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A community children's library created using an old dollhouse.
The project
My son's kindergarten wanted a free little book library for the children to share and swap books and I volunteered for the project. They had an old dollhouse from the yard which was perfect for upcycling but needed a lot of work. Several community members offered scraps of cladding, roofing, and wallpapers for repurposing.
Weatherproofing was key, as it would be placed outdoors. Also crucial was it being easy and safe for toddlers to use.
The project has been a great success. The little bookhouse operates outside the kindergarten entrance. So far it has survived much rainy weather and many happy eager children.
Steps
Step 1
Preparing the old dollhouse.
This old dollhouse, originally donated to the kindergarten from a local church, had been kept outdoors for years in the children's play yard. The wood was weathered but the construction was sturdy.
Only basic cleaning (removing cobwebs and muddy children’s handprints) and sanding was needed. I filled some small holes on the shelves with wood putty. Larger gaps in the roof line were waterproofed using a poly sealant.
Step 2
Interior decor.
Antique wallpapers were donated by community members and applied to the interior walls. The ceilings were painted white and the floors varnished. Wallpapering next to the stairs was too tricky so that wall was painted in matching green.
Step 3
Exterior cladding.
The weatherboard panels were donated by a member of the community, which he had leftover from cladding his house and were about to go in a skip bin. They are made from sustainably sourced hardwood mixed with environmentally friendly resin. He gave me offcuts of various lengths from which I had to cut what I needed to cover the exterior walls of the house. He also donated the metal trimmings for making the ends and corners look neat. He included some leftover green paint too for painting the trimmings and touching up the panels where necessary.
A hacksaw cut the metal trimmings to length and a jigsaw easily cut through the panels. Liquid adhesive stuck everything easily to the dollhouse. Once adhered, I used a simple hand saw to trim the excess to match the slope line of the roof.
Step 4
Making the doors.
The book house definitely needed doors to keep the books dry from rain. Due to the shape of the dollhouse, I couldn’t find doors appropriate to upcycle so I had to make them custom. I started with basic 12mm plywood which I cut to size. I added windows at each level of the dollhouse to give three-storey look with different shaped windows for the attic.
Windows were carefully drawn up using a series of rulers. Rough holes were drilled in each spot with a hole saw bit. These were extended into the window shape using a jigsaw. Edges were bevelled with a trimmer.
Extra features on the doors included an attic section. Grooves were etched into the plywood using a trimmer guided by a clamped ruler at regular intervals. Wooden beading added extra detail. The doors were painted all over with exterior grade white paint. Leftover green paint from the weatherboards was used for the detailing and gave a matching look to the cladding.
Acrylic sheeting acted as the window “glass”. It is lighter and safer for children than real glass and is easier to cut and handle. I cut it to size with a jigsaw and used poly sealant in a caulking gun to easily attach the pieces to the doors. This also made the windows weatherproof.
Step 5
Hanging the doors.
The doors were attached to the main dollhouse with piano hinges. Alignment was tricky and needed a bit of adjusting before the final position was achieved. I added door seal weather strips to all sides (except centre gap) to further weatherproof the doors. Magnetic door latch things were added to keep the doors closed to keep out the rain and also are easy for children to use.
Step 6
A large piece of old corrugated tin roofing was donated by a community member. It gives the bookhouse a great look. I cut the tin to size using an angle grinder and cutting discs. For the roof's apex, I cut out a single corrugated ridge which I bent into shape. I don’t own a large enough vice so I used a series of clamps.
I adhered the three pieces onto the dollhouse with liquid nails. I don't own very large clamps and the angled roof made it tough to hold in place. So I had to be creative with a series of smaller clamps, ockie straps and some heavy objects (axe and mattock).
The bookhouse needed to be safe for toddlers so the edges of the metal had to be smooth to the touch. I tried smoothing with an angle grinder brush and a large metal file. This removed larger burrs but was still not as smooth as I needed. So I used PVC clear piping. I cut it along the length of it down one side with small scissors. It slipped easily over the edge of the roofing and was glued into place with superglue.
Step 7
Decoration.
Door handles were needed for opening the door. After trying to source these from the community with no luck I found that Bunnings sell these little cute handles with a matching antique look to the 1970s wallpaper. I added a little cabin hook latch which is fun for toddlers and also helps indicate the to the children that the doors need to be closed properly after leaving or taking a book.
I wanted a little scene inside the house to make it look like someone lived there and I wanted a figure reading a book. My local community toy library donated a little antique astronaut doll which didn’t belong to any of their toy sets and needed a home. I made a matching framed space picture and a space book both cut from 4mm MDF and some fabric scraps. The doll is secured to the staircase with wire. The children love seeing a little person inside reading.
Step 8
This project had an extremely tight budget. Using very simple tools and donated materials where possible, a great feature for the community has been made which should last years to come.
Tools and materials
Materials used in the project:
- Pine plywood 12mm
- Half round dowel beading Tasmanian Oak 12 x 6mm
- Clear acrylic sheet 3mm
- Piano hinges
- Magnetic door catches
- Door seal
- Doorknobs
- Brass cabin hook
- Exterior white paint
- Clear vinyl tubing
- Liquid construction adhesive
- Poly sealant.
Tools used in the project:
- Drill
- Driver
- Jigsaw
- Angle grinder
- Caulking gun
- Hacksaw
- Handsaw
- Paint brush
- Ruler
- Clamps
- Saw horses
- Drop sheet.
More project inspiration
Experienced community member Claire upcycled an old cabinet into a community library using paint, window film and labels.
