Kids Playhouse Blog

White goes with a kids playhouse the same way that a red-nose works for a reindeer. It can make the playhouse stand out and be extra special. This holiday season, you may want to consider sprucing up your family’s kids playhouse to reflect some of the more ethereal or angelic themes of the season.

For those that celebrate Christmas, angels sitting atop a tree are a norm when it comes to interior decor during the holidays. Along with the holiday playhouse look comes a renewed feeling that can help to refocus Christmas from simply gift-giving to recognizing the amazing miracles that happen in our lives everyday.  This is especially true during the holiday season.

Here are a few ways to make your family’s kids playhouse glow as if an angel has ascended on it just for your child and his or her friends:

Outline the kids playhouse with a blend of plain white lights or icicle-inspired lights, and small angel ornaments. The way to meld the look is to hang the angel ornaments repeated after a certain number of lights, for example, 12 lights then an angel, 12 lights then an angel, etc. The hanging angels will almost look like they are floating around the playhouse.

Go over the top, literally, and set an “angel” on the roof of the kids playhouse. You may consider doing some fancy artwork or use of lights to make it look like the angel is hugging the playhouse. You can create “wings” from white fabric netting that can be hung on either side of the playhouse for a truly uplifting effect!

Place angels in the windows and on the door of the kids playhouse. Children will love looking at their angel friends as they enter and play inside.

Animatronic decorations are still popular. You may be able to find some angels that sing or move at a local retailer. Place them right on the patio of the kids playhouse for a real effect.

Your family’s kids playhouse can look as if it has been touched by angel. Try these little design tricks and you are sure to create a look that is gorgeous. A happy and heavenly holiday season could start with making your own little angel’s playhouse extra special!

Technorati Tags: Angel playhouse, decorating a playhouse, Kids Playhouse, kids playhouse ideas

Blending favorites and a kids playhouse are a super way to ensure that your child will have a blast when he or she has playtime. Your little one will feel like their world has been transformed when you work together to turn their playhouse into a storybook adventure featuring their absolute favorite book and its characters! You may be wondering how you can pull off such a metamorphosis without too much stress and/or money. It can be done by using a few simple, and inexpensive, decorating tricks.

Here’s how you can turn that kids playhouse into a marvelous dream:

Choose the main scene that your child loves from their favorite book. Let this scene dictate the color of the kids playhouse walls. If it’s a walk in the park, then opt for sky colored walls or forest green to represent the trees in the park. If it’s a scene that takes place high atop a building, you may choose colors such as steel gray or brick red.

After selecting the wall colors, you may decide to actually recreate that scene with photos, drawings, or decals. Consider bringing the scene to life with decals that help the image to “pop”. If you can’t find the specific elements that you may need such as buildings, trees, or even candy, you can use other general design elements to make them.  For instance, to make clouds on the kids playhouse wall, you could use pure white decals from a cheap dollar store decal set that can be cut to look like clouds.  For something silly like foot prints, use blank brightly colored dollar store decals that you can mix and match, and cut to look like big feet!

Set up an area in the kids playhouse where your child can dress up like his or her favorite character from the book. The experience wouldn’t be the same without being able to look like the people or things from the book!

Have an area of the kids playhouse, potentially the loft area, where you stencil or type out words and passages from the book. This will serve to encourage your child to read also! This would also be a fantastic place to have a book nook if their favorite book is a part of a series.

Your family’s kids playhouse will be the ultimate play station for your little one when you decorate it so that their favorite book becomes real for him or her. Your little one is likely to be the envy of the kid set with such a cool place to have fun. Plus, just think of how excited your child will be about reading even more!

Technorati Tags: Kids Playhouse, Kids playhouse design, kids playhouse ideas, Reading

I loved that this kids playhouse was based on a Japanese wooden tea house theme.  It has a wonderful open concept with many details like a small circle window that acts as a sun dial, a wooden porch-like base that could be transformed into a stage area for plays, decorative lattice work and a small open door way for children to go in and out of the playhouse.

Outside the playhouse, the owner put in a rock garden and a wandering path for a serene and calming effect.

This Japanese-inspired kids playhouse was built with love by Jill for her two daughters.  Great job Jill!

