Nothing can push your mothering creativity like the long days of summer. When I hear my son start quoting air freshener commercials I know it’s time to shut off the TV and force a little good-ol-fashioned fort making.

I wasn’t up for destroying the living room, so we used a corner of a bedroom instead. First, we rearranged the furniture to create a nook. We used bookcases, but kitchen chairs or dressers would work too. Next, I grabbed a spare twin sheet from under my son’s mattress (thanks for the comment on that, by the way).

The big problem with your average blanket fort is all the slippage. To keep the blankets in place, I grabbed a few adhesive hooks from the junk drawer. I used 3M Command Adhesive because they’re easy to remove and reposition. I placed the hooks on the wall above the nook and on the bookcases. Then, I used simple binder clips to grab the sheet and hook it to the walls and furniture.

Over the last four days the fort has been well-used.  It’s been a circus tent, a makeover salon, and a transformer hideout. The hooks are still holding strong and I haven’t heard about the wonders of ‘Air Wick Freshmatic Minis’ in days. That’s a win-win for me. Just thought I’d pass it on.