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Princess Playhouse / Meditation Hut - easy-to-assemble + custom-built - $350 (Somerville)
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The house is shaped like an octagon. That is, it has eight walls. It has one door and four windows that open and close. The walls, which are made of MDO exterior plywood, are held together with hinges. This makes it easy to disassemble and put back together. We always disassembled the house in the fall, stored it indoors for the winter, and reassembled it in the spring, so that it was not exposed to the severe winter weather. The panels are light enough and small enough for an average person to carry. Disassembled, it does not take up a huge amount of storage space: The entire structure breaks down into one folded-up umbrella plus a stack of plywood 2 feet wide, 5 inches thick, and 5 ½ feet long. It’s the perfect hideaway!
The roof is a wood and fabric umbrella, which fits nicely over the building’s octagonal shape. The umbrella roof can be held in place simply by placing it on the ground (perhaps digging a slight indentation in the ground). This worked fine for us for a while, but then I found a really nice vintage cast iron umbrella stand. That’s what we are currently using to hold it in the place. The fabric part of the umbrella can be easily removed if it needs to be washed.
The window shutters and door are cutout from the walls. Iron spear handles and heart strap hinges on the door, as well as butterfly hinges on the windows, add a medieval touch.
The floor can be whatever you decide to place it on. We used a bed of mulch. You can also place it on a deck, a patio, or any other solid surface.
Approximate dimensions:
Height with umbrella: 7 feet 4 inches
Height of walls (height of each panel): 5 feet 6 inches
Width of each panel: 2 feet
Interior width (wall corner to opposite wall corner): 5 feet (varies, depending on how evenly you are able to angle the walls)
It’s constructed of good quality plywood and metal - no plastic anywhere. And painted with high quality primer and paint. Here’s a list of the materials:
Walls, windows and doors:
* MDO exterior plywood from Boulter Plywood Corp. 5/8 inch thick
*Zinc plated broad loose pin hinge (to hold the six walls of the house together)
*8 5/8 inch quarter round
*Front door & window hardware:
*Acorn Manufacturing Co. rough iron spear door pull
*Acorn Manufacturing Co. rough iron heart strap hinge
*Acorn Manufacturing Co. rough iron butterfly hinge
Roof:
*7 ft. market umbrella
*Vintage cast iron umbrella stand
Paint:
*interior and exterior walls: AFM Safecoat Transitional Primer (low-VOC; creates a seal that blocks offgassing from the exterior plywood)
*interior walls: AFM Safecoat All Purpose Exterior Satin Paint (low-VOC)
*exterior walls: California Paints Fres~Coat Exterior Velvet Flat Paint
*door and windows: California Paints Fres~Coat Exterior Satin Gloss Paint
The materials alone, not including the exterior paint, cost $715. Many hours of labor went into this house to plan, cut, prime and paint.
I would say it’s in very very good condition.
“A 3 ½ year old who loves to pretend she’s living a fairy tale, wished for a castle to enhance her make-believe worlds. But not a castle in the traditional sense of a fortress. Instead of stone walls, the little girl imagined an inviting tower painted a regal purple. This enchanting and easy-to-assemble playhouse is the result”. My daughter has outgrown the playhouse, and I have been using it as a meditation hut. It’s great for viewing urban birds and other wildlife. It is great for either purpose! It also works as a temporary movable storage shed, if you are so inclined!