Hang a Hideout

Call it what you want--a tent, a hideout, a permanent-press playhouse--but this breezy, easy-to-make clothesline fort offers kids ample shade and privacy for tea parties, secret clubs or just whiling away long afternoons. The construction of the tent is fairly free-form, with its design depending on the length of your clothesline, the size of your yard and how many sheets you want to use.

To make our tent, we strung three clotheslines between a tree and a tall fence (one clothesline runs higher to form the peaked ridgepole of the roof). Then we hung several sheets to form the walls and roof, clipping them in place with clothespins. If your kids like, furnish the tent with kid-size chairs and an old rug--or, as we did, just stick with the original decor by Mother Nature.