How to sew a DIY trailer awning

[deleted]

By request (mostly on Facebook in the Glampers on the Loose group) I promised to make an awning tutorial. It took far too long but I finally published it this morning. It's full of tips, illustrations and some photos. I hope it's helpful if you've been wanting to have a go at making one yourself. And a special thanks to Doug Hodder whose thread first inspired me to make my own domed awning. There is a direct link to that thread in the blog post.

http://theflirtyguide.blogspot.com/2016/02/how-to-sew-diy-trailer-awning.html

[ae6black]

Thank YOU!!! Your tutorial is awesome. Always thought about doing something like this but never seriously considered doing it because I hadn't thought about incorporating tent poles into the design to keep it from flapping in the breeze.

Awesome Design

Art

[capnTelescope]

Fantastic job, Stacie. Great results!

This has been on my to-do list for a while. Now, where to find a sewing machine.

Thanks for your well-done tutorial. (more applause)

[deleted]

Aw, you're very welcome ae6black and capnTelescope

ae6black the tent poles and guy lines work tremendously well as long as you can keep enough tension on them. That gathering on Treasure Island was right in San Francisco's Bay and anyone who was there can back me up when I say it was incredibly windy! I kept waiting for the awning to give and come loose but it never did. Then I started worrying the fabric itself would tear and I love that table cloth so I finally took it down because I didn't want to push my luck

And capnTelescope one of the reasons it took me so long to do this project was lack of a sewing machine. All I wanted was something that could go forward, backward, zigzag, and sew through 8 layers. That's all. Ended up with a bit more than that but not outrageously priced. Was very afraid I'd come home with a new machine that cost as much as my trailer But I stayed focused and didn't get carried away. LOL If you lived closer I'd loan you mine.

[lfhoward]

Thanks for the tutorial and the great design. The trailer I'm building has a rear door like yours, so I have been thinking about having an awning back there for a while now. Just had no idea how I was going to make it. Now I do!

[deleted]

Glad to be of help lfhoward!

The trailer I'm building has a rear door like yours...

BTW if your door is larger than a standard teardrop door you may run into the same problem I did which is swarms of mosquitos making their way inside when I'd open the door at dusk. A simple solution was to add a strip of velcro hooks (I chose the industrial strength because it's grey and matches my aluminum door frame) right along the top of the door then hang a piece of mosquito net across the doorway allowing it to drape just a little longer than the bottom of the door. I also put two short pieces of velcro at the midpoint on each side. When I need to go out it helps immensely to cut down on winged intruders making their way in. On sunny days when gnats are a problem I put it up and tuck the bottom end under the mattress. Works like a charm.

[lfhoward]

Thanks for the tip about the mosquito netting, Stacie! Sounds like a good idea. My door is larger than a normal teardrop door because I am building the trailer to also be able to haul cargo if the bed is removed. The door is about 45 inches wide by 55 inches tall.

[starleen2]

Thanks for posting the tutorial! Here is another version.It measures 6ft X 6ft Plenty of room for relaxing in chairs and providing shade for the table. It's made of sunbrella outdoor red and white stripe. Thanks to Doug H. who's inspiration helped me to solve a droopy center with the fiberglass rods. Actually they are fiberglass reflecting rods found at LOWES and some plumbing pipe that I used to get the same effect. The support poles are ½ electrical conduit. The whole unit slides in a an awing channel and pretty much supports itself. I wanted the cabana look with the horizontal and vertical stripes.

[deleted]

Love it Starleen! Thank you for adding your photos to the thread

Are you able to stake it down with the guy lines when it's windy?

lfhoward yes, with a door that large I'm pretty sure you'll end up with visitors if you ever need to step out when the mosquitos are swarming. The very first night after I picked up my trailer I had to take my dog out for his potty break before we went to bed in Wisconsin. I spent the next hour killing intruders who came back in with us. And let me say WI mosquitos are the worst I've ever encountered. They're "Terminator" mosquitos. I'd smash them, they would fall onto my bedding, shake it off, then start flying again The only way to make sure they were dead was to explode them. Almost as bad as a tick

[StanDahl]

A possibly handy tool for this job is the Speedy Stitcher. If you don't have a sewing machine capable of handling multiple layers of heavy material, and you're patient, this could work well.

http://www.speedystitcher.com/#the-basics

[lrrowe]

I have one of these. It did a great job fixing my motorcycle seat after a vandal put a long slice in it with a knife. Slow, but it got the job done.

[deleted]

Wow StanDahl thanks so much for your suggestion! I hadn't ever heard of the Speedy Stitcher before! If you have the time this would definitely be a good project for it since it's sewing only straight lines through the layers of fabric. Am glad I had the sewing machine to make mine but think it would be fun to have a Speedy Stitcher to work on other small sewing projects while camping... Like how people knit or crochet on location. I saw them priced online from around $13.00 and up.

And glad to hear it worked for you lrrowe though sorry to hear your need for one.

[S. Heisley]

Thanks for this thread and for your tutorial, Stacie. ...Good job!

[dales133]

Great tutorial stacie i was considering making my own

[drhill]

lots of comments here from people thinking of sewing a canopy.

GO FOR IT.

I just finished sewing one up and it looks awesome, and was much easier than I thought it would be. I used a coated nylon material and my wife's old machine had no problems at al with it. If it wasn't so crowded in the garage I would take a picture and post it. Will do the next time I have it out.

Thanks Stacie.