A Fairy Tale Before And After

Note: This post was one of my most popular in 2011. This very clever use of an every-day item seemed to appeal to many of my readers - - it was pinned to Pinterest over and over again. I wonder how many of these have been made in the months since this post. :)

I’ve always been of the mind that if you begin reading to a child very early on, they’ll not only learn to appreciate books and story-telling, but that they’ll be more anxious to learn and ready to read by themselves when the time comes. In this electronic day and age, when computers, i-Pads and X-Box have captured children’s attention, sometimes at a very young age, it’s more important than ever to promote and share books with our kids. Nothing can replace cuddling with your little one at the end of the day and reading a book aloud, page by page, over and over, until they know the words by heart.  And you don’t need batteries or a controller for that.

So where do you keep your collection of children’s books? I came across a great idea at CountryLiving.com for organizing and storing all kinds of books. And since handy I’m not, I do appreciate a before and after that makes such good use of the imagination. 

Here, they’ve taken an old wooden cable spool . . .

. . . and turned it into a very cute, and very functional, portable Bookmobile!  Wouldn’t this be great for a child’s room as an alternative to boring shelves or a plain cabinet?  Safe for young ones too, as it’s low to the floor for easy access, no reaching on tip-toes for books. Or a neat craft table. You could paint it to match the room’s decor and, even personalize it as well, by painting their names on the top or better yet, let them paint the top themselves. Pretty cool idea, huh?

There must be hundreds and hundreds of these old cable spools sitting in maintenance yards, salvage yards or maybe you’ve even seen them at flea markets. I’m guessing you could find them on eBay as well.  Wooden spools like these aren’t used as much these days for storing or spooling cable as they used to be, so what to do with them? 

Here’s the step-by-step if you’d like to try this project. 

• Step One: To build this brilliant “bookmobile”, you’ll need a wooden cable spool. You’ll also need about 12 three-quarter-inch-thick wooden dowels that measure at least as tall as the spool when it’s lying flat on either wheel.
  Step Two Lay the spool on one of its wheels, then use a ruler to measure the distance from the top of the top wheel to the top of the bottom wheel. Use a handsaw to cut the dowels to this size, then sand the spool and dowels.
  Step Three Measure the distance from one wheel’s outer edge to the spool’s core. Divide that number in half.
  Step Four Beginning at the outer edge of the top of the top wheel, measure in the distance computed in Step Three. Mark with a pencil. Repeat around the spool’s circumference, spacing marks an equal distance apart.
  Step Five At each mark, drill all the way through the top wheel, using a three-quarter-inch spade bit. Then, with a hammer, drive a dowel into each hole, until the dowel’s bottom is secured against the bottom wheel. Paint spool and dowels, if desired; let dry.
  Step Six Evenly space three casters in a triangle pattern atop the top wheel, placing each caster about an inch in from the edge, and drill into place. Flip the spool over and you’re ready to roll.
  Read more at: DIY Home Decor Crafts - Easy Home Decorating Craft Ideas - Country Living

What do you think of this project?  Is this something you might tackle, especially if you still have little ones at home?  I can’t imagine there’s too much cost involved, except for the hardware and wheels. I would love to see your version if you do build one.

It’s so important that we read, read, read to our kids, or grandkids, if the case may be.  Follow this link to visit RIF.org, Reading-is-Fundamental, a nationally-known non-profit literacy organization that “prepares and motivates children to read by delivering free books and literacy resources to those children and families who need them most. We inspire children to be lifelong readers through the power of choice. RIF provides new, free books for children to choose from and make their own. The seeds of inspiration in these books have motivated children to follow their dreams and achieve their potential. Yes, it seems incredible for a book to launch a life, but it happens every day as hungry, inquisitive young minds reach out and grab hold of the new people, places, and ideas that books bring them”.

As Martha would say, that’s a very “good thing”.  :)

Linking to:

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