How to Make a Backyard Tent

Making a backyard tent out of a bed sheet and rope will allow your kids to enjoy the wonderful experience of camping in the safety of your own backyard. A bed sheet does not have the waterproof qualities of true tent material, but on a sunny day it will lend the feel of the real thing. Place the makeshift tent between two trees or fence posts, using rope to hold the sheet suspended above ground.

Things You'll Need

  • Bed sheet
  • Rope
  • Measuring tape
  • Scissors
  • Safety pins
  • Hammer
  • Tent stakes
Show More

Instructions

    • 1

      Prepare the corners of the tent. Cut a piece of rope roughly 10 inches long for each corner. Form a loop with one of the pieces and tie the ends. Fold a corner of the sheet through the loop and secure it with a safety pin. Repeat with the other corners.

    • 2

      Locate an area between two trees or posts to suspend the tent. Cut a piece of rope that will extend several feet beyond each tree. Tie the rope to each tree, pulling the rope taut, so the sheet will be suspended roughly three to four feet above the ground.

    • 3

      Spread and smooth the bed sheet over the rope. Center the sheet so it is equal on both sides.

    • 4

      Insert a tent stake in each of the corner loops. Tent stakes can be purchased at camping-supply or sporting-goods stores and websites. Gently pull the corners away from the center rope to ensure the sheet does not sag, and hammer the stakes into the ground. If you are doing this by yourself, make several rounds to each corner, pulling it and staking it further out with each round, until the sloped sides of the tent are taught and even.