See Girls Blog: Hammocking Is All The Rage

This is one of those projects that I've had in my head forever. It was just a matter of getting motivated enough to dive in. In all honesty, this project was neither costly nor time consuming. I spent more time gathering supplies than we did building.

Cost was approximately $40. That does not take into account some supplies that I had on hand.

A simple break down of supplies and costs look like this:

4x4 post $12............................................local hardware store
50 lb bag Quickcrete $9..........................local hardware store
[2] 1' length chain $1..............................local hardware store
[2] large carabiner $5..............................local hardware store
[2] screw and hooks (had on hand)........WalMart years ago (for plant hanging)
[2] plant hangers (had on hand)..............came on the house when we bought it!
[2] Boston ferns .....................................Lowes
Hammock $10........................................Big Lots (last year on sale)
Solar Light $3........................................Big Lots

Some of the supplies were purely decorative, so you can even slim down the budget for this one if you wanted.

Or you could beef it up and be the talk of the neighborhood with your disco ball, surround sound, and climate controlled hammock stand. Hey, the world is your oyster.

I had purchased the hammock last year and intended to hammock (is there a verb for that!?) all summer. But I was foiled by our trees that were spaced too far apart. Wah Wah. So this tutorial is for a tree anchor and a post anchor. This could be done without any trees in your yard however.

Just double the recipe or uh...ehh...whatev.

My parents happened to be in town and I was able to get my Dad to help me tackle this one. I took it pretty easy on him this time compared to some of our other collaborations.

To get started: dig a hole (novel idea). I was shooting for a 2' depth. But got stumped at 20", literally. That's what happens when you dig holes by trees. 4" off. But I think we'll live. As far as measurements like distance from the tree, thats going to depend on your hammock. But remember...it will stretch with time. So be a little more liberal with your spacing. Thats where the chain can make up for the stretch that the hammock will have over time.

Its like a bra strap (stay with me here...I heard this on Oprah once). You should hook your chain (or bra) to the furthest link when selecting your distance (or size). That way, as the hammock (or bra) stretches, you can move in a few notches to tighten things back up.

Sorry if I lost any fellas that may have wandered over here with that dazzling analogy. Don't pretend like you don't know things about women's under roos.

If you choose to set a light in the top of the post, drill your hole and tap in the light holder before setting the post in the ground. Less ladder work = less potential ankle sprains.

We also used some scrap lumber to hold the post vertically level (plumb) before cementing. Then cement according to package directions.

(aiming for the bottom gauge here folks, plumbness is next to godliness)

The Quickcrete we used was fast setting and required no mixing.

Hallelujer. (Madea anyone?)

Then add water. This stuff is suppose to set completely in 4 hours. We started right before dinner time and then got side tracked by more important things like campfires, hotdogs, and s'mores. After the cement has set, cover the remaining depth (3-4" according to package directions) with dirt. Mound it up a little to prepare for dirt settling with the rain.

The next day we drilled in the screw and hooks. Followed by the chain. Then clipped to the carabiner and hammock.

Ok, for reals...hammock is one of those words that by the time I'm done typing it 67 times, I swear I've spelled it wrong all along. And carabiner. I may have googled how to spell that ditty.