THE 15 MINUTE BACKYARD FORT
We used the old sheet at rope method to create a backyard “fort” in about 15 minutes. It’s easy to get caught up online, checking out elaborate treehouses and backyard she-sheds, but let’s not forget the old school tried and true way to make a simple (but awesome!) backyard blanket fort.
You’ll Need:
- A large sheet (or sheets)
- A rope, clothesline, piece of paracord...anything strong enough to hold up a sheet.
- Scissors
- Tent stakes or a few sturdy sticks
- Two Anchor points (ie. two trees, your house and a tree
- Optional: Clothespins, cozy blankets and pillows
Suspend your rope between your two anchor points. Adjust the height based on the size of your sheet. Four feet off the ground worked well for us.
2. Throw your sheet overtop the rope. You can center it, or let one half hang lower for more of a one-sided canopy. Optional: Attach clothespins or binder clips to hold the sheet in place while you anchor it.
3. Tie a piece of rope or yarn to each corner of the sheet and anchor each to a stake in the ground, creating the tent shape.
4. Add some cozy cushions or pillows, and that's it!
To be honest, I was really surprised at how much my kid actually loved this simple fort! As I was struggling a bit to get the stakes into the ground, I was tempted to just go grab our tent for camping and use that instead. I'm glad I didn't, it forced more creativity and ended up being a whole lot of fun!
