You won’t need to purchase a bunch of camping equipment if you’re planning on spending the night in the great outdoors. You can simply hang up this hammock and keep yourself comfortable and off the ground. If you’re not a big camper, then you can even use this in your own backyard for those summer days when you just want to relax with some fresh air!

Tools and Materials:

• The most important thing is, of course, the fabric. It should be thin but also strong. Most camping hammocks are made from ripstop nylon and I suggest you use the same. Here are some links (1 , 2) to help you find some. I used polyester taffeta. Polyester stretches much less than nylon but is a bit heavier for the same strength. It makes a fine hammock because of its low stretch. You can find it from here or here
• You will also need 4,5 meters of 5 mm synthetic rope. It is used mostly for tension string (ridgeline). What is tension string I hear you ask? Tension string is one very important part of the hammock but funny enough many mass produced hammocks miss it. It basically keeps the hammock at a constant length. Without it, your hammock will become a cocoon. Some prefer it but the most comfortable position for sleeping is diagonal. This way you can lay almost flat like on a real bed! This item can be found at sewing shop or hardware store.
• Next thing is 8 meters of (non-elastic) band around 2-3 cm wide. I strongly recommend using this over regular rope because it is much easier on the trees. Ropes will put more pressure on bark maybe even breaking it off. 4 meters on both ends of hammock should be enough for even the thickest trees (not including giant sequoias here 😉 .It can be found at a sewing shop.
• And the last thing is four stainless steel metal rings. These are used for tightening system. They should be big enough so that the band fits through them but not too big as you want to keep the weight low. 4mm thick ones are strong enough. This item can be found usually at hardware stores.
• The most important tool is a sewing machine.
• Thread
• Sewing pins
• Scissors
• matches or a lighter
• pencil or marker
• straight edge like a long spirit level
• Tape measure

Have you made your own camping hammock?

Article Source: Instructables