As a little tyke, I loved making indoor cubby houses. I would get together all my Mum's best bed sheets and chairs, and use them as the foundation for my new home. Once inside, imagination was the best tool in making my cubby house even better. I would turn it into my very own universe.
On any given day I could be fighting on a pirate ship, frolicking in the clouds on my winged pony, or be in an episode of The Wonder Years where
Kevin Arnold proposes to me.
My indoor cubby house was my escape from the real world. Given it was just bed sheets and chairs, but back then it meant much more to me.
Fast forward 20 years into the future, and I am happy to say that my imagination is still at its peak.
I just wish I had my 27 year old brain back then, because now, there is so much more to my indoor cubby house.
And all of my top secret tips are coming your way. In a perfect world I would send them to you via message in a bottle, but just for convenience today, I'll use the Internet.
So let's get started.
1. Blueprints, blueprints, blueprints:
If you actually sit down and draw up your cubby before construction, you'll have something to work from, and hopefully prevent one of the most common problems from occuring.
Droopage. But we will get to that one later.
You'll also find that by drawing up the blueprints for your cubby, other ideas will just pop into your head.
For example, a friend of mine Trevor who is quite well known in the construction of indoor cubbys, decided during blueprint stage that entering through the door wasn't quite good enough. So he drew up a flying fox as entry to his new home.
A great idea, but probably something that would require money, energy and resources of which were not available to us at the time.
Having said that, it just goes to show that the blueprint stage can really get your creative juices flowing, and you could very well end up with some great new additions to your ordinary cubby.
2. Consider space:
You want to be sure you have enough space to build. In my opinion, the lounge room is the best spot, plonked right in front of the television. This way, you can lay back in your cubby and watch re-runs of Hannah Montana, or set up your Playstation and play hours of Classic Sonic.
3. What you'll need:
- A large mattress
- Pillows, bean bags, anything cooshy
- Bed sheets, including 1 fitted king sheet
- 4 x heavy chairs
- 2 x pretty curtains
- Safety Pins
To begin. If I have learnt anything, it's starting with what is going to go
inside the cubby. If you build the exterior first, chances are when you are loading everything inside, you'll knock the darn thing down.
It's a little like a house I guess, and putting the slab down first.
Place your mattress on the floor, and cover it with a soft bed sheet. An old bed sheet is probably better, because if you're like me you'll spill your cordial in there.
You might like to stop at this stage, and have a 'Mattress Party'.
Traditionally when building a house, people will invite friends and family to the slab and have a 'Slab Party' with a couple of drinks to celebrate this stage in the building process.
I personally like to put on some
Hall & Oates, and have a dance atop the mattress along with a cold glass of cider before continuing.
Now cover the mattress with anything you can find that is cooshy. Load it up with pillows, bean bags and doona's. You want to be comfortable if you are going to be spending 20 plus hours in there.
Grab 4 heavy chairs. They need to be the heavy type with a back that isn't connected to the arms. This way you can just hook the fitted sheet right over the backs.
If you are working with lighter chairs, you'll want to grab a heavy ornament, or telephone book and place it on the chairs to stop them from tipping.
You can't really see it in the left of my photo, but I used my Mum's good elephant ornament to weigh the chair down.
Take your large fitted sheet, and simply hook each corner over the corners of the chairs. This will create your roof. Using a fitted sheet I have found prevents the dreaded droopage of your roof.
'Droopage' is a term used when the roof of your cubby droops into the centre of your indoor space. This can prevent you from enjoying your experience in the cubby as you'll find the droopage may continue to get in your way, block your view, or inevitably cause the whole structure to fold into itself. This is especially unsavoury if you are right in the middle of walking the plank.
Now that your mattress and roof are complete, you'll want some walls. This is easy. Simply drape some sheets over the edge of your roof so that they hang over the edge, creating walls. Repeat this around each edge, except for the front as we want to create a door opening here.
Take your first pretty curtain, and pin one corner to the front left corner of the cubby, then pin the other end in the centre of the cubby. Do this again with your other curtain on the other side, pinning from the right hand side to the centre. This will create an entry way that can be opened and closed.
Ta daa. It's that simple. You're nearly there. All you need now are your indoor cubby supplies.
Like snacks. Snacks make the whole indoor cubby experience great. I like to keep them pretty healthy. Chocolate is great at first, but then drops you to a low and you'll end up sleeping away your days in the cubby. Which is fine, if you don't mind being snuck up on by those pirates who are in fight mode and full of fruit.
Pancakes with fruit and light whipped cream is a personal favourite of mine, along with jelly, natural popcorn, and almonds.
Reading material is good, as the cubby makes for a nice quiet place to concentrate. Great material includes X-Men, Spiderman, and Phantom
comic books.
You'll also require a torch, as pitch black can generally make it very hard to read.
A great suggestion from my friend James, is a secret nook in which to hide your valuables. I hadn't really thought of this, not even in blueprint stage. But I am thankful to him for this suggestion, as now I can be certain that should I need to leave my abode, my Casio Calculator watch will remain un-thieved.
And this may be a little childish, but heck we have come this far. Why not invite along your favourite cubby house mascots. These can be toys from your childhood, or toys from your adulthood, like my Robosapian.
He is especially handy because he can pick things up,
dance for entertainment, or be extra security. He is also always keen for a
high 5 after winning a pirate battle. No-one likes to be left hanging after accomplishing something super awesome, so he is good for that.
I hope that my tips have inspired and / or encouraged you to make your very own indoor cubby house. You are never too old to do anything, just remember that.
If you continue to use your imagination, and create a fun and magical world for yourself and those around you, life will never,
ever be dull.