Hand Me Down Hammock Makeover

Red's Rustic Rehab
by Red's Rustic Rehab
6 Materials
$75
1 Day
Medium

My mom got this hammock at Kroger few years ago! It was only used for a short while when she intially got it, then it sat in her yard, in the weather for years, and as things do, it deteriorated over time. I always thought it was such a cool hammock because the stand folds up for easy storage, and the hammock is supported by two chains so it’s much easier to sit in than the traditional hammocks that have a single chain to support each end! Follow along on how I gave this old gal a new life!

here she is when I brought her home, horribly dry rotten and faded from years in the sun.

And after I sat in it, and fell through it. Hahaha. But you can see how the stand folds up and stores! How cool!

First thing you want to do, measure the hammock! Length and width. My puppy wanted to help! Isn’t he cute? My hammock was 75x36.

Gather supplies!

You will need:


  1. medium or twin size batting
  2. outdoor fabric, I opted for 2 types one for the top and one for the bottom, solids were cheaper so this just cut costs a bit!
  3. rotary cutter or scissors
  4. tassel trim (optional, but so worth it!
  5. sewing machine
  6. straight pins
  7. coordinating thread
  8. spray paint

So this hammock was roughly the same size as a twin size bed! How perfect! The old hammock had batting inside so I picked up a twin size batting from the craft store as the inside of my hammock! Here I am just verifying my measurements were correct and this would be the right size.

Lay your fabric out, good sides together with the batting on top, make sure to line everything up nice and straight, trim off excess leaving about a 1/2-1inch border around the batting on the long sides . I shifted the batting over before cutting to make the scraps bigger in hopes to use for throw pillows :) you’ll also want about 6” of excess fabric on either short end. Pin everything together to get it ready to sew!

Pin and sew batting to the 2 pieces of fabric. All 3 together! Only sew the long sides, leaving the short sides open.I just used a straight stitch. Make sure to adjust the tension as needed, it’s a pretty thick stack! You’ll basically make a giant tube once it’s sewn together.

Turn the tube right side out! So pretty!!

I did a 1/4” hem at the top and bottom of the hammock, also sewed across the top and bottom of the batting to hold it in place and keep it from rolling down or anything inside the hammock. Now it’s time to make the cutouts for the hardware to hook onto the top and bottom bars. I kept the told hammock handy and lined it up, marked where the old cutouts were and cut them out. I trimmed them with a little bias tape to keep them from fraying.

Trying in the rods and hardware! Fits perfectly! I’m excited!

Now onto the stand! It wasn’t in bad shape, hardly any rust! But I wanted to give it a face lift with a little spray paint! I used this krylon hammered effect in black, and I absolutely love the look!

So much better! Amazing what a fresh coat of paint can do!

While the paint was drying, I went back inside and started adding my trim! I know I can do this with my sewing machine, but the hammock was so large and the fabric was so thick already, I was nervous I would mess it up! So I opted to hand stitch it! A little time consuming but I love the extra touch it gave!

I also remade the pillow, the old one was really flat and mildewy! I sewed a couple ties in on the top so I can tie it to the support rod!

Assemble and enjoy! I am absolutely obsessed with how well this turned out!

I can’t wait to relax with a glass of wine and enjoy the view of my garden! Perfect project to kick off a long weekend!

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3 of 4 questions
  • Smitha Smitha on May 31, 2021

    Is that clover instead of grass? Looks so nice!

  • Maude  LaFountain Maude LaFountain on May 31, 2021

    Did you use heavy duty thread to sew this up with ?....I have a hammock similar to yours that needs a face lift .....I love the fabric you chose it's very pretty...I also wonder if you can spray the fabric with NEVER WET to keep it from getting wet if left outside in the rain.....would help keep it from getting mildew on it ....

  • Jane Jane on May 30, 2023

    Did you quilt the pieces together, or just layer the three pieces, and sew around the edges?

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