Summer is finally here, in Pennsylvania, and with it comes lots of trips to the dog park! My boyfriend and I recently purchased a new car and our first concern was the safety of our pitbull, Illy while the second concern was keeping the car clean! I recently stumbled across an awesome DIY on Pinterest for making a car “hammock” to keep your pooch contained while riding in the car. (You can see the original tutorial here!) Originally, I was going to follow that tutorial to a T, but I came up with my own version to better suit our needs (and our car). This is my take on the doggie car hammock!
**PLEASE NOTE: THIS IS NOT A FULL TUTORIAL!**
I was going to do an in-depth tutorial on this, but once I started working on it I ran into a lot of issues that I had to hack through in order to complete it. Once I get the kinks worked out, I’ll make version 2.0 and document it better! In the meantime, follow me through some of the process of making version 1.0!
First, I used 2 yards of upholstery fabric in green for the top layer.
I also grabbed 2 yards of black fleece for the bottom. This added padding and also provides a grippy texture on the car seats so the hammock doesn’t slide around.
I bought a pre cut roll of nylon strapping, and some parachute buckles.
Finally, I got 1 yard of “soccer netting” for the hood. (I’ll explain later!)
The first step was to sew the long ends of the fabric panels together. I cut them down to be the same length as my car, then sewed the long edges, leaving the shorter edges open.
I reinforced the edges by sewing down the seams. This means I flipped it right-side out and sewed the edge again.
Next, I quilted the panels together to prevent them from shifting away from each other and getting rolled up. It was about at this time that Illy realized that we were working on something for her…
Here are some adorable action shots:
I went through HELL trying to make the hood, and I did it in a way that was too complex to explain. However, attaching the straps and hood is fairly simple. Tuck the straps down into one of the shorter edges and fold the fabric down into itself to form the seam. We also added 2 tie-down strings on each of the corners opposite of the hood. Our car has hooks for a cargo net, which was perfect for securing the hammock while the back seats were laid down flat.
Speaking of that hood… My boyfriend and I came up with the great idea that we would make a “hood” to go over top the front seat headrests. This was supposed to prevent the dog from jumping into the front seats while we weren’t in the car, and also to help contain the dog in the event of a crash. I think it was a good idea and will definitely be good incase of an accident, but our dog is too smart for it while sitting in the car alone. The first day we used it, we stopped at the gas station and left Illy in the back seat with the hood up. When we came back, not even 5 minutes later, she was sitting pretty in the drivers seat looking at us. We have no clue how she did it, and I was disappointed that our contraption failed, but she seemed content with her new obstacle challenge.
Anyways, here is the finished product! The fabric matched our car perfectly and fit like a glove on the back seat. I also made it long enough with ties on the end so we could use it with the back seats flipped down! I think this is going to make car rides much safer and cleaner for our pooch, and I hope this can be an inspiration for someone else! If you have any questions about the process, I’d be very happy to fill you in. (Except for making that hood. That was a combination of good luck and a few moments of pure frustration that created that thing…) Just leave a comment below and we can discuss it! Or send me a message over on my contact page. Thanks so much for reading and enjoy the action shots below!
