DIY: A-frame tent

A bit late in sharing this, but I did a guest post over at Grosgrain to celebrate Kathleen's coming patterns. For a whole month, she has a whole bunch of tutorials and patterns from talented people from all over the blogosphere. I am honored that she has asked me to be one of them.

So for you (and her readers), I made this tutorial of a fun little hideaway (see guest post here) for your little ones or maybe for you. I am sure after you make this and call your kids over to show them, they will be over the moon and will be thanking you like crazy!

Drawn pattern for reference:

Materials for the A-frame:

4- 1'' x 2'' x 48'' whitewood moulding

1- 3/4'' x 48'' poplar dowel

drill with a 3/4'' spade bit

measuring tape

pencil (marker)

(I was going to use the twine to make sure the mouldings stayed in place, but I no longer needed to because the hole already had such a tight grip on the dowel).

1. From the top of each of the 4 mouldings, measure and mark 6'' down with your pencil.

2. With your drill and 3/4'' spade bit, drill a hole at your mark. Try to center the hole on your moulding.

3. Place 2 mouldings on top of each other, make sure the holes are lined up.

4. Push dowel through the holes of the two mouldings. The hole should have a pretty tight grip and keep the dowel in place.

5. Repeat step 4 and put together the other side with the two remaining mouldings.

Materials for tent cover:

- fabric large enough to cover frame (approx. 46'' x 85.5'' un-hemmed; 44'' x 83.5'' hemmed)

- coordinating thread

- elastic

- scissors

1. Hem the perimeter of the rectangular fabric using a straight stitch with a 1/2'' hem. Desired size of the cover is 44'' x 83.5''.

2. Cut 4- 5'' inch elastic strips.

3. Fold elastic over and pin in place at each corner of the tent cover.

4. Sew elastic onto the corner of the tent cover. Repeat with the remaining 3 corners.

5. Drape cover over the A-frame and loop elastic to the bottom of wooden tent leg.

6. Arrange and straighten fabric cover. Then, spread frame to desired height and width of tent opening. Call your kids over and enjoy!!!

This tent can easily be taken apart and stored, since there are no screws or nails involved. In addition, the tent cover is easy enough to recreate in different patterns. The sizing is similar to a twin bed sheet, so if you get one of those to use (I used a vintage twin sheet), the project just got a whole lot easier!

It is a great place for reading, napping, and pretending, but most importantly making memories! I am already thinking this will be my go-to birthday gift as I am sure this would be loved very much. Don't you think?!!

Thank you Kathleen for allowing me to take part in your celebration! Make sure you all stop by her blog and see all the new patterns/tutorials popping up daily. I love making little things for my girls to play in and now I am already thinking of another one! There is no such thing as too many hideouts for a little kid!