DIY Kids Tent

I’ve been slowly working on different things that I am planning to put into my little guys play/motor room that I hope to get together by this summer.  One thing I wanted to put in was a tent.  I’m not sure if I plan on putting it as a reading area or more just a play area yet but I know I wanted a tent.  I used to make tents with sheets all the time when I was little.  I loved having a tent so why not have one for him, right?  So I came across an idea on the blog post by Cakies that was my inspiration for a DIY kids tent.  Mine is different, but it helped me with the foundation for starting my tent.
DIY Kids Tent - Pink Oatmeal

(4) 1″ x 2″ x 48″ whitewood moulding (See Picture below)
(3) 3/4″ x48″ poplar dowels (This is what a dowel looks like.Make sure to get the correct size! They are at most stores like Menards or Home Depot)
Drill with 3/4″ Spade Bit

Pencil
Measuring tape
(1) Twin Sized Sheet
Sewing Machine and thread (Very Simple Sewing I promise)
The first thing I had to do was mark my whitewood moulding for where I was planning to drill my holes.  On each piece of wood I marked 6″ on one end and 1 3/4″ on the other end.
Obviously Not to Scale
Next we had to drill holes where I made the markings.  I was not sure of my drilling skills so I had my husband do that.  This is where the 3/4″ drill spade bit was used.
All you have to do next is place your dowels through the holes.  You overlap 2 of your boards at the 6 inch hole and slide a dowel through then overlap the remaining two boards at the 6 inch hole and slide the other end of the dowel through so you have an a-frame look.  You then slide the remaining two dowels into the 2 inch holes connecting each end so you get your frame.  See picture below it’s much easier when you have the picture.
Next I had to make the cover for the tent out of the twin sheet.  I wanted to do as little sewing as possible!  I did not care if my sheet measured exact from peak to peak.  I wanted a bit of a ruffle effect not perfectly flat sheet.  That meant all I had to do was sew the sheet together on each end so I could slide the dowels through them at the bottom.  I did no measuring but when I was done I measured it out so I could write it down here 🙂
Make sure that you are sewing the sheet the LONG way.  The short length of the sheet does not have to be touched.
A twin sheet is longer than 85.5 inches so if you want to cut it to 85.5 inches you can do this. When I sewed it up I didn’t want to cut anything so I had a little bit of excess on each side. I sewed 2.5 inch holes on each side for the dowels to slide through. So literally sewing two straight lines.  Simple.
Once you have your two straight lines sewed.  Just slide the bottom dowels through the openings and you have your tent!
DIY Kids Tent - PInk Oatmeal

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6 thoughts on “DIY Kids Tent”

  1. This is really great. You did such a great job on this tent. Really cute and I’m sure any child would be happy
    to read or play in it! Thanks for sharing! I pinned it .
    Have a great weekend,
    Kim ~ This Ole Mom

  2. I’m thinking this could be done using long curtains as well then it would require zero sewing hummmm my kids would love this and I have enough old curtains from our previous house to give it a shot!

  3. So is the total finished length including the 2.5 inch holes 85.5, or is it 85.5 and then you sew the 2.5 inch holes at the ends?

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