Blanket fort
Encyclopedia
Blanket
A blanket is a type of bedding, generally speaking, a large piece of cloth, intended to keep the user warm, especially while sleeping. Blankets are distinguished from sheets by their thickness and purpose; the thickest sheet is still thinner than the lightest blanket. Blankets are generally used...
s, bed sheet
Bed sheet
A bed sheet is a piece of cloth used to cover a mattress. It is this sheet that one typically lies on.In many areas of the world, a second flat bed sheet is laid on top of the sheet covering the mattress. This is known as a "top sheet" and when a top sheet is used, the sheet covering the mattress...
s, pillow
Pillow
A pillow is a large cushion support for the head, usually used while sleeping in a bed, or for the body as used on a couch or chair. There are also throw pillows , which are pillows that are purely decorative and not designed for support or comfort...
s, and sofa
Couch
A couch, also called a sofa, is an item of furniture designed to seat more than one person, and providing support for the back and arms. Typically, it will have an armrest on either side. In homes couches are normally found in the family room, living room, den or the lounge...
cushion
Cushion
A cushion is a soft bag of some ornamental material, stuffed with wool, hair, feathers, polyester staple fiber, non-woven material, or even paper torn into fragments. It may be used for sitting or kneeling upon, or to soften the hardness or angularity of a chair or couch...
s. It is also known as a couch fort, pillow fort or sheet fort.
As a staple of early childhood entertainment, blanket forts are commonly referenced in children's books, such as Corduroy's Sleepover
Corduroy (book)
Corduroy is a 1968 book written by Don Freeman, and published by Viking Press. It tells the story of a teddy bear named Corduroy, who is bought in a department store by a girl named Lisa. Don Freeman wrote a sequel, A Pocket for Corduroy in 1978....
and If You Give a Pig a Party. Parenting books frequently suggest building blanket forts as an activity for parents to participate in with their children. Many activities can take place in a blanket fort, such as reading, playing board games, or watching a movie. Blanket forts can be enjoyed by all ages, including teenagers and young adults.
Variations
- One type of fort resembling an A-frame tent is made by a string or rope tied between two points (doorway, couch, armchair, etc.) with a blanket draped over it.
- Another type of fort is the bubble tent, wherein a large, lightweight blanket, with books around the edge, is blown up with a fan.
- Probably the most popular type of blanket fort is made simply by draping a blanket over a tall piece of furniture such as a high armchair or couch.
In Media
One of the Vancouver Film SchoolVancouver Film School
Vancouver Film School is a private entertainment arts school located in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Founded in 1987, it has achieved international recognition. The Vancouver Film School has campus locations around Downtown Vancouver and comprises six buildings...
's featured 48 Hour Film Fest winners was Fortified, a film about an unemployed man who decides to live in a blanket fort.
In the movie, The Sixth Sense
The Sixth Sense
The Sixth Sense is a 1999 American psychological thriller film written and directed by M. Night Shyamalan. The film tells the story of Cole Sear , a troubled, isolated boy who is able to see and talk to the dead, and an equally troubled child psychologist who tries to help him...
, Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment
Haley Joel Osment
Haley Joel Osment is an American actor. After a series of roles in television and film during the 1990s, including a small part in Forrest Gump playing Tom Hanks' title character’s son, Osment rose to fame with his performance as Cole Sear in M...
) is seen hiding under a blanket fort from Kyra Collins (Mischa Barton
Mischa Barton
Mischa Anne Marsden Barton is a British-American fashion model, film, television, and stage actress, best known for her role as Marissa Cooper in the American television series The O.C..-Early life:...
).
In the episode "Conspiracy Theories and Interior Design," from the American television series Community
Community (TV series)
Community is an American television comedy series created by Dan Harmon that airs on NBC. The series is about a group of students at a community college in the fictional locale of Greendale, Colorado. The series heavily uses meta-humor and pop culture references, often parodying film and television...
, Troy (Donald Glover
Donald Glover
Donald McKinley Glover is an American actor, writer, comedian, and musician. Glover first came to attention for his work in the sketch group Derrick Comedy, and is best known for his role as community college student Troy Barnes on the NBC comedy series Community...
) and Abed (Danny Pudi
Danny Pudi
Danny Pudi is an American actor, best known for his role as Abed Nadir on the NBC comedy series Community.-Early years:Pudi, who is of Indian and Polish descent, was born and raised in Chicago and grew up speaking Polish...
) build a large blanket fort in the student dorms that resembles a city.
In the movie Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events is a 2004 black comedy film directed by Brad Silberling. It is an adaptation of the The Bad Beginning, The Reptile Room, and The Wide Window, being the first three books in A Series of Unfortunate Events by Lemony Snicket...
, the Baudelaire children, having just lost their parents in a fire, build a blanket fort after they have been entrusted to Count Olaf (Jim Carrey
Jim Carrey
James Eugene "Jim" Carrey is a Canadian-American actor and comedian. He has received two Golden Globe Awards and has also been nominated on four occasions. Carrey began comedy in 1979, performing at Yuk Yuk's in Toronto, Ontario...
).
On May 27th 2011, Lincoln Military Housing and military families in San Diego built the world's longest blanket fort. It was 475 feet long and required over 3500 feet of PVC pipe.