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By: David Parker
This article will guide you in creating a unique customised
playhouse for your garden. It covers paint methods, buying
advice and ideas.
A playhouse is a great addition to the family garden providing
you have enough room. It’s a fun outdoor activity for
the kids and it gets them out of your home for a while! These
days playhouses are available in all shapes and sizes but
a nice sturdy wooden one offers a few huge advantages over
plastic version.
•Looks sturdier and often comes in a larger selection
of sizes
•Can easily be painted and customised.
The second point is what this article is really looking at.
Children love a personal touch and this is the perfect opportunity
for a fairly cheap but big present that will last for years.
Choosing the exact playhouse that you want is something I
will leave up to you, especially since there are so many styles
out there and you know your own child best. Try to choose
something that will fit their style, for example a Wendy house
or daisy den for girls and a tower playhouse or castle playhouse
for boys. You should also thing about the practicality of
room. A big playhouse may be nice but a quaint one may appeal
more to your child and look better in your garden, especially
if it has a special modification such as ladders up or crenellations.
I would also recommend playhouse especially designed for children
instead of modifying a more expensive adult summerhouse/log
cabin. This is because children’s playhouses often have
unique features such as special door/window hinges to protect
your children from minor injuries. If your looking for a trusted
brand I would recommend Walton’s, I have both a shed
and playhouse (available here:http://www.gardenbuildingsdirect.co.uk/Childrens-Playhouses)from
this company and can vouch for there quality and stability.
If you have your own recommendations however don’t hesitate
to follow them.
You want the playhouse to be strong and stable; it’s
wise to erect it on a specially designed base, you can find
advice on how to construct these on most DIY websites. You
also want it to be safe, no point the ladder next to a window
a wrought iron fence, kids will be kids and you need to minimise
all possible risks. You should also consider the age of your
children, ideally purchase this kind of item for 3-5 year
old so they get plenty of years of use out of it before they
‘grow up’.
Now the fun part, there are three main ways to customise
your playhouse; paint, furnishings and additional parts.
Paint
This is the easiest, most fun and most noticeable way to
customise a playhouse. Children enjoy nicely paint thing better
than ‘wood’ coloured surfaces so here is where
their input comes in. Do they want an Action Man an action
man camouflage print? A pretty pink Barbie den? A space station
style outpost? All are easily accomplished ideas once you
put a little bit of imagination and effort into it. Let’s
tackle the Action Man idea since this is the example I will
be illustrating with photos. When your playhouse arrives it
will probably be in pieces, this is actually a good thing
since it gives you time to decide on things. Contemplate what
design you want and paint it before you put it together. This
gives you a few advantages.
1.You can get to all sections parts evenly
2.You wont have to reach as badly for high parts
3.You can see how it looks on a small hidden piece before
painting the main side
4.It will create a more uniform appearance once put together.
You should paint it with a timber paint (available from any
local B&Q or DIY store) and remember that wood soaks moisture
up, apply carefully and keep in mind you mainly want to paint
the outside, not the inside. To create a ‘cammo’
effect use rough, overlapping triangles lines or diamonds
of different shades of brown and green. Interlace them and
remember you don’t need to cover it all, the wood colour
underneath will look pretty good between your camouflage design.
For other designs, i.e Barbie Pink you may want to consider
only highlighting parts in pink and going mainly white, a
solid pink house would be pretty shocking for anyone’s
garden. Parts like ladders, windows, door frame and roof would
look great with the remainder either painting a neutral colour
(i.e. white) or left wood stained. Remember to add some protection
or finish to your playhouse too, a clear protective substance
would probably be most useful.
Additional Parts
This can really be the cherry on top. Adding nice accessories
to the playhouse is a great way to make it look entertaining.
Adding some netting across the banister of a ‘cammo’
theme or across its roof would be a nice addition or a flower
box for the Barbie idea. For your space station you could
add some silver painted plumbers tubing round the rails to
make them look more like spaceship air pipes.
You may also want to consider adding major parts, such as
a slide. While this can look great you must be careful with
safety, also test this for weight and stability. Easiest way
to do this is to find a slide with a similar height to the
playhouse floor and put them close together, missing a piece
of the balcony out of construction (please make sure this
does not effect structural integrity, if in doubt contact
the supplier, manufacturer or a qualified carpenter/joiner).
Furnishings
This is a fairly simple task to do; just choose some second
hand/old/cheap chairs, tables, and pillow to give the room
some comfort appeal. A few laminated posters and maybe even
the children’s own drawings/paintings would look great
inside and offers you a chance to go even further making this
playhouse your own.
About The Author
David Parker is a professional landscaper from the Nottinghamshire
area of England. He works freelance and is married and has
one son.
Check out his blog at http://blog.myspace.com/gardenmaster
and recommended garden sheds site http://www.gardenbuildingsdirect.co.uk/
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