Crystal loved the price and concept of IKEA's CIRKUSTÄLT play tent, but she wasn't a fan of the loud primary colors especially to use in her daughter's softer-hued bedroom. She picked out fabric she did like and got busy with her sewing machine…
Voila! She used the same "bones" of the tent, but completely new fabric that is more her style. Crystal describes:
I brought the tent home and disassembled it with a seam ripper to make a template so I could re-construct it with a few design changes. I took apart most of the tent to get exact measurements and to trace templates for parts like the roof, sculpted flags, the flagpole and base, etc. After hours of figuring out how it was constructed and several weekends of work, I finally finished it!Things I changed besides the fabric when making a new slipcover include:
• Instead of alternating fabrics between 2 fabrics (like they did with the yellow & red), I chose one for the sides and one for the roof.
• CIRKUSTÄLT hid the support for the top hoop under the flags around the tent. I wanted to add some contrast between the roof and sides, so I added a 1" pink casing for it above the flags.
• I included 2 pockets and 2 windows into my design.
• I changed the style of the flag on top.
• The tent diameter is 39" so I put a 3" round rug inside with some throw pillows.
Thanks Crystal!
See more: Little Free Radical. Check out her other DIY tutorials, many IKEA hacks, here.
(Images 1: IKEA. 2. Little Free Radical)
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Love it, great job Crystal! :0)
Be still my beating heart!
super cute!
Wow !!! Thumbs up, it's lovely !
What a great transformation. I'm not a huge fan of the primary colours either, and this is a great idea to transform it into something that works with your interior colour scheme. Great job!
I've looked for this tent at several IKEA stores in the past and they never had it. Now I really wish I'd gotten ahold of one.
Luv it! This something your daughter can pass down to her own kids.
Slobound - the same thing happened to me! You can check product availability on IKEAs website so you know if it's in stock at your local store before you go , or you can see when it's expected to come in! I often see them on eBay. currently the cheapest is $40 (shipping included). but if you don't have a local store or if its out of stock then eBay is a good resort! :)
What a great idea!! I was just looking at this online the other day and was a bit disappointed by the colors. I'll have to put this on my to-do list!
Fantastic! Yet another reason to learn to use the sewing machine I bought with the best of intentions 3 years ago!!
Wow, fab!!
This is something I could never pull off.
You've got mad sewing skills!
I did something similar with the tent Ikea used to carry that looked like an igloo. Except I used extra bedsheets and my sewing skills are rough, so our tent has more of a "shabby chic" look. This is beautifully done! And I love the inside pocket.
AWESOME!!
I think it looks great, but it's a shame everything for girls has to be 'pinkified' or toned down. Kids of all genders like bright colours...
Lorienq - I made it to match her bedding in her room. the dominant colors in my daughters room & bedding are actually green and brown! She actually had very little pink in her room til this was added. I knew she was a girl when I was pregnant, but I chose to skip the pink entirely for her nursery.