A few months back, it dawned on me that the bumped out area in our playroom was, in fact, hallow. It was previously accessible through a dark mechanical closet off of our laundry room, so we were easily able to see that it had been framed that way to house a single drainage pipe on the outermost edge. Other than that, it served no purpose aside from being a really dark, creepy space. So, my husband and I decided to build it into a playhouse... but not just any built-in playhouse – a near exact replica of the exterior of our actual house!
After taping it out, I could see it was going to work perfectly, so we got to work! … A lot of work. And when I say “a lot of work”, what I actually mean is - take how much work you think it was, and then triple that. All in all, the project took us about 10 weeks to complete. We both work full time jobs along with having a busy 2 year old, plus we tackled this project in the summer when most weekends were spent outside doing fun things, so a majority of the work happened in the evenings after our daughter’s bedtime. Here’s some interior before shots; the ceiling is about 50” high in some portions but over 7’ high in others.
I recently spoke to the previous owner who said they used to have issues with the washing machine flooding the basement a lot which explains all of the water stains on the old floor.
The best part was that while it looks like a small space from the outside of the playhouse, it’s actually L-shaped inside as it connects to the area under the stairs.
—THE FINAL REVEAL!—
—CHRISTMAS TIME AT THE PLAYHOUSE—
We always do these big bulbed Christmas lights on our own house, so it was a no brainer that we needed to plan accordingly for this addition come December. We put a hole in the soffit to feed the plug through and then it plugged into the outlet above the desk.
I’ve also enjoyed adding seasonal books to her bookshelf inside. Our daughter LOVES books, and I love when she goes inside to quietly read by herself. I’m excited to see her enjoy this space in the coming years.
This was such a special project, and it was worth every bump and bruise on our poor heads as we built it!