reason.