I gotta be quick, we have twin 14 week olds and I am watching one of them now, the other one is with mom,
I would like to get some ideas on woodworking projects I can do for little kids. Like a small table and chair set, toy box things like that. If you can post some pictures that would be great. Resources for plans would also be appreciated. My wife really wants me to do a toy box. I would too but I want to make it look really nice, and very safe, don’t want the lid slamming down on their fingers any suggestions here?
Wish me luck.
kenney66
Replies
Kenney,
Take a look at some of the woodworking catalogs for chest hardware. There are some closers that will stop, when you stop putting downward pressure on them and not slam down, an ideal situation for the little fingers and not to mention necks.
Greg
i made this table and chair for my son for less than $40. Mortise and Tenon joints throughout, cheap pine and fir. He loves to eat his meals at it, the decals are wallpaper stickons for the craft store.
thanks for the pics, thats about the size i was thinking about, well done too
kenney66
Jeff Miller wrote a pretty good book on children's furniture and projects. You might want to check it out.
Jeff
you don't need it yet, but a stepping stool so they can reach the bathroom sink is a handy thing.
A step stool is a great project. It needs to be very stable, with all edges rounded. I recommend you leave 1/2" overhang at each end so the kids can pick it up and lug it around. My experience is they'll lug it around a lot.
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Pete
File this one away for future. But don't wait too long, they grow fast.
try this post from Breaktime at FHB "across the way"
84713.1
...The unspoken word is capital. We can invest it or we can squander it. -Mark Twain...
Be kind to your children....they will choose your nursing home.
...aim low boys, they're ridin' shetland ponies !!
Dear Old,
That appears to be a dead link.Best,John
That is from the Woodshed Tavern 1/25/07. Maybe becasue the Tavern access must be requested. I'll try and get the photo/idea over another way.
bum...The unspoken word is capital. We can invest it or we can squander it. -Mark Twain...
Be kind to your children....they will choose your nursing home.
...aim low boys, they're ridin' shetland ponies !!
now that is a classy project.... but I bet them pencils take a bit of sharpening ;)Mike Wallace
Stay safe....Have fun
No doubt it was a labor of love. He mentioned that the ruler markings were done with inlay, not paint. His major difficulty was mating the bed rails to the hexagonal pencils....The unspoken word is capital. We can invest it or we can squander it. -Mark Twain...
Be kind to your children....they will choose your nursing home.
...aim low boys, they're ridin' shetland ponies !!
I did a personal storeage box with hasp & small padlock for each of my grand kid's 10 yr ago. some are in college now & still use them. Can't get to pix or drawings right now. discription as below:
Main box 12L x 10W x 10d solid pine,
Top was 1/2 round pine on each end with 1/4 x 3/4 pine slats fit with no space over the top. Rope loop handles thru the ends. Small hinges one side & small hasp & padlock on other. Used small brass screws to put the slats on the lid. Stained the whole thing.
Best
Edited 3/18/2007 8:53 am ET by jimcco
You no doubt have some hardwood scraps from past projects. A classic toy that my kids and I played with for years (and will be good for generations) are building blocks.
I took a batch of scraps and sized them to 1/4, 1/2, 1" thicknesses, then cut out cubes and boxes , planks (cut in longer lengths 3-6"), triangles, etc in 1, 2 and 3" sizes. This allows them to be stacked neatly in infinte combinations. I added a few cylinders from dowl stock and circles (cut with hole saw) some cut to 1/2 circles.
It was also a chance to try building a nice hardwood storage box to store all the pieces. One of the fun skills learned was having to put away all the blocks in the box so they fit. I made the box small enough that they could not just dump the block in. (a different puzzle everytime)
I eased the edges and corners (sanding) so there would be no sharp edges/corners, and sanded all surfaces smooth. No finishing was needed.
Edited 3/16/2007 1:55 pm ET by Julmer
Edited 3/16/2007 1:56 pm ET by Julmer
wow, good idea, the simpler the better
Since you're interested in the Building Blocks idea, here's a picture of one of the sets I made to give you an idea of the shapes I cut out.
The primary dimension in the majority of blocks was 1" (most blocks had at least one of their dimensions as 1") We also found out that the flat top for the box serves as a building "foundation" when playing on carpet that too bumpy to stack on.
