How To Build An Indoor Relaxation Teepee

Summer getaways aren’t always feasible, so we built our very own meditation teepee– and here’s how you can, too. Building a plant-shrouded teepee indoors makes for an idea relaxation cove for those moments when you just want to escape. We styled this one for a special feature on Homepolish about Making Your Own Meditation Escape. The instructions are a little involved, but kids love it– and so do adults!

Materials

• 6 dowels
• Twine
• Fabric, a natural, weighted fiber like linen or canvas for the exterior of the teepee, and a lighter fabric for the interior.
• Trim (optional)
• Flowers (optional)

Directions

1. Lash three dowels together (leaving a little space at the ends) to form the bones. Place the structure upright, so that it forms a tripod shape.
2. Lay the remaining three dowels in between the bones, and twine all of the poles together at the top.
3. First decide how far below the lashing (where the twine is wrapped) the fabric will start– we left a two inch gap, so the top would be visible. Then, measure the length from this point to the ground. Finally, measure the diameter of the teepee’s base.
4. There is a seam at every pole, so for every two poles you will need one panel. If you are lining your teepee, as we did, you will need double the panels. Each panel will have a bundt cake shape, longer at the bottom and smaller at the top– but be sure to add an inch of fabric to every panel, since you cinch the cloth at the top. Note: Every seam that you sew needs to be pressed with the seam allowance open!
5. Make the center panels that will drape across the “door” six inches wider, as you don’t want there to be a gap when finishing (you can add an extra panel to create the extra width if necessary).
6. Using a topstitch, connect all the the exterior panels together in a train and do the same for interior panels.
7. Lay the chain of exterior panels over the interior panels, making sure that the two sides you want to be seen are facing on the inside. Sew the two sets of panels together at the top and bottom to form the covering of the teepee.
8. Turn the covering inside out so that the right sides of the fabric are displayed. Sew a topstitch along the bottom of the covering, and sew a row of grommets along the top.
9. Using any left over fabric, sew tie strips at every seam on the interior fabric– evenly spaced at the top, middle and bottom– so that they match with the location of each pole. We liked the look of the ties’ raw fabric, so no need to finish these off with fancy stitch.
10. Place the covering on the teepee, weaving twine through the grommets at the top to hold it up, and fastening the tie strips around the poles to keep it in place.
11. The front panels should overlap with one another. Decide what angle and height you would like the opening to be and then sew from the top of the fabric to where you would like the doorway to begin, and sew up the edges that open onto the doorway.
12. If you’d like to add flaps to your teepee, decide how wide you’d like the flaps to be, pin them back to where you’d like them, and then add a small button (or acorn) to the spot where they are pinned back. We also decided to add a bright trim of yellow pompoms (sewn to the outside) to our doorway, and dress with copper planters (shop the look here). The possibilities are endless!