Playtime...........

[Shelley Bolster]

The message is gone, so am I

[Dave Walker]

OK... Now that's just cool. What a great project. Wonderful work.

[Julio Navarro]

Shelley,I think you have a winner, definately fit a nich in furniture. The "doll house" is very very cute and even better as it can be eventually taken to college! From diapers to dorm room, eh?

The "transformer" constructability brings to mind the kids line of Transformer toys. I can envision a chest of drawers turning into a monster truck.

I think you have a great idea.

[Jim Becker]

What a very kewel idea! "Transformers"!!! :D

[Shelley Bolster]

The message is gone, so am I

[Helen Gee]

WOW WOW and WOW!!! Shelley, those are ABSOLUTELY beautiful and shows the awesome skills you have. Rachel will cherish this, and it'll be even cooler when the dresser "grows" with her. I think this is an awesome idea and a lot of people will be totally interested in it. It will save a lot of money and hassle in terms of getting rid of baby furniture and buying young adult furniture, etc. This is great that it's multi functional. I for one will pay extra upfront for such a well designed/made piece than to have to fork out more money in the long run to deal with selling/buying mediocre mass produced furniture :cool:

p.s. how do you know it won't make it into fine woodworking magazine?!?!?


and how come it's snowing up there??? It's actually sunny and warm for a change down here :cool: after our 4 months of nonstop torrential rain :eek:

[Julio Navarro]

WOW Julio!! From Diapers to Dorms.........Now that is cool!!!! You just might have named my Fantasy Line.......if I can use it??? :D

:) Please, I insist.

[Alain Tellier]

That is a wonderful idea and very well executed. I certainly believe there is a market for this kind of furniture.

By the way, we're not getting snow ( thank god ) but rain for the weekend and maybe for part of next week also...

[Michael Ballent]

Shelley that looks great and it's a great idea. I am not sure if you are familiar with Pottery Barn Kids, but they sell things like that that are made ok, but they charge pretty good (considering its particle board and MDF)... I would think that you could charge at least what they charge and still come out with a tidy profit :D

If you want to take a look at their WWW site:

http://www.potterybarnkids.com/

They shoot for the upper levels of the economy, which is bunch that can afford it :D... I go to their store for ideas ;)

[Julio Navarro]

Shelly, is there any way to use the beautifull elaborate gable as a shelf when converted to a more grown up chest of drawers?

The gingerbread latice work looks like a natural bracket if halved and turned upside down.

[Michael Stafford]

Two months old and the child is utterly spoiled....:D What better way to bring a child into the world than with a doting grandma with talent!!!;) :D

Excellent is the word, just excellent, Shelley.:D

[tod evans]

nice job shelley!

[Kevin Herber]

Very clever and well done. I agree with the others that we may indeed see this in FWW!! Great work. The first thing I thought of when I saw the window was a cat's bed. And I am NOT a cat person....

-- Kevin

[tim rowledge]

Nice idea Shelley. Something worth considering with designs aimed at kids is the safety aspect; kids do climb on stuff and even when they don't it sometimes seems like climbing to reach that... top... drawer...whoops! Making sure there is a way to stabilize the piece would make a big difference.
Hmm, how would I do it? You might consider a small metal toungue stcking out of the back of the feet to tuck under the edge of the baseboard that a chest would probably be pushed up against, for example.
Oh and for a girls chest I'd make that eaves window