A second chance teepee!
I was eager to try making a DIY Kids Teepee for several reasons. I’d made one for our kids many, many years ago and was never very happy with the outcome. The kids played in it a lot and we still have it, but I knew it could be better. That made this project a quest for improving the design and for making another one for the grands!
Kids can use their teepee for hours of fun both inside and outside. It's easy to put up and take down to carry where ever the fun takes them!
This project requires straight seam sewing skills and the use of a drill. (Or it takes some sweet talking to those that have these skills! Ha!)
Teepee Frame
This tent features a frame made from 6 foot long wooden dowels. The ¾” dowels were less expensive and were still sturdy. I think I got mine at Lowes.
Tip: I’ve seen a DIY Kids Teepee made using white plastic PVC pipe as well. I don’t know how it compares in strength to the wooden dowels, but it would be less expensive.
Laying out and cutting teepee fabric
Lay your fabric out on the floor, wrong side up. Using the DIY Kids Teepee pattern found at this link, use a yard stick to draw the solid lines of the pattern onto the fabric. A Sharpie or a ball point pen works well for this step. The dotted lines on the pattern are there to give you center lines if that helps you draw the pattern more accurately on the fabric. Don’t cut on the dotted lines!!!
Cut out the pieces on the solid lines you drew on the fabric. The 6 panel pieces are cut to be 7.5” at the top, 40” at bottom of each panel.
A teepee needs a door!
On ONE panel piece only, cut a slit up the center of the panel from the bottom (wide edge) up about 38”. This will be the door of the DIY Kids Teepee.
Using a zig-zag stitch, sew bias tape around the edge of this door slit. The bias tape encloses the raw edge and keeps the fabric from unraveling…plus it looks really cute!
Sew the teepee fabric panels together
Pin the panel pieces together one at a time, WRONG sides together, with the wider edges together and the narrower edges together. Sew the panel pieces together, WRONG sides together, with a ⅜” seam. The wide edges will be around the bottom of the teepee when finished.
After all of the panel pieces are sewn together, sew the 6th panel to the 1stpanel in the same manner, WRONG sides together.
Bias tape to finish the edges
Get out the bias tape and sew it around the top and around bottom edges of the teepee cover with a zig-zag stitch to finish the edges off so they don’t ravel. Again, the bias tape encloses the raw edge and keeps the fabric from unraveling.
Sew tube seams to hold the dowel rods
Now, turn the fabric inside out and sew along each of the vertical seam lines a second time. Sew the pieces together, now with the RIGHT sides together, with a 1 ½” seam. Your first seam will be inside of this seam. (Weird, I know!) This will make a tube seam for the dowels to fit through. These tube seams will end up on the inside of the teepee.
And now, the dowels for the teepee
Drill holes in the dowels 9-10” from one end of each pole.
Slip the dowel rods down the tube seams made at the seam of each panel. All of the ends of the dowels with the drilled holes should be at the TOP of the teepee when you are finished.
Lash the dowels together with the cord
Thread the cord through the holes in the dowels and leave the cord untied for now.
Set the teepee up and spread out the rods.
Adjust the cord at the top. Tie off the cord while the teepee is in its standing position so there is room for the dowels to spread as needed.
Wrap some cord around where the dowels intersect if you want and tie off again.
Cut off the extra cord.
Tip: You will need to tie knots in the ends of the cord so they don’t unravel. You can also wrap tape around them kind of like the tips of shoe strings.
Slip the rubber chair leg tips on the bottom of each dowel rod. This helps the dowels "stay put" on various floor surfaces and keeps them from scratching your flooring. You're welcome!! 🙂
Once again, here is the DIY Kids Teepee pattern for your personal use.
Love this DIY Kids Teepee- woot-woot!
I’m thrilled with how this DIY Kids Teepee turned out. The cute designs of available fabric are so fun. The grands liked it too!!!
Someday I’d like to make a teepee out of beige canvas material and let the kids paint designs on it with fabric paint. Wouldn’t that be cool?
Let me see a picture of your DIY Kids Teepee when you’re done- and don’t forget to take the picture with a cute grand peeking out from inside!
Supplies:
- 6- ¾” dowels, 6 feet long
- 6- Chair leg tips in the ¾" size
- 4 ½ yards 56-60” wide fabric (heavier weight)- Use a fabric without a definite “one way design” or the design will be sideways on the tent.
- 3 packages of coordinating double fold bias tape
- Thread
- Cord to tie dowels together
- Sharpie, Black 4-Count
- Scissors
- Sewing machine
- Drill
Enjoy!
Welcome to Nana’s! Where there’s fun things to do with your “grand” kids!
Come join the fun at www.WelcomeToNanas.com
Marian Keenan says
I make it for my grands. a little fine tuning with the bottom legs using 3/4 inch corners will keep it from sliding. Your directions were right on. They did not have enough fabric on clearance so I did alternate fabric and it looks good for boys or girls,
Shelly says
Good deal! Great idea to alternate fabric!!
Shelly says
Great suggestion. Glad the instructions were helpful!!
Debra says
Hi, how is the teepee attached to the poles?
Shelly says
The instructions explain how to sew pockets in the fabric where you slide in the poles. I hope as you read the sewing instructions this will be more clear! The poles remain in these pockets and so you just pick it all up and put it up again without a need to reposition the poles.