1. Separate the umbrellas’ fabric from their frames by cutting it away from the spokes and unscrewing the ferrule at the top. Take care not to snip through the fabric.
2. Detach the spokes. They are held to the umbrellas’ central mechanisms with wire, which you can untwist with pliers.
3. Download our set of illustrated diagrams. The figures below refer to the diagrams. You should have 16 hinged spokes. Remove extra pieces with wire cutters to create eight A spokes and eight B spokes (fig. 1).
4. Use the A spokes to build the sides of the magazine rack (fig. 2).
5. Form the base with two B spokes (fig. 3).
6. Use wire and the existing holes to attach all four sides to the base (fig. 4).
7. Lift the sides and connect them with wire at the corners, then reinforce the base with two lengths of wire (fig. 5).
8. Use the remaining six B spokes and electrical or duct tape to make the rods that will hold the fabric (fig. 6).
9. Cut the fabric from one umbrella to size (fig. 7), then pin and sew to create the magazine pockets (fig. 8).
10. Thread the rods you made in Step 8 through the fabric and attach the them to the frame with wire (fig. 9). 11. Fill your repurposed rain shield with must-reads.