Fabric grows faster than vines; a screen for the hot tub

It has been over a year since we installed the hot tub on the back deck after the giant home addition.  We designed the deck with a trellis wall to the east with the idea that we would plant vines there that would grow quickly and provide dabbled shade and natural screening from the neighbors to the east.

Design phase Dec 2011. Great view of the neighbors' house to the east from our deck.

Trellis wall on the left still bare as of this past fall.

We really like our eastern neighbors, but their two little boys are not so little anymore, and I was starting to feel a bit "exposed" while sitting in the hot tub in full view of their kitchen window and back door. We can't plant the vines yet because there is still some drainage work to be done on that side of the house. It was time for some fabric screens.

I found some fun outdoor fabric on sale last summer.  A couple of weeks ago, I finally got inspired to sew it up into panels.

The first panel goes up.

Need more panels to block that view!

 While I sew at my sewing table that I drag out into the living room, I watch episode after episode of HGTV.  It just so happened that this one particular show was about refinishing flea market finds into new treasures.  If you ask me, my fabric looks a heck of a lot better as funky sun panels than on a beautiful traditional antique chair!

Phone photo of the TV screen. They used my fabric on an old chair. Who puts modern print outdoor fabric on an antique chair!  It didn't sell very well.

The project took longer than I expected (why don't I expect that this will always happen by now?), and I found myself zip-tying the panels to the trellis at 8 PM in the freezing dark smoggy night, rushing to get everything done before Drew came home.  It was so cold, I had to hold the zip ties in my mouth right up until installation to keep them from breaking.  Talk about needing a soak in the hot tub after that!

But I think they look quite happy and provide excellent screening from the neighbors' house.

The view from Drew's seat in the tub.

Now if we could just eliminate the sniper tower.

Marley loves to sit on the warm hot tub cover.

Yay for crafty projects!