Projects

DIY Hammock

chair hammock lounge
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Posted by ReadyMade
Project by Alex Valich; words by Kiera Coffee; photo by Bryan McCay

A self-proclaimed “DJ of design,” Alex Valich works in his Brooklyn studio mixing design references from numerous cultures. His Slave Betty teapot is a classic British form sporting a Japanese rope-tied harness. His Alma Fortune cup and saucer take Turkish tea-leaf reading as inspiration for their patterned glazes. Valich’s vision for lighting, rugs, furniture, and tableware is happily unpredictable. And in a sense, every DJ--a collector of elements from sources the rest of us might not have--is a curator at heart. Valich proves this by curating shows of up-and-coming designers whenever possible. He says, “I want to give young people some of the opportunities I had when I was starting out.” He also wants to promote the idea of avoiding overdesigning. “I don’t try to reinvent the wheel (or the fork); I want to use the toolbox that the world already is,” he says. This spring, Valich’s work will pop in collaborative projects with fellow designers. He also intends to create pieces of his own, but the only thing we know is that we should, of course, expect the unexpected.

Alex Valich
Brooklyn, New York

Skill Level

Moderate

Active Time

Half a day

Cost

Materials

13 feet snow fencing (the orange kind with holes)
Two 30-inch pieces of 1/₂-inch metal conduit
Two 74-inch pieces of 1/₂-inch metal conduit
Four 1/₂-inch metal conduit elbows
6 spools of 75-foot nylon cording

Tools

Scissors
Tape measure

Weave construction materials—which won’t fade or absorb water—into a truly comfortable spot for lounging. Cut fencing into two 30×74-inch pieces, trimming the outside squares so that weaving has an edge. Lay out a rectangle with all conduit pieces, attaching elbows to create the “loom.”

Overlap both pieces of snow fencing so squares alternate. Lay on floor in center of conduit frame.

Unroll cording and mark the middle of each spool. The middle will be your starting point for each row of weaving.

Hold the middle of one piece of nylon cording. Loop the middle of cording once around top corner of a 30-inch side of conduit frame. Weave cording in and out of snow fencing going down the long side. Keep tension even.

At bottom, repeat loop around conduit and weave back up. Repeat to make four complete passes.

Tie off end of nylon cording using a standard square knot (Google it for how-to). Leave 3-4 feet of excess to be used later.

Repeat same weaving process on opposite side of snow fencing and in the middle of snow fencing. Weave any additional rows to create desired pattern. Tie all ends with square knots.

Cut remaining nylon cording into two 37-foot pieces. Take the center of each and place one at each center of the short sides of your conduit. Wrap one strand of cording around right side of conduit (to secure fencing and hide conduit) and the other strand around left side of conduit. Tie off with a square knot.

With all cording tied off, create “triangle” shape at each end (to hang hammock from) by pulling excess cording together at each side evenly, holding cording 1-1½ feet from conduit, and tying into a large knot.