Outdoor Bicycle Storage

I got into billboard tarp recycling initially because I wanted a way to cover my family's bicycles. We don't have access to the garage at our house, our landlord is a general contractor and uses the garage to assemble cabinets. If bicycles are easy to get to, there's an increased likelihood they will be used more. 

I used a tarp to cover the bikes, but I never managed to sew a tent-cover for them! I have been recovering from chronic fatigue syndrome during the past four years on the guaifenesin protocol. So although my mind has thought of projects, the flesh was weak.  I've not been able to keep up this blog as I'd like, either. 

I had been looking for a bike stand for my home for years. This wood pallet bike rack from bikehacks.com is clever, and it has given me another idea. I can set up the wood pallets as shown, and either drape a billboard tarp over them, or attach the tarp on one side. Or even simpler, the tarp is held in place by the lean of the pallet.  A dowel on the tarp on the right edge of the tarp will hopefully be enough weight to keep the tarp in place with our Calgary winds.

Enough typing. I'm off to give this a try. Update: Well, my husband is not too keen on this idea as the area we have for bicycles is also the area where we play street hockey.

Marbling paint onto vinyl tarp experiment.

A piece of backlit vinyl tarp is prepped with sanding and then I threw a bunch of marine paint on it and mixed it around with a palette knife. The paint is System Three's WR-LPU paint. I know that it is over-mixed and actually not that good looking at all. Next time I'll plan it out. There are a lot of videos out there showing interesting marbleizing/paint-over-water prints, a.k.a. ebru technique. Example

My main goal is to see if I can get good adherence. This paint peels off in one big, flexible layer if the substrate is not well-sanded. I'll sew it into a wallet if the paint sticks well enough.

Update: I tried to put it on my Cricut Expressions cutter, but the slight differences in height between painted and unpainted caused the wallet to skip as it cut, ruining it. My conclusion is that hand cutting would be better when using this type of painted tarp for wallets. 

Motorcycle Cover Finished

This turned out to be a major challenge, mainly due to the weight of all the tarp once the pieces got sewn together. I had to plan every seam.  I put extra tables in place to support the tarps as I sewed. At times the entire piece rested on my left shoulder as I sewed. I used clothespins to hold the segments together. Alas, I don't have any pictures of the construction process, as they were all deleted by a family member to celebrate a new camera.

The cover itself was not an exact match, as I didn't have a picture of the cruiser bike. The back of the seat is a little more forward than I envisioned. Nevertheless, the basic measurements my wonderful client supplied were just right, and the cover fit the bike!

I also put a drawstring in the bottom seam, but I think that the tarp is a bit too thick to tighten with a draw string.

I also lined the tarp with flannel sheeting, glued in place with Vynabond. The flannel lining is so that it does not scratch the bike. If I were to do it again I'd only put flannel in places where the tarp touched the bike.


I was also scared the whole way through! However, I knew enough about drafting patterns and working the material to know that I could accomplish it. I just hadn't implemented it. It was a good mental exercise to fight those fears and get the job done.

By serendipity, the word "Winter" is visible on the side of the motorcycle cover. Bonus!

Say, if you have read this far and enjoy this blog, would you do me the favour of posting a comment? It gets quite lonely in blogger land if one thinks no one is reading. A comment is good to keep one interested in the topic and eager to continue. Thanks.