I love small, cozy spaces, and have been dreaming about creating one for my kiddos. I have had this vision in my head for a handmade playhouse made out of fabric, and here it is! I talked my husband into building a frame, which he did out of pvc piping, and after a few adjustments to the size, (yes, he was a sport!) it was just right. What's neat about this house we created is that you can take the piping apart, just like big tinker toys, which my son loves to do. The house is sewn as one big piece so it's really easy to get on & off, and washable if necessary. I am new to sewing so piecing it all together was a bit of challenge for me, but I am so excited about the results! Here's a little peak...
This Boy version was found at: angryjuliemonday.com.
Our PVC Pipe Fort Build
My husband would be cursing the website Pinterest right now, if he knew what it was. He thinks that I get all my “great” ideas from the Internet and Blogs. But lately, I’ve been overloaded with awesomeness and good finds from Pinterest. Angry Kid was attempting to make a fort this morning with the pillows on our freshly made bed. He made more of a mess than a fort though. I texted Angry Husband, “I want to make that fort that I sent you last week via email.” I’m a good wife like that, I email him my ideas and/or projects. It is a joke amongst my more crafty friends that I outsource my projects. It is probably a good thing that my husband has lots of tools.
The people in my household only give me a limited amount of time to photograph these“projects”. I didn’t even get a chance to clean up the dust and debris from the PVC. Also, my son was getting ready to work on some kind of project with the green granola bar box. He is “re-purposing” the box, or perhaps, making a mess.
I saw this project on Sweetest Littles and thought that it would be perfect for Angry Kid. Angry Husband agreed over a week ago. I don’t think that he knew how soon he would be building this. In the original blog post, there were no specific instructions or a tutorial. I’m don’t think that she knew how many people were trying to make this project. Angry Husband looked at the picture and some of the measurements that the original poster wrote in the comment section.
We took a trip to Lowe’s and bought the following items for the PVC Fort and/or Playhouse:
{Note 1: Make sure the fittings say “SLIP” otherwise they are threaded}
{Note 2: We used 1″ PVC Pipe because they had all of the fittings in stock in that size. We were trying to go with 3/4″, but 1″ is rather sturdy}
- (9) Pieces 1″ White PVC Pipe (sold in 10′ increments)
- (2) 1″ White PVC Schedule 40 Slip Elbow
- (4) 1″ White PVC Schedule 40 Slip Tee
- (8) 1″ White PVC Schedule 40 Slip Side Outlet Elbow
We used the following tools in our PVC Pipe Fort Build:
- Powered Miter Box Saw (Can also PVC Pipe Cutter, or Hacksaw)
- Rubber Mallet
*IMPORTANT: If you are having your local hardware store cut the PVC Pipe for you, here are the lengths of the pieces needed:
- (9) Pieces cut in 50″ increments.
- (3) Pieces cut in 42″ increments.
- (4) Pieces cut in 34″ increments.
- (4) Pieces cut into 1 3/4″ increments.
{Note 3: You can ask the employees at your local hardware store to cut the PVC for you. We had a powered miter box saw, so it was pretty easy for Angry Husband. PVC makes a mess though. Maybe sure you have a broom and dust pan handy if you cut it with the miter box saw.}
My husband was moving rather fast with the assembly and I was trying to keep our son away from the power tools (table saw). I was able to get a picture of the progress with my iPhone. The assembly should be somewhat self-explanatory. You insert the long pieces of the PVC Pipe into the fittings.
It would be really difficult and dumb to do a piece by piece tutorial for this project. Instead, I numbered the pieces in the photograph above. Each number is something significantinvolved in the construction of the PVC Pipe Fort and/or Playhouse Build.
1. 1″ White PVC Schedule 40 Slip Elbow These were used in the bottom front corners of the Fort. Two of these were used. One on the left and one on the right.
2. 1″ White PVC Pipe This piece is 50″ long. All of the long pieces in the basic square formation of the fort are 50″ long, except the sides which are similar to #4
3. 1″ White PVC Pipe This piece is 50″ long. All of the long pieces in the basic square formation of the fort are 50″ long, except the sides which are similar to #4
4. 1″ White PVC Pipe This piece is 42″ long. There are three pieces this length.
5. 1″ White PVC Schedule 40 Slip Side Outlet Elbow Eight of these were used in the Fort, in the corners were three pieces of pipe matched up.
6. 1″ White PVC Pipe This piece is 50″ long. All of the long pieces in the basic square formation of the fort are 50″ long, except the sides which are similar to #4
7. 1″ White PVC Schedule 40 Slip Side Outlet Elbow (Similar to #5)
8. 1″ White PVC Pipe This piece is 42″ long.
9. 1″ White PVC Pipe This piece is 34″ long. There are four pieces that go together to line up to make the roof.
Notes for assembly:
A. Fit the long pieces together in a square and follow the numbers (visual) to see where the fittings go.
B. In order to fit the roof utilizing the (4) 1″ White PVC Schedule 40 Slip Tees to support the roof, you must use (2) lengths of 42 inches length of 1″ White PVC Pipe with a 1″ White PVC Schedule 40 Slip Tee at each end.
C. Cut (4) short pieces of 1″ White PVC Pipe approximately 1 3/4″ long that will fit into theoutside end of all (4) 1″ White PVC Schedule 40 Slip Tees allowing connection to the base square. This piece will go between the 1″ White PVC Schedule 40 Slip Side Outlet Elbow and the long piece (#4). You can then affix the (4) 34″ pieces of 1″ White PVC Pipe at an angle.
D. We used the rubber mallet to tap all of the fittings and joints tight. Otherwise, it can become loose. Once you have tapped them with the mallet, it is firm. The pieces are still loose enough to be taken apart.
We don’t have a fancy cover for our playhouse. As I said, this was somewhat last minute. I don’t sew. Plus I want to learn. Anyone want to hold my hand and teach me? So I dug in the linen closet and found some extra sheets. I was very precise (not really), and threw the sheets over all of the PVC. Angry Husband was smart and asked me to bring in the clothespins from the garage. He secured the multiple flat sheets together with the clothespins.
Angry Kid immediately dove into the fort and/or playhouse. I say fort, because that is what he calls it. I think a fort is the same thing as a playhouse, right?
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