Take imaginative play one step further with an ingenious fabric house that fits over your dining table
A table tent helps you make the most of limited space, is perfect for rainy days, and when it’s dinnertime in the real world – it can simply be whipped away!
It doesn’t matter what shape your table is as long as you have lengths of fabric to fit. Make your tent as basic or fancy as you or your kids want.
You will need
• Fabric to fit dimensions of your table
• Interfacing or bias binding (optional)
• Sewing machine
• Embellishments such as flowers, butterflies or buttons
1 Measure your table and cut enough fabric to fit the top and sides, allowing an extra 3cm for seam allowances.
2 Decorate your side panels with flowers, butterflies, rickrack (see left) or any other decorations.
3 Cut out a door and a window. If you want you can edge this with interfacing or bias binding.
4 Sew the side pieces together. Pin and sew onto the tabletop ‘roof’ and you’re ready to move in to your mini mortgage-free dream home!
Tips:
• Emporiums are great for cheap fabric.
• You may wish to reinforce the doors and windows with interfacing or even plastic boning available from sewing shops. A heavier fabric will also hold its shape better around doors and windows.
• It’s definitely easier to decorate the house sides before sewing together!
• Try adding flowers or little birds that attach with Velcro so the kids can have fun moving them around.
• Alternatively, sew the house panels together, assemble over table and paint decorations directly onto your house using test pots. Just remember to put a plastic drop sheet down first!
• Add extra bits such as curtains, a window box filled with artificial flowers, a letterbox with a Velcro flap for letters or even a washing line with pegs.
