How to Clean and Style a Cotton Canvas Hammock

It's week 2 of Outdoor Extravaganza, and me and my blogging friends are sharing some outdoor decorating and entertaining ideas with you today! As soon as it finally warmed up here, I couldn't wait to put up my romantic crochet edged cotton hammock in our back woods again. Let me show you how I washed it (it was so icky from last year!) and styled it for a little "me" time outdoors. And make sure to scroll down to the bottom of this blog post to see all of the other outdoor entertaining and decor ideas from my blogging friends!

I bought this cozy, boho-chic hammock off of Amazon last year and I LOVE it! Not only does it look beautiful, but it's really large and comfy. I can definitely nap here (if I didn't have 3 rambunctious kids, I would).

This project is part of this month's Outdoor Extravaganza hosted by the talented Shauna of Satori Design for Living. Make sure to come back next Thursday to see our outdoor paint and build-it posts. There will also be a link party on May 26th where you can share YOUR outdoor DIY ideas!

I like to hang this hammock in the woods in our backyard where we've recently built a tree house (that tour will come soon!) for the kids. I can watch them while I swing. It's perfect!

The only problem with this location is that the hammock can get really dirty after a season of swinging under the trees. I also just leave it up all summer and wipe with a cloth as needed instead of taking it up and down all season long.

Thankfully, I was successful in washing it this Spring so that it was ready to hang and enjoy for this year! Here's how I did it:

I filled our tub about ⅓ full with very hot water and then poured about 3 cups of bleach in it. I gave everything a good swirl (with rubber gloved hands in a ventilated area) and put the dirty hammock in the tub. I let it sit in the tub for at least two hours before I removed it.

If you're averse to using bleach, you can try a vinegar and water solution - I've heard that works on cotton canvas too.

After the bleach soak, I washed the hammock in our clothes washer using a delicate cycle selection.

Drying the hammock outside in the bright sun helped lighten any remaining mildew spots and kept the crochet edge of the hammock looking great!

I hung the hammock back up in my favourite spot in our little forest, and decorated it with a DIY buffalo check and floral pillow.

The pillows don't stay outside, but they're easy to bring down here when I want to get extra cozy.

A book and a light blanket complete the experience.

It's handy to have a little table by a hammock for a drink or a soft lantern, and fresh and faux flowers nearby always help up the relaxation factor too!

Now go check out some more outdoor entertaining and decor ideas to fill your Spring with green from my blogging friends!