Things You'll Need

Instructions

1

Cut a half-circle of the heavy-duty canvas at least twice as long as it is wide. The minimum height for a tipi to be a usable living space is 10 feet. A good basic tipi is 15 by 30 feet, and we will use that measurement for this construction. If you have to stitch panels of canvas together to create a large enough piece for your tipi, use an interlock seam. With this seam, you overlap the two pieces of canvas by 1/2 inch, then fold them to the right one time in another 1/2-inch fold. The two edges are now interlocked; sew along the center of the 1/2-inch flap you have created.
2

Cut two smoke flaps to fit the area above the seam. The flaps should be roughly a trapezoid, with a longer top edge, and a front that angles down to a shorter bottom. The back edge that attaches to the tipi is 5 feet long, and the top edge is 2 1/2 feet. The front edge measures 6 feet and the bottom edge is 1 1/2 feet. Sew a seam around all the outer edges. Cut a small triangle of canvas and sew it to the top front outer corner of each flap to insert the poles to open and close them, then sew the shorter back edge to the front of the tipi from the center point down on each side.
3

Cut a semicircle on each side of the center of the main tipi shape for the door. The door should be at least 1 1/2 feet above the ground and at least 3 feet in diameter, so cut a 1 1/2-foot-diameter half-circle on each side.
4

Sew a rectangular flap for the seam. The seam should cover the space between the bottom of the smoke flaps and the top of the door. Measure this once you have the door cut and the smoke flaps attached, to make the correct size. The flap should be 1 foot wide. Sew all four edges of your rectangle into a seam, then place two rows of holes 4 inches in from each side, and buttonhole-finish them to keep them from tearing. Make sure the holes are parallel. A small dowel will be inserted into each set of holes to hold the tipi together.
5

Set up the tipi poles by placing three of the strongest poles in a tripod shape. Add the other poles to create a full cone-shaped circle. For a 15-foot tipi use 16- to 18-foot poles. Drape the tipi canvas over the frame. Lace the wood sticks through the seam to secure the front. Open the smoke flaps and place poles in the pockets you created, resting them to the back of the tipi.