I got my sewing machine from a thrift store earlier this year, played with it a bit, but never put it to work.
Now I'm going backpacking with my nephew, he needs an underquilt for his hammock, and instead of buying one, I made a rough copy of mine.
It's a little shorter, and heavier, but it's probably a little warmer too 😬
I still have to put the shock cord on the ends, so I haven't tested if it will hold its shape properly, but I think it will.
I cut up an old throw blanket that was gifted to us years ago, we never use it, and it's not pretty, so... 🤷♂️ I was gonna cut the tassels off and sew all the edges, but I ran out of gumption. I still might, it would be a weight savings, but I doubt my cuts will be clean and straight, it'll probably look worse.
Edit:
So I tested it out. I was warm at 50 degrees with no breeze, but the temp went up to 55 and a steady breeze started blowing, I definitely felt... Cool, underneath me. So I think it could be decently warm, it just needs some wind breaker material added to it to stop the breeze from sucking away the heat.
Thanks! I didn't think of it as upcycling at first, but I like that!
Yeah hammocks can be super comfortable to sleep in, I prefer it to a tent. But you NEED an underquilt, otherwise the cold air will suck away your heat. Blankets in the hammock with you won't help, because they get squished flat and lose all insulating abilities. Gotta have a nice fluffy blanket strung up snug underneath your hammock to stay warm.
Or you can put an air mattress in the hammock with you, but that's clumsy and fiddly, in my opinion.
I'll update with pictures once it's strung up and operational!