Building a House

When our son was just about to turn four, he was ready to graduate from his toddler bed to something larger. His room at the time was very small, so I wanted to come up with something that would maximize the available space, fit a twin size mattress, and double as a play area. When I discovered the company Tanglewood Design, I was thrilled to learn that in addition to selling kits, and ready made beds, they also sold the plans for the DIY family to customize and create their own masterpiece. I absolutely fell in love with their philosophy and designs, plus they were personable and helpful as well, so I highly recommend them!

My husband agreed to take on the building project. In his spare time over the next few weeks he borrowed a friend's wood-shop and tools. When he was done cutting out the pieces, he rented a truck and brought them home for me to paint. My original idea was to make a giant tree for the corner of the room, with a rounded door in the trunk, so that our son could go into the trunk to climb into his bed. I wanted LED lights to hang in branches over the roof line to twinkle as a nightlight, but I couldn't find a tutorial anywhere to create such a thing, and as our budget and space were limited, that part didn't come to fruition. However, months later, I stumbled on an article that featured just such a tree (albeit in a beautiful fairy tale girl's room) designed by Kidtropolis. Feel free to check out their link so that you can imagine the complete concept!

Below is a view of the inside of the bed where our son sleeps. The brilliant part about this design is that the space under the bed is big enough for a double mattress, if a family has more than one child or prefers a bunk bed option. We elected to stage it as a little man cave, and set it up like a miniature living room. We added a door (not in the original design) so that we could close in the bookshelves, and keep the space from looking cluttered. Instead of a tree, in keeping with the play house theme, we had a steel plate made for an exterior park light (so that it can't tip over).

Our son still absolutely loves his bed. I never tire of hearing him tell someone he meets for the first time, "I have a house bed that my dad and mom made...and I got to help!" My husband and I joke that we always wanted to build a house together someday. Now we can cross it off our "bucket list".

Inspirational Scripture: Psalm 127 & Joshua 24:15

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