DIY Forts (an Ode to Pinterest)

Ok, confession. I was all "I'm swearing off Pinterest" and then I literally signed up for it (a second time) the same day. Sure enough, I spent about 40 minutes pinning tons of ideas that I'll probably never get around to implementing.

Here's the thing: I've said before that I'm terrible when it comes to coming up with creative ideas for fun activities to do with my kids. Pinterest is great for that. Hello homemade finger paint and glow in the dark bubbles!

My main reason, however, for re-subjecting myself to such a time-sucking website is that I really (really) want to create some permanent nooks around the house for Jack and Moses to hide away in. Jack is already in love with forts but I find them a bit of a pain to set up and tear down (laziness, straight up.)

Teepees are the trendy hipster thing for kids these days.

(source)

And what's not to love? They're cozy, they're spacious, and they blend well with surrounding decor. That said, they sound like an absolute pain to DIY - not to mention you have to be a sewer. Of course, you could always buy one on Etsy - for like two hundred ridiculous dollars. So, as much as I would love, love, love to have this be what my boys play in, it's just not practical at the moment (re: space, time, cost).

Thankfully (because Pinterest is the place for Plan B's and C's) there are some other options out there that I think I'll try to recreate. The first is totes ingenious!

Um, obviously I'd change the color scheme to be more boy-friendly. But this is created with just a few tension rods! Naturally, there's no link to how to make it step by step, but I'm sure I could figure it out. And we have a perfect spot in the living room that would work for this! Exclamation points unite!

This I would put in their bedroom. It's more open than a tent or a teepee, but it's still a neat little spot to go and sit. Not to mention, it's probably super inexpensive to create (I might try using some spare curtains to create this). Apparently all you need is a quilting hoop. I say apparently, because yet again there isn't a link to the original source on this image. However, here's a link to something similar, using a hula hoop instead.

Man, I really hope these things don't turn out to be expensive or time consuming to create. Of course, if anyone feels like making me a teepee - we would probably be best friends forever.