No Sew Mosquito Net Inspired Play Tent

I know it's just the beginning of November but I am determined to get my Christmas shopping and crafts done by the end of the month. I would like to spend December celebrating the holidays, not stressing about finishing Christmas shopping or any handmade gifts I wanted to make. I want to spend it baking and making fun holiday toddler crafts and going to parties and picking out gifts for the adopt a child we do every year.

I'm going simple this Christmas.  The girls will get one outfit, one pair of pajamas, a few books and a handmade gift from us and one "big" toy and their stocking (filled with stuff they need anyways like socks, toothbrushes, hair ties, goldfish crackers....) from Santa.

So tonight, I made Maya's handmade gift. 

I call it "the tent."  She loves hiding in small spaces and under blankets so this seemed perfect. 

I used a combination of instructions from Mum Of All Trade's blog and Little Miss Momma's blog.

Materials Needed: (I got some pretty good deals on fabric at Joann's thanks to their coupons!)
1 Hula Hoop ($6.49 at Toys R Us)
1 set of curtains ($6.99 at Ross)
2 pieces of tulle 4 1/2 yards each (same color or different colors and you can use more to have more fluff and actually, looking at it now, I probably could have used a long piece of tulle so it hangs evenly with the end of the curtains, but I was just going by the instructions I had) ($6.72 at Joann's)
1/2 yards of felt ($3.74 at Joann's)
6 pieces of 1/2" or 5/8" ribbon 66 inches long ($3.58 at Joann's)
Total cost $27.52

Almost $28 seems like a lot for a tent but this is the main present to her from us.  And I hope she'll be able to use it for a long time.  And maybe when she's older, she'll drap it around her bed.  I chose bold primary colors to go with the colors in her room. 

So here's how I made it.

Start with a Hula Hoop.

Then destroy it, by cutting it in half.

I used a serrated bread knife. Make sure you put a towel under your cutting board because Hula Hoops have some mystery liquid inside that will gush out.  Then carefully empty the rest of the liquid out in the sink.

Next, thread the curtains through the hoop.

Then duct tape the hoop back together.

Cut 6 pieces of ribbon 66 inches long.

Fold the ribbon in half and slip knot it evenly around the hoop.  You'll have to cut a little slit in the curtains in order to slip the ribbon through it.  Make sure they are evenly spaced before cutting!

Gather the ribbon in the center of the hoop.

Then make a knot in the center (this process took me far too long to figure out.  I kept second guessing myself that the hoop was level.)

I forgot to take a picture of the next couple of steps because I got excited.  Fold a piece of tulle in half long ways then again short ways, the corner where all sides touch is the center of the fabric.  Cut a little piece of that corner off then slide it through the knotted loop of ribbon.  Do the same thing with the second piece of tulle.  Arrange the tulle however you wish around the hoop. 

Lay the felt out and cut the biggest circle you can.  Don't worry about it being even, you'll fix it later.  Find the center of that circle, cut a slit and slide it through the knotted loop of ribbon.

See how uneven it is?  Now is the time to even it out.  You can really cut it however you like.  I wanted to scallop the edges to look like pedals of a flower but I'm not that coordinated.  So it became mostly circle like.

Once it's hung up in its permant place, I'll somehow tie the opening so it stays open.  For now, I just used safety pins.

I think I'm going to get a piece of white felt, cut a small circle and slide it over the loop so it looks like the center of a flower or something.  I feel like the red felt needs something more, little flowers or bows glued all over it?  Another piece of tulle the same size as the red felt over it?  I'll figure it out.

I'm really excited to see what it looks like hanging in her room with pillows and stuffed animals inside.