Making a Room into an Arabian Tent
Choose your color palette. Your tent room should be filled with a happy melange of colors, all in “jewel” tones, such as ruby red, amber yellow, lapis lazuli or sapphire blue. Balance these colors with off-white or beige, in generous portions, such as in the tent fabric and carpeting so these rich colors don't overwhelm the senses, but have a neutral base from which to emerge.
Cover the ceiling with lightweight fabric, such as nylon or mesh, to form a tent canopy overhead. Begin with a section of fabric and staple one end to a point that marks the center of the ceiling. If a light fixture protrudes from the center point, stay clear of it by at least a foot all around. Create a medallion-type border one foot or so from the fixture with ornately curved trim -- think "Taj Mahal" -- from where to begin stapling the tent in gathers, if you like. Extend the length of the fabric to the place where the wall meets the ceiling. Staple this end of the fabric to the wall, approximately 12 inches below the ceiling line to create a gentle, sloped effect. Continue to gather the fabric to form the pleats as you staple continuous and overlapping fabric sections to the wall. Install continuous sections of fabric alongside the first section, starting at the center of the ceiling and working out toward the corresponding area on the opposite wall. Overlap the two side-by-side sections by 2 inches so the seam between the two sections is somewhat masked. Work all the way around the room, section by section, until the ceiling is completely covered with pleated fabric.
Create a round ceiling medallion, cut out of 3/4 inch plywood, that is large enough to cover the place where the fabric has been stapled to the center of the ceiling. Drill a hole through the center of this medallion to accomodate the light fixture wires if you intend to install a hanging light here. Mount this medallion securely to the ceiling with molly bolts. Decorate the medallion with paint or upholster it with more of the ceiling fabric: do this only after installing a hanging light fixture from the medallion if that is in your plans.
Optional: Install an appropriate ceiling light fixture such as a Moroccan hanging lantern. The larger the lantern the better. Turn off power to the room at the circuit box. Mount the fixture to the plywood ceiling medallion and connect the fixture using the capped wires. Restore power to the room and test the fixture.
