The Bear in The Hood 'Teepee' Pattern
We asked our resident dressmaker Rachel to road test the Teepee Pattern from Bear in The Hood for us. Its a perfect summer make for play time in the garden! You can find the pattern here
This blog is just a short review with a few tips I learnt while making one for my grandson. Its a simple to follow pattern with clear easy to follow instructions.
Fabric
I used calico as suggested for the main sides of the teepee, a contrast solid colour cotton for the tent slots and a vibrant printed fabric from Sew Scrumptious for the curtains.
Calico fabric is widely available online and is quite inexpensive.
Poles
I found some plastic covered steel poles 1800mm x 16mm from Toolstation and felt they would be more robust than wooden poles.
Cutting Out:
Calico
Read the instructions and look at the cutting plan carefully for the 150 wide calico. The side pieces A are cut out across the width of the fabric not along the length. If you dive in and place the pieces along the length (as most patterns are cut out) you won't have enough fabric!
Sewing
All seams are 1cm. However I discovered that although the poles I bought were actually slightly smaller diameter than the size in the instructions, if I used a 1cm seam to attach the pole slots it made them too narrow for my poles to fit. Therefore, I suggest you assemble one pole slot and check that the poles you have bought will slide in easily. I had to take a 6mm seam instead to allow my poles to slide in easily.
Decoration
I decided to applique my grandsons name to piece B and did so before any assembly (as suggested in the instructions). This makes it really easy and its great to personalise it.
Additions I made to my Teepee.
I made a mat to fit in the base of the Teepee and added loops to the centre of each side panel to correspond to a button on the centre of each side of the mat. this made everything more stable when assembled. The loops could also be used with a tent peg if using the Teepee in the garden.
Its a great birthday present to make for grandchildren!
You can also make a pet version! Check out the pet pattern here
