Kids cubby house with slide & sandpit

[weekenddiyer]

I loved having a cubby house as a kid growing up.  I wanted my kids to have the same fun with a cubby house as I remember, so decided to make it a little project over a couple of weekends.  I wanted to maintain as much space in the backyard as possible.  We had an odd corner between a garden bed and shed so it seemed like a good corner that could be put to better use. (The kids will out grow the cubby eventually and we will remove it).

Posts & Framing

The platform is a four post structure.  I dug footings and used quick setting concrete to hold the posts in place.  I used a combination of bolts and coach screws to secure the pine sleepers to the posts, to create the border for the sandpit and base for the raised platform (depending on whether I had access to thread the nuts given the tight space).

I didn't want to set a post into the lawn if I could help it as it would make it difficult to mow around and would limit the access to the sandpit. I opted for a floating corner and used stronger timbers to compensate for it.

    

The raised platform is actually floating above the garden bed, maximising the platform space to allow room for the cubby house but minimising the impact it would have on the lawn area below.

Finished Cubby

The cubby itself is a flatpack cubby house from Kmart  - there is plenty of inspiration online in terms of how to dress these up.  I used left over paint we had from painting the house and added a ships bell and blue slide from Bunnings, for some extra fun.

It got the kid's seal of approval.  We've set up a play kitchen and blackboard menu in there for them and they've turned it into their own space, hopefully for years of fun to come.

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[JacobZ]

Hi @suehi,

I just wanted to link you to some great options for cubby houses.

There's a wide variety beyond those that are kept in store so have a look at the broader range that are available through Special Orders or our Marketplace suppliers.

Jacob