So i have been happily sleeping in a hammock for a year now (yay!). The only drawback to sleeping in a hammock is that the frame in my room if huge and takes up so much space. Also, the material that my hammock was constructed with (string) is fragile. I have had to repair breaks several times after snagging on a button on my pants/shorts or one of the bolts on the frame. One must be careful with these things! The miracle is that this frame (that i made with my own two hands!) and this hammock hold me up every night and mostly seems like new.
Well much as i'd like to i can't lug my hammock and its frame out camping with me. I knew this would be the case, and started planning to buy or sew a camping hammock even while i was buying and hanging my first hammock. I bought some straps to make my own tree huggers at the same time that i was buying the materials to build the frame. So today i'm taking the plunge and am going to start sewing my camping hammock!
To start out with...i debated whether it would just be easier to go to REI and buy one pre-made. I read reviews, i agonized over it, but i finally decided just to make it myself. Money and color were both factors in this (i do not want a camo hammock, and i'm not sure i want one that's lime green or royal blue or red, either). As a result i was able to pick out the colors i wanted to use (subdued but still slightly feminine) and i got a great deal because the local fabric store was having a sale...they were closing up shop and moving to a smaller location that is only for sewing machines and quilt fabric (rather than the mega-fabric, mega-home decor fabric location they had been).
Hammock Material
6 yds ripstop nylon = $27.50 (3 yds each of two different colors, 54" wide)
25 yds nylon cord = $1.70 (for whipping hammock...no way i'll need this much)
1 spool Gutermann thread = $2.70 (100% polyester, recommended for sewing tents)
Mosquito Net/Snakeskin Materials
8 yds netting = $23.75 (in an off-white...taking a chance here)
1 110" Boat Zipper = $10.75
Tree Hugger
straps - two 7'x1.5" = $5
40 yds climbing rope = $8.25 (couldn't find Spectra rope in town or online for a reasonable price)
Tent
Kelty Noah's Tarp - 9'x9'= $49
Paracord = $13 for 100yds (won't need that much!)
Figure 9 rope tightener w/6' guy line x 2 - $7.50 (for tarp ties)
Tent Stakes x 4 = $10
Grand Total = just under $160
As you may have deduced, i decided to take the plunge and get an
REI membership. I'm not sure it's going to pay for itself this year,
but the guarantee made it tempting to buy the Kelty Tarp through REI
rather than Amazon even though it costs ~$10 more. Half of that
difference would have been made back at the end of the year with the member's refund. Unfortunately the
tarp was backordered through REI so i'm going with Amazon instead and hoping it arrives before it's time to go on the trip in ~3 weeks.
In case you're wondering if this setup saves money...refer to REI's selection of hammocks and realize that i have to have a setup that can hold more weight than some of the cheaper hammocks are rated for...and you still have to buy things individually (hammock + bug net + tent + tree huggers). My tree huggers cost $5 compared to $20-25. I am saving at least $60 by my estimates.
I will continue to edit this post while i am still working on this project.
No comments:
Post a Comment