Chubbs
12-07-2013, 10:17 PM
A while back, forum member, moderator and general nice guy/good bloke/lady god, Jus Young (pay me later Jus!!) created a thread when he designed and made a hammock underquilt out of a sleeping bag in the post below.
http://www.naturalbushcraft.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?2777-DIY-underquilt-project
I thought about making one for a while and put the wheels in motion last week when I dragged all my sleeping bags out the attic to find one suitable for the job. Last year a local supermarket were selling them off cheap and I bought a few which included a single extra large one which was supposed to keep you warm down to -18. Originally it was thirty quid but seeing as though I only paid four, I decided this was the one to use. Being 300gpsm, this one should keep me warm down to at least zero degrees so I set about converting it.
The first thing to do was draw out a basic design on it, making sure that it was long and wide enough for my slender body !!.
http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/xx103/aneray/bushcraft/bushcraft001_zps6f7f36b9.jpg (http://s746.photobucket.com/user/aneray/media/bushcraft/bushcraft001_zps6f7f36b9.jpg.html)
Once this was done I followed Justin's advice and dragged the sewing machine out and sewed all around the chalk markings before cutting it out below.
http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/xx103/aneray/bushcraft/bushcraft002_zps47bbb29c.jpg (http://s746.photobucket.com/user/aneray/media/bushcraft/bushcraft002_zps47bbb29c.jpg.html)
This was great advice because if it was cut before sewing, it would have made the job ten times harder. Once cut I had to sew tubes for the draw cords. I popped down to the local sewing shop and picked up some end pieces of assorted ribbon which were about three metres long and only 45p each. The easy bit was pinning them to the quilt but was an absolute pain to sew them on. A few times I went too far over, but I carried on and once completed I hand sewed the mistakes.
http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/xx103/aneray/bushcraft/bushcraft003_zps0c639254.jpg (http://s746.photobucket.com/user/aneray/media/bushcraft/bushcraft003_zps0c639254.jpg.html)
http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/xx103/aneray/bushcraft/bushcraft004_zpse2e13d66.jpg (http://s746.photobucket.com/user/aneray/media/bushcraft/bushcraft004_zpse2e13d66.jpg.html)
I had a good think about the ends of the quilt, whether I was going to include shock cord, or whether to leave them open. In the end I went with the latter because I tend to get hot in bed, even in Winter, so I thought that the open ends would give more ventilation. All I did with the ends was sew them tightly with thread, so if I change my mind in the future I can add the shock cord on.
Now to the finished underquilt. I tried this out last night in the trees opposite my home and to be honest, I am well pleased with it.
http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/xx103/aneray/bushcraft/bushcraft005_zps79e39377.jpg (http://s746.photobucket.com/user/aneray/media/bushcraft/bushcraft005_zps79e39377.jpg.html)
http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/xx103/aneray/bushcraft/bushcraft006_zpsf0dca888.jpg (http://s746.photobucket.com/user/aneray/media/bushcraft/bushcraft006_zpsf0dca888.jpg.html)
After faffing about measuring loads of times to get the right width and length, I think I have made it to suit my needs. This quilt runs the whole length of my body and the height each side is enough to obscure my view giving me virtually a full wrap. Being 300gpsm, this underquilt is very, very warm and I have no doubt that I could use this in temperatures of zero degrees and under.
The only thing that I am going to change already is the shock cord. The one used is too thin, making the quilt sag slightly in the middle. To some this space is added insulation but personally I think it needs to be a little tighter so I will add some thicker cord to keep the quilt higher and closer to my body.
I have weighed the underquilt in a stuffsack and all inclusive it weighs 1kg and 4 ounces, so for anybody that uses old weights, that's just over two pounds or just a little heavier than a bag of sugar.
Would I make one again?, definately. The only thing I would change is the time making it. Don't get me wrong, the one I made will keep me as warm and as 'snug in a bug' as the ones that cost ninety quid on the selling sites but next time I will slow down a bit and take more care. That's just me, when I make something, I always know that I can make it much better next time.
Finally, I would like to thank Jus Young for the original post. If it wasn't for his easy to follow instructions, I probably wouldn't have bothered making my own quilt and would have saved and spent a fortune on one from the net.
I hope this gives you all the inspiration to make your own in the future.
All the best
Neil
http://www.naturalbushcraft.co.uk/forum/showthread.php?2777-DIY-underquilt-project
I thought about making one for a while and put the wheels in motion last week when I dragged all my sleeping bags out the attic to find one suitable for the job. Last year a local supermarket were selling them off cheap and I bought a few which included a single extra large one which was supposed to keep you warm down to -18. Originally it was thirty quid but seeing as though I only paid four, I decided this was the one to use. Being 300gpsm, this one should keep me warm down to at least zero degrees so I set about converting it.
The first thing to do was draw out a basic design on it, making sure that it was long and wide enough for my slender body !!.
http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/xx103/aneray/bushcraft/bushcraft001_zps6f7f36b9.jpg (http://s746.photobucket.com/user/aneray/media/bushcraft/bushcraft001_zps6f7f36b9.jpg.html)
Once this was done I followed Justin's advice and dragged the sewing machine out and sewed all around the chalk markings before cutting it out below.
http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/xx103/aneray/bushcraft/bushcraft002_zps47bbb29c.jpg (http://s746.photobucket.com/user/aneray/media/bushcraft/bushcraft002_zps47bbb29c.jpg.html)
This was great advice because if it was cut before sewing, it would have made the job ten times harder. Once cut I had to sew tubes for the draw cords. I popped down to the local sewing shop and picked up some end pieces of assorted ribbon which were about three metres long and only 45p each. The easy bit was pinning them to the quilt but was an absolute pain to sew them on. A few times I went too far over, but I carried on and once completed I hand sewed the mistakes.
http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/xx103/aneray/bushcraft/bushcraft003_zps0c639254.jpg (http://s746.photobucket.com/user/aneray/media/bushcraft/bushcraft003_zps0c639254.jpg.html)
http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/xx103/aneray/bushcraft/bushcraft004_zpse2e13d66.jpg (http://s746.photobucket.com/user/aneray/media/bushcraft/bushcraft004_zpse2e13d66.jpg.html)
I had a good think about the ends of the quilt, whether I was going to include shock cord, or whether to leave them open. In the end I went with the latter because I tend to get hot in bed, even in Winter, so I thought that the open ends would give more ventilation. All I did with the ends was sew them tightly with thread, so if I change my mind in the future I can add the shock cord on.
Now to the finished underquilt. I tried this out last night in the trees opposite my home and to be honest, I am well pleased with it.
http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/xx103/aneray/bushcraft/bushcraft005_zps79e39377.jpg (http://s746.photobucket.com/user/aneray/media/bushcraft/bushcraft005_zps79e39377.jpg.html)
http://i746.photobucket.com/albums/xx103/aneray/bushcraft/bushcraft006_zpsf0dca888.jpg (http://s746.photobucket.com/user/aneray/media/bushcraft/bushcraft006_zpsf0dca888.jpg.html)
After faffing about measuring loads of times to get the right width and length, I think I have made it to suit my needs. This quilt runs the whole length of my body and the height each side is enough to obscure my view giving me virtually a full wrap. Being 300gpsm, this underquilt is very, very warm and I have no doubt that I could use this in temperatures of zero degrees and under.
The only thing that I am going to change already is the shock cord. The one used is too thin, making the quilt sag slightly in the middle. To some this space is added insulation but personally I think it needs to be a little tighter so I will add some thicker cord to keep the quilt higher and closer to my body.
I have weighed the underquilt in a stuffsack and all inclusive it weighs 1kg and 4 ounces, so for anybody that uses old weights, that's just over two pounds or just a little heavier than a bag of sugar.
Would I make one again?, definately. The only thing I would change is the time making it. Don't get me wrong, the one I made will keep me as warm and as 'snug in a bug' as the ones that cost ninety quid on the selling sites but next time I will slow down a bit and take more care. That's just me, when I make something, I always know that I can make it much better next time.
Finally, I would like to thank Jus Young for the original post. If it wasn't for his easy to follow instructions, I probably wouldn't have bothered making my own quilt and would have saved and spent a fortune on one from the net.
I hope this gives you all the inspiration to make your own in the future.
All the best
Neil