The second picture includes a childs table and chair set that I've made several times. It was from plans in a Woodsmith issue. It screws together from mostly flat pieces to allow easy storage/shipping. Let me know if interested and I'll dig up the back issue.
Kenny,
Just a personal recommendation. If you are going to build a toy box, blanket chest or any other box that has a lid use a Sugatsune SDS210 "soft down stay" It holds the lid open at 105 degrees and with one on each side (left/right) it's impossible to slam the lid down on little (or any) fingers. I've made dozens of cherry blanket chest and after trying a few types I use these exclusively. They have never failed. The instructions are in metric measurements but not impossible to do. Just take your time with them and I believe you will be satisfied. I purchase mine from a local lumber yard that orders them from Baer supply- a national chain. Good luck.
I built this crib for my son couple of years ago. All mortise and tennon joints. Used DeWalt 621 plunge router for all morises and tenons. Used re-enforced L brackets at the corners for extra support
really cute, the crib is pretty nice too, i had to buy mine, actually her side of the family bought them
If you google "Froebel blocks" you'll be off and running on a great project for the little ones.
Frank Lloyd Wright to the end of his life credited Herr Froebel and his blocks for cultivating his interest in architecture and design:
http://www.wrightplus.org/programs/froebel.html
Let's see now, if you start immediately on the projects suggested in this thread, that should keep your spare time filled until your twins are about 18 years old <G>.
********************************************************
"It is what we learn after we think we know it all, that counts."
John Wooden 1910-
Edited 3/16/2007 4:20 pm by nikkiwood
Now I know how smart my grandpa was. He was an architect (born in 1899), and gave me a set of wood blocks when I was very young. I played with them probably every day, including when I'd moved on to other toys. Those blocks made great garages for hot wheels, and something for GI Joe to blow up. They also served as a great foundation for my Erector set creations.What I'd never realized was that they were either Froebel Blocks or a very similar (cheaper) set. The shapes were the same, but the columns were simple cylinders. I wish I still had them, but suspect a sister sold them off in a yard sale many years ago.I'll add a vote for blocks.
I think Froebel Blocks had pretty much fallen by the wayside, until the FLW Foundation got its act together about 20 years ago and started to sell them again. Now, they're all over the place, along with many clones. I wonder if that means we'll have a glut of architects in 10-15 years time? <G>********************************************************
"It is what we learn after we think we know it all, that counts."
John Wooden 1910-
Kenny,
My daughter was able to get the attached pix of the treasures box I discribed. She says they have had best stuff in them since the day they got them some 10 yr ago.
that looks very nice, i may give that one a try,
kenney66
Like to say congrats on the twins first. Oh and good luck.
You can purchase hinges that are adjustable that controls how much force is need to open/close the top. Just bought two $12 ech . A suggestion especially with two kids is to keep the rear of the top raised so if one goes to close the top and the other has their fingers on the side they don't get nipped.
Good luck with the project and the twins.
This might sound a bit old-fogey-ish, but I'm gonna have at it anyway.
When your twins are about two years old, use your pocket knife and carve them a haw-gee-whimmydiddle. Then spend the time with them getting it to work.
Dunno what that is? Get a book on frontier crafts, or one on hand whittled stuff, or Dan Beard's "Handbook for Boys".
And remember: it's not what you make for them. It's the time you spend with them that makes the difference. There'll be plenty of time to make stuff when you have grandkids. For now, be sure that you're making good adults out of those wonderful kids.
Support our Troops. Bring them home. Now. And pray that at least some of the buildings in the green zone have flat roofs, with a stairway.
kenney, Congrats my friend!! We have 8 month old twin boys, Its crazy; no sleep for awhile but it gets better.
Build them a couple stools with there names on it. I am a cabinet maker by trade, I built their furniture for there room. it was pretty touching to build something for my boys. i carved a message to them on the pieces maybe one day they will read it. Its a good feeling so get cracking
-Lou
When I had little nieces and nephews, a favorite toy was a wood car (or truck or van, etc.). I'd take a 2-by-anything and draw a quick car profile on it. I'd cut it out with either the band saw or a scroll saw, then sand it up and soften the edges. Holes drilled for axles to pass through, some wood dowel axle, and four wheels cut from any hardwood scrap with a hole saw on the drill press. Sand and finish everything and you've got a pretty good toy car. A profile cut to allow a Barbi Doll to slip into was a favorite for a favorite niece.
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