Sewing Tent and Stake Bags

If you have a Dyneema tent and want to try sewing with the material, stuff sacks are a great first project. They're simple, hard to mess up, and a lot cheaper to make yourself than to buy. I sewed a drawstring bag for my tent body and a slim one for stakes.

Dyneema Composite Fabric (DCF) is a non-woven laminate, once sold as Cuben Fiber, that bonds ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene fibers between thin sheets of polyester film. It's waterproof, doesn't fray or stretch, and weighs a fraction of the coated nylons traditionally used for stuff sacks. That's what makes it worth the higher fabric cost on a weight-sensitive project.

Sizing the bags

I sized each bag around the gear it needs to hold, with a little extra room so they're easier to stuff. For the tent bag I measured the rolled tent body, then added 6 cm to the circumference and length for an easy fit. The stake bag is sized to my longest stake plus a couple of centimeters of headroom for the drawstring channel.

Cutting the panels

With the dimensions marked, I cut one rectangle for the body of each bag and a circular base panel for the tent bag. The stake bag is narrow enough to just pinch the bottom closed with a flat seam, so it doesn't need a separate base piece. A rotary cutter and a metal ruler give the cleanest, straightest edges on slippery fabric.

Sewing the drawstring channel

Before closing up the body, I folded over the top edge about 1.5 cm to create a channel for the drawstring and secured it with a straight stitch, leaving a small gap at the side seam to feed the cord through.

Stitching the body

Next I folded the panel right sides together, clipped the edges in place, and ran a straight stitch down the side and across the base. I used a flat-felled seam to enclose the raw edges. DCF doesn't fray but a felled seam still adds a little strength and keeps the inside tidy. After stitching I turned the bag right side out.

Finishing: drawstring and cord lock

To finish, I threaded the black micro cord through the channel, slid on a Duraflex cord lock, and tied simple overhand knots at each end to keep them from pulling back through. For the tent bag I ran two separate cords so the opening cinches evenly from both sides. The stake bag only needs a single drawstring since it's narrow enough to close cleanly from one side.

Final thoughts

A solid first project if you're getting into MYOG. The two bags together weigh under 20 g in 0.8 oz DCF.

Making your own version? Drop me a message on Instagram: @andrewtpham or get in touch.

Thanks for reading.