Lounge in Style With This DIY Mudcloth Hammock Chair
We promise it's easier than you think.

Is there anything better than a hammock on a sunny day? Here's a hammock idea that doesn’t require perfectly-spaced trees. I love this swing chair from Rachel Denbow and wanted to try my own by adding a mudcloth design.

Emilee Stanley Photography
Tools + Materials Needed
- 1 1/4" x 3' oak dowel
- 3/8" x 16' braided polypropylene rope
- 2 yards of black canvas
- white fabric paint pen
- drill
- 3/8" drill bit
- sewing machine
- iron
- shears
- yardstick
- lighter
- 80 mm stainless steel spring snap link
- 3/16" stainless steel quick link

Emilee Stanley Photography
Cut Canvas
To start, fold your canvas in half and lay flat. Measure and mark in 7 inches from the open-top corner. Using a yardstick, draw a line from the mark to the bottom corner. Cut off the angled corner piece and discard.

Emilee Stanley Photography
Draw Design
The beauty of a mudcloth design is that it doesn’t need to be perfect. Using the white paint pen, freehand a design in rows. The yardstick is helpful in making lines down the length of the canvas. Repeat the pattern of rows across the whole fabric. Continue on the back, if desired.

Emilee Stanley Photography

Emilee Stanley Photography
Sew the Hammock
After the mudcloth design is finished, fold the top edge down 1/2 an inch and iron. Next, fold it in again 1/2 an inch and iron flat. Pin and sew the bottom of the fold, then repeat with the long, bottom edge.
Turn your canvas 90 degrees to the left so that the longest edge is on the right. Fold each corner in about 1 1/2 inches and iron. Then fold the unhemmed top edge in 1/2 an inch and iron. Fold again 1 1/2 inches and iron.

Emilee Stanley Photography
Stitch two lines along the bottom folded edge. Reinforce all edges with back stitching. Repeat with other side.
Prep Dowel Rod
Grab your dowel rod and mark 2 inches and 4 inches in from both ends, then drill through completely. Lightly sand any rough edges.

Emilee Stanley Photography
Thread the Rope
Tie a knot 3 inches in from one end of the rope. Melt or tape the end so it won't fray or unravel. Thread the rope through the outer hole of the dowel and up from the widest corner of one side of the canvas seat to the narrow corner of the top. Then tie a knot about 3 feet from the first knot, and thread it up into the dowel. Continue to thread it down into the second hole from the other edge, and measure 3 feet from the loose end and tie a loose knot. Thread it down through the other canvas pocket and back up through the last hole before tying a knot with a 3-inch tail. Adjust everything so it’s even before tightening the knots.

Emilee Stanley Photography

Emilee Stanley Photography
Attach Links
Tie a knot with an 8-inch loop in the center of the rope above the dowel rod. Attach the spring link and the quick link.
Hang + Lounge
Hang the finished hammock on your porch or inside your house from a hook screwed securely into the ceiling. Add a pillow for extra coziness.

Emilee Stanley Photography