Technorati Tags: Japanese playhouse, Kids Playhouse, kids playhouse ideas, wooden playhouse

Wow, just when you think you’ve seen it all, a $52,000 luxury pirate’s kids playhouse from Posh Tots comes along to prove you wrong.

This playhouse is handcrafted and comes with a captain’s quarter that can seat 3-4 adults on the faux leather-cushioned benches which can also be used as sleeping bunks for sleepovers, lower and upper decks and a crow’s nest lookout.  Additionally, there are peepholes, numerous windows, an ornate and decorative helm and rudder, and a mast and rigging.

The pirate ship is made out of mahogany, poplar and Douglas fir.  You have to see the pictures.  How could any kid not want a kids playhouse like this one?

Technorati Tags: Kids Playhouse, kids playhouse ideas, luxury playhouse, Pirate

Did you  know a kids playhouse can be decorated with butterflies to suit any butterfly-loving little girl or boy?! In fact, butterflies are very gender neutral and are easily adapted for boys or girls when it comes to using them to make a play space more personalized and fun. When most people think of butterflies, they only consider its use for “girly girl” type of designs, but that is not the only way to accessorize with them. Check out these really cool ways to deck out a kids playhouse with these wonderful winged creatures:

For boys: Select butterflies that are true to life to create a very natural look for the kids playhouse. Your playhouse walls can pop in 3-D by adding those “life like” butterflies to the wall. It will look as if the butterflies are hanging out with your little boy in his playhouse. To make it blend even more, paint the lower half of the wall to look like tall grass and fields. Then, stick those funky butterflies to the walls.

Use colors of brown, tan, green, gold, and blue to give the kids playhouse a more masculine look. Set up an area where he can do some scientific investigations with real butterflies that includes a microscope and bug boxes for capturing butterflies. He will need a net and possibly even a camera.

For girls: Let pink and purple butterflies charge their way into her kids playhouse. There are so many fun and abstract butterfly decal sets that you won’t have to paint the butterflies on the wall yourself because you will be able to find a set at places such as the local dollar store. Go for really cool butterfly inspired curtains, rugs, knob and door pulls. Get really creative and let some sparkly butterflies hang down from the ceiling to look as if they are flying and flitting around the room.

Your girl will need her own butterfly wings, of course. Set up a dress up area where she can change into her butterfly costume. You may be able to find wings and a more elaborate costume at your local thrift store or at a yard sale, or you could always make her a set using your own creativity and craft skills.

Butterflies will make any kids playhouse a beautiful sanctuary for play, research, or just for admiring these graceful insects. Your child, whether it’s a boy or girl, can have a fantastic butterfly inspired kids playhouse. Just be creative, choose colors that are more suited to your child, and watch as hours just fly by because your kids will be having the time of their lives!

Technorati Tags: Butterfly theme, Kids Playhouse, kids playhouse ideas

Pirates are popular with children and turning a kids playhouse into a pirate’s hideout cove is easy to do.  There are plenty of pirate movies and engrossing books like “Pirates Don’t Change Diapers” that kids have a hard time putting down.  So, bring that trend to your family’s kids playhouse!

Try these awesome tips to bring the playhouse up to p-AARRHH:

1. Add a telescope to the window ledge or porch railing of the kids playhouse. For any sea-faring pirate, a telescope is a necessity. Imagine all the foreign lands your child will see! Of course, don’t forget watching out for approaching pirate ships or spying on others that may be after their treasure chest.

2. Fill up treasure chests in and around the kids playhouse. Pirate costumes and plastic or foam swords can fill up one treasure chest while another may be used as a drink or snack container. To create a drink container “treasure chest” purchase one of those foam travel chests from a local dollar store. Together, with your child, paint it and embellish to look like a real treasure chest. Fill it with ice, drinks, and fruit snacks! Of course, you can’t forget about having a treasure chest that holds all of the real “treasures”. Your child may get really creative and keep their favorite books, games, or trinkets in the treasure chest or they may go the more traditional route and keep fake jewelry, golden coins, and dazzling crowns.

3. A flag pole and pirate flag readily transforms a kids playhouse into a fierce and mighty pirate strong-hold. You can purchase a ready-made pirate flag or you can make one. Making a pirate’s flag is simple. Purchase an inexpensive black pillow and some white felt. Cut the pillowcase down to the desired flag size. From the white felt, cut out a skull and cross bones and glue it to both sides of the black pillow case. Now, string it up the flag pole and everyone will know to beware of pirates!

Your little pirate’s kids playhouse could be the talk of the neighborhood.  You may even want to provide a water slide or water sprayer on the outside for those that have to “walk to the plank”. Have fun with it and let your children be as “arrhh-tistic” about it as they would like.

Technorati Tags: Kids Outdoor Play, kids play house, Kids Playhouse, kids playhouse ideas, Pirates, Treasure

This kids playhouse is located in northern Wisconsin at a resort that has been around for at least 100 years.  I always walked past this playhouse and loved the rusticity of it.

The kids playhouse is quite small with the door kid-sized, so I had to crouch down to see into the playhouse.  There were spaces between the logs and even a fireplace.  I wonder if the fire place was ever actually used?  My youngest child loved playing in this unique log cabin.  It was a fun experience for her to pretend she was a pioneer, just like Laura Ingalls.

This little log cabin must have provided a lot of enjoyment for many kids over these past decades.

Technorati Tags: Kids Playhouse, kids playhouse ideas, log cabin, wooden playhouse

If you’ve ever wanted a small wooden kids playhouse that is somewhat rustic, then view the playhouse is the video below. I was able to interview the owner of this playhouse who fondly recalled the wonderful times her now grown children had playing in the playhouse.

The owner said that she wanted a kids play house that had open windows, with no glass, so that the kids could have a pass-through window when they played restaurant.  She also did not want a door on the playhouse so that she could always see her child.  The playhouse has lasted through the growing up of three adult individuals.  She said she now looks forward to the grand kids enjoying the kids playhouse her children loved to play in.

Technorati Tags: Kids Playhouse, kids playhouse ideas, wooden playhouse

If your daughter has been pining for her own kids playhouse and your wife has been asking you how long it will take to build it from a kit, the easy answer is a few days!  That is, if your day job doesn’t get in the way.  Although many of us wish that we had 2 days of work and 5 days off, that’s just not reality and we have to work around our job when building a playhouse project.

Doug McCaughan, from Reality Me, and his wife have been documenting the building of their daughter’s playhouse and so far they are up to day 10 (and still counting!).  They are building a playhouse from a kit and so far have made great progress.  In the picture below, you can see what was delivered as part of the playhouse kit.

Ultimately, the playhouse will look like the Little Miss Kit available from Wood Manor.  The playhouse is 8 feet wide, 8 feet deep and 8 feet high and is extremely quaint and adorable.  You can see what it will look like at the end of this post.

After 10 days of working on the playhouse, the playhouse is almost fully constructed.  Once the roof is put on, there most likely will be a huge sigh of relief that they’ve made it this far in the process.

Although there still is decorative mill work, painting and finishing off of the inside that will still need to be done before the playhouse is completely finished and ready to “move in”, the sense of accomplishment of getting the playhouse to this stage is huge.

Here are some pictures during the building process of the kids playhouse.

The ground was prepared and the foundation was constructed.  You can see the outline porch entrance.

The channel shiplap panels were added to construct the walls of the playhouse.

This picture shows the finishing of the walls, addition of the windows, and the rafters that have been added to the playhouse.

You can see the three cute hexagonal windows.

If you look at the porch floor edge, it is being protected until the railing goes up.

This is what the kids playhouse will look like when it’s fully completed.  I’m sure Doug’s little girl will absolutely love her birthday present when it’s finished – especially knowing that her Dad built it for her!

Technorati Tags: building kids playhouse, kids play house, Kids Playhouse, kids playhouse ideas, Reality Me, wooden playhouse

I love finding playhouses that other parents have built for their kids.  Here’s a kids playhouse that I came across that is quite colorful and that Mike and Beth Castillo recently finished for their family.  It’s really cute!

Technorati Tags: ideas for children's playhouses, kids play house, Kids Playhouse, kids playhouse ideas