How To Make a Windproof Beach Shade Canopy Like DIY Shibumi Sun Shade
Making a DIY beach shade like the Shibumi sun shade is easy, and you may already have all the materials. All you need are some long tent poles (20-25ft), fabric (a bed sheet works if you don't want to sew anything), some strong string, and a waterproof dry bag. Watch this video to see how easy it is. The only tool I used was a pair of scissors.
The shade design shown in this video works similarly to the SHIBUMI shade. I have some improvements planned to allow the shade to be used in no wind and reduce the flapping and noise in high winds.
No Sew DIY Shibumi Style Sun Shade
Beach umbrellas work great until the wind picks up, and then they collapse, invert, and fly away turning into tumbleweeds of death. The problem is that they act as a parachute, catching the wind. What if a sunshade could be made to work with the wind? Shibumi designed and sells a shade like this. They've patented it very well, so good on them, but the price is very high for its simplicity, even when considering it's made in the USA. If you want to support Made in the USA products and companies, then definitely buy one from them. This guide is for those that like to DIY (and patents don't prevent you from making your own, as long as you don't do it for resale, or sell a kit to DIY. Engineerable has no relation to the companies selling the products in the links below)
The simplest wind-powered sunshade to build requires no sewing. All that is necessary are the following parts, many of which you may already have. The one in the video was built mostly from scrap. Tent poles were found in the dumpster at a campground, and the king-size sheet was retired, but still works great as a sunshade. Paracord was already in the supply bin, and dry bags are used for kayak/SUP trips.
▶ Tent Poles - 20 feet in length (The length I used in the video) - https://amzn.to/3CDljzA or https://amzn.to/3exRZTs
▶ Tent Poles - 25 feet in length (Length a large SHIBUMI uses) - https://amzn.to/3sp8VPf
▶ Fabric (No sew) - A king-sized bed sheet works well for this - https://amzn.to/3D1iEkJ
▶ Sand Bag - A dry bag can hold sand, dirt, rocks, or water - https://amzn.to/3rWlX6C
▶ Paracord - to attach the leading edge to the sandbag - https://amzn.to/3EMe1fY
STEP 1.
Flat sheets usually have a large hem at the top, perfect for passing the ten poles through. Openings need to be made at either end of the hem. This can be done by cutting the stitching.
STEP 2.
Fold the sheet in half, and cut a slit in the top hem to allow access for tying the paracord around the tent pole.
STEP 3.
Unfold and fully extend the tent pole. Pass the tent pole through the top hem until the sheet is centered on the length of the tent poles.
STEP 4.
Tie the paracord around the center of the tent pole through the slit that was cut in Step 2.
STEP 5.
Fill up the dry bag with sand. At the other end of the 10-15 ft length of paracord, tie the dry bag. Put the dry bag about 10 ft upwind of the sun shade.
STEP 6.
Stick one end of the tent poles into the ground. Digging a shallow hole helps. Bow the tent poles in an arch, and stick the other end in the ground. Move the drybag to adjust the stability of the sun shade.
Deluxe DIY Shibumi Style Sun Shade (Sewing Required)
This DIY sun shade will be larger and nicer, but requires sewing.
▼ WHERE TO BUY PARTS:
▶ Tent Poles - 25 feet in length (Length a large SHIBUMI uses) - https://amzn.to/3sp8VPf
▶ Fabric (Sewing required) - 2 pieces of ~60in wide by 5-6 yards (for a sail size of 15-17ft by 9ft) of ~1.1oz ripstop polyester, like Silpoly. Do not use Nylon, it will deteriorate in the sun. Use polyester thread for sewing. https://ripstopbytheroll.com/products/1-1-oz-silpoly
▶ Sand Bag - A dry bag can hold sand, dirt, rocks, or water - https://amzn.to/3rWlX6C
▶ Paracord - to attach the leading edge to the sandbag - https://amzn.to/3EMe1fY
For 25 ft long poles, the size of the fabric sail should be about 15-17ft by 9ft. The Silpoly fabric comes in about 60" width. Sewing 2 widths of this fabric together will yield about a 9 ft width after hemming and making the pocket for the tent poles.
I would like to try a fabric that is more similar to what the NESO sun shades use, which is stretchy, and actually provides better shade and UV protection. The stretchy, polyester/spandex fabric will probably be quieter when flapping in the wind compared to the Silpoly like fabric that the Shibumi uses. The cotton bed sheet I used was silent.
IMPROVEMENTS
How to make it easier to setup and move.
Tie a string between the legs at the ground to make it easy to move
How to reduce flapping and noise
I haven't tried it yet, but adding strips of fabric at the trailing edge could help (cutting the trailing edge into strips), and something to break up turbulence on the leading edge, like how owl wings are made https://www.audubon.org/news/the-silent-flight-owls-explained
