Originally Posted by
silveragent
I have done a ghillie before for half a season. It is a fun project but it doesn't work on all cases.
You can buy a ready made ghillie. Lots of paintballers use it. Or you can make your own by getting an old jacket like an army jacket and then sew threads, loops, netting into it. With netting you can tie threads or burlap strips on the netting or weave actual vegetation you find in the field into it for the day. I saw a photo of deltawaterfowler one day and was inspired to create my own. I can truly say it is the ultimate in camouflage if you get the right colors and fabrics in there. A human could walk within 10m of you and not see you if you kept still. When I built mine I was helped by a couple army buddies. Fun project.
Some negatives I found when I actually did use it in the field were: 1) when it gets wet, it really adds to the weight. If you are actually in the water I would advise against it. If you are on dry land, knock yourself out. 2) If you are walking through vegetation you will get caught on every branch and twig. 3) You have to maintain it or it will just end up being a mess you won't want to use again. If it is soggy, it can start stinking. You will drag every bit of garbage you pick up in the field. It was basically #3 that made me toss mine. After a long day in the field the last thing I wanted to do was dry it out and pick through it. I put it into my washing machine once - and that basically destroyed it.