DIY Play Kitchen

There are lots of fantastic play kitchens floating around Blog-land these days. I never thought I'd have to make one since I have a son and all. I thought if I'd have to make anything it would be a tool bench.


But lately the Con-Man has been "cooking" a lot. We'll be sitting outside and he takes his shovel, fills it with rocks and tells me he's cooking hot dogs. Then proceeds to give me some and tells me to eat it. And he has been really interesting in my cooking dinner and such.


I'm glad he's using his imagination but how can I deny my poor little guy a play kitchen? And since his birthday is coming up I thought it would make a great present.


So for the past few weeks I've been keeping my eyes peeling for a piece of furniture I can use for a play kitchen. It's not like there are tons of "boy friendly"play kitchens on the market; especially where we live. About a week ago I finally found what I was looking for!

It has several shelves and wheels for easy mobility. I painted it white with a primer/ paint combo and thought about leaving it that color. I didn't want anything to girly looking. But in the end I went with some leftover blue spray paint I had on hand.

I added a back to it by cutting down some extra plywood I had lying around. Something heavier and smoother like MDF might have been better but the plywood works well.

I used cup hooks to hang the utensils and leftover handles I bought from Ikea for Con-Man's bed for the towel bars. 

I bought some inexpensive towels from Wal-Mart and used Stitch Witchery to add the fabric; the same fabric I used to recover the pot holder that came with the play kitchen set.  

Before

We gave it to him early and he has been excited about it. He's been cooking me hot dogs and hamburgers all day!

A few more detail shots:

And one more before and after:

I'd still like to find some baskets to put the play food and plates in- attempt to keep everything organized. But for now he's having fun with it. 

In fact when I tried setting up his pots and pans for the pictures he waved me away telling my I was messing everything up. Oops- guess I should mess around in his kitchen anymore!!