The Brilliant IKEA Hack That’s Kept This DIYer’s Patio Cool for Three Summers

It’s no secret that IKEA is a reliable place to find tons of affordable furniture, decor, kitchenware, and other decorative items for your home. But the retailer also offers plenty of practical products, too, including appliances, deck tiles, and the smartest low-tech way to cool your outdoor space I’ve seen: precut fabric.

Yep, you read that right. I recently came across a project from German DIYer German DIYer Nicole Marquez, who cooled down her patio using an ingenious combination of IKEA fabric, pole sockets, and dowels.

As Marquez explained in an Instagram post, she wanted to install an awning on the glass roof of her patio’s pergola that wouldn’t sacrifice height (and would make the space feel more comfortable in hot weather).

To do that, she commissioned panels to be sewn using IKEA fabric (the SOFIA series, available in Europe) that would fit between the pergola’s beams to help block some sunlight. Marquez notes that the fabric is “durable” and easy to wash as needed, making it easy to maintain throughout each season. (American readers could use the similar DITTE fabric panels.)

A tunnel into each end of the panels makes space to slip in a dowel for hanging; Marquez mounted hers using pole sockets from IKEA (available in Europe), but you could also swap the dowel-and-pole-socket combo for RÄCKA curtain rods. A rod at each end of the pergola holds the fabric in place.

Not only is this project easy, it’s also adaptable. “We love it because we can also individually remove fields as needed,” Marquez notes.

What makes this look work so well is the exact right amount of slack in the fabric so that it’s the perfect level of drapey — If it were too tight, Marquez wouldn’t get that airy, beachy look, but if the fabric were too loose, it would look saggy. (If you take on this project, you might have to experiment with the first panel to get the length that’s just right for your own space.)

The results are, of course, beautiful, but the project is practical, too. The fabric panels provide a little protection from the sun to make the patio just a bit more comfortable to spend time on, even in scorching weather. Marquez says it was only intended to be a temporary awning, but it’s worked so well that she’s kept it in place for three years.

What’s a low-tech way you keep your outdoor space cooler in summer? Share your best tips below.