Choosing Your Materials
Know where to build your fort on a cold day. Try to find a cozy spot close to a heater. Don't build your fort too close to a window or entrance, because that is where all the cold air comes from.
Know where to build your fort on a hot day. Try to build your fort near a fan or air conditioning unit. You can build your fort near an open window, but only if the window is shady and there is no sun coming in through it. An open window may bring in a cool, fresh breeze, but it can also let the hot sun in! If you can build your fort in a basement, then even better! Basements are nice and cold during the summer, and the floor will keep you cool.
Use light blankets and bed sheets for the roof. Anything too heavy, such as a comforter or a thick blanket will be too heavy and make your fort fall apart.
Put heavy blankets on top of sturdy forts. If the base of your fort is made from chairs, tables, or sofas, then you should be able to drape a heavy blanket or comforter without the fort falling apart. Some seat cushions may be strong enough to hold up a heavy blanket or comforter, but they will need to be leaning against something.
Use seat cushions for the walls. The cushions that come from the seats of sofas and armchairs make great walls because they are stiff and shaped like blocks. They can stand up on their own without much help.
Put soft, squishy pillows inside the fort. The pillows that you use to sleep on don't make very good walls, but they are great for sitting on! Use them inside your fort to make things comfier.
Have an escape plan. Do not build your fort so that it is blocking a door. If something bad happens, you will be in trouble. Blocking doors may keep someone from coming to help you if something happens. It may also keep you from getting out.
Building a Fort Around a Couch
Ask your parents if you can build a fort. Your parents may not mind if you build a fort in your bedroom, but they may not be happy if you build a fort in their living room. Ask your parents if you can use and move the chairs, blankets, and pillows to build a fort.
Find a suitable room to structure your fort in. Try to use a room that already has the basics for your fort in it, such as chairs and a sofa. This way, you won't have to move furniture around that much.
Take cushions off the sofa. This includes the seat and the back cushions. You may find lots of treasures under these cushions. See if there are any worth saving (such as money and toys) and store them in a box. Discard gross items, such as trash and crumbs. No fort is complete without a treasure box.
Use the seat cushions to make some walls. Take a cushion and place it on the seat of the sofa. Lean it against the armrest, so that the side you sit on is touching the armrest. The edge of the cushion should be touching the backrest of the sofa. If you are using regular pillows instead, put two pillows on each armrest. You want the pillows to reach the top of the sofa, so you may need more pillows. Keep stacking pillows until they are even with the top of the sofa. If you have extra cushions, you can stand them on the edge of the couch, between the two armrests.
Drape a blanket over the cushions and sofa. Make sure that the narrow ends of the blanket are covering the cushions, and the long edge is covering the top of the backrest. Tug on the ends so that the blanket is stretched across the top of your fort. Something light, such as a bed sheet will work the best because it will be less likely to make your fort cave in. Blankets and comforters are thick and will make your fort nice and dark inside because they block out light. They are also heavy, however, and may cause your fort to cave in.
Think about expanding your fort. You can crawl into your fort now, or you can make it even bigger by using more furniture and pillows. Push two chairs in front of the sofa and turn them so that they face each other. Lean more pillows against the legs of the chairs, and drape a bed sheet over the top of the chairs. For more ideas, read the part about building a fort around chairs.
Building a Fort Around Chairs
Ask your parents if you can build a fort. Your mom or dad may not mind if you build a fort in your bedroom, but he or she may get mad if you build a fort in the living room. Ask your mom and dad if you can use and move the chairs, blankets, and pillows to build your fort.
Find a room to build your fort. The more furniture, the better. That way, you will not have to move so much around. Make sure that the room you are in has a few chairs.
Find two chairs, a bedsheet, and lots of pillows. The pillows and chairs will be used to make the base of the fort, and the bed sheet will be used to make the roof.
Move the chairs against a wall. The chairs will help hold up the ceiling of your fort, and the wall will be the back of your fort. You can also use a sofa instead of a wall. You can put the chairs in front of the sofa or behind it. If you cannot find a sofa and if there is no room against the wall for some chairs, you can use a dresser or even a closet instead. Just make sure that you do not build your fort against the door of the room. If something happens, you won't be able to get out, or no one will be able to help you.
Turn the chairs so that they are facing each other. The chairs can be as far or as close to each other as you want. You can have them close enough so that you and a friend can sit between them. You can also have them far enough so that you can lie down between them. The chair seats will make shelves and tables for your fort.
Place a bedsheet on top of the chairs. Make sure that the bed sheet is covering the backrests of the chairs. If the blanket is slipping off, you can tie it to the chairs using a piece of ribbon or string.
Add some walls to your fort using pillows. You can use sofa or armchair pillows, or you can use the pillows from your bed. Lean the pillows against the chair legs on the outside of your fort.
Living Inside Your Fort
Make the inside of your fort more comfortable with blankets and pillows. Take a blanket and fold it in half. Lay it on the floor inside your fort, or on the couch to hide all the crumbs. You can also use a fluffy comforter. If you do not have any more blankets, you can use pillows instead. Take two or three pillows and lay them down next to each other on the floor inside your fort. If you are using just blankets, you can stick a pillow or two inside the fort so that you will have something soft to sit on.
Make up a name for your fort. It can be anything you want, such as the name of your favorite food. It does not need to have the word "fort" in it. It can be a castle even! Here are some ideas: Cassie's Castle Ice cream Palace Fort Awesome
Make a sign for your fort. Now that you have come up with a name for your fort, you should let everybody know! Take a sheet of paper or a piece of cardboard and write the name of your fort on it. You can use crayons, markers, colored pencils, or even glue and glitter! Here are some more ideas: Put stickers on your sign. Try to use stickers that match the name of your fort—so if your fort has the word "ice cream" in it, use ice cream-shaped stickers. Decorate your sign with glitter, sequins, stick-on gems, and rhinestones. This is perfect for a castle! If you are making a cool fort, use a piece of cardboard, and write the words in a thick red or black marker. You can even add the words "KEEP OUT" beneath the name!
Hang up your sign. Punch two holes along the top of your sign and put some string through the holes. Tie the string and hang the sign over one of the chairs. You can also tape the sign to the bed sheet if you cannot find any string. If you made the sign out of cardboard, you can put it on the floor and lean it against one of the chair legs.
Bring some snacks into your fort. You can bring snacks such as apples, candy, nuts, juice, or popcorn. If it is around lunchtime, ask your mom or dad if you can have your lunch inside your fort. Make sure that your mom and dad are okay with you taking food out of the kitchen and bringing it into your fort.
Bring something fun into the fort. Forts are not just for hiding in! Bring something with you, such as a book, a music player, or a game.
Bring some lighting. But not too much! Keep your lightings low, such as a couple of glow sticks, or a flashlight. If you are near an outlet, plug in a nightlight. You can even make a cool fairy lantern using a mason jar, glitter, and maybe even a glow stick.
Make a treasure chest. If you will be living in your fort for a while, so you might as well make a box to store all of your snacks, games, toys, and treasure. Find a shoebox, and cover it with some construction paper. Decorate the box with some rhinestones, glitter, and stickers. Put your stuff inside the box, and hide it in your fort!
Invite your friends, pets, or siblings to join you. Sitting in a fort can get lonely, and even the most exciting games and books can get boring after a while. Ask your friend, brother, sister, or even a pet to come and play with you in your fort!
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