Materials: one VIKA ADLIS leg, orphaned umbrella base, nut, washer, adhesive cement, small screw bit, small jig saw blade or heavy duty knife that cuts thick plastic
Description: I was resigned that until James Dyson consulted with the outdoor furnishings industry, there would never be stable, aesthetically decent, tall-enough, well-fitting and long-lasting umbrella stand. And even if he did, it would take a decade to come to market and be priced at $400.
Found a $40 pole and base combo at a drug store that was 1/2 OK = base of solid granite. But the pole was wobbly, short, too large in diameter and with too anemic a screw to tighten the umbrella properly and permanently.
Then I remembered my $3.50 VIKA table legs from IKEA!
1. Vika table legs come with a removable rubber/plastic "stopper" on the bottom.
2. Remove stopper; place on a drill-able work surface with flat side down. Slowly drill a hole through center of stopper to gain access for saw or knife blade. Carefully cut out (so as not to split the stopper) a hole a tiny bit larger than your umbrella's pole.
3. Glue stopper back into pole.
4. Match a nut and washer sized to VIKA's screw-in top, which will be the bottom of the pole. Screw pole into stand. I lucked out, but you may have to add an intermediary disc or washer on top of the base, if its hole is larger than VIKA's diameter.
5. Donate VIKA's screw plate to a Habitat for Humanity ReStore.
~ John, Left Coast USA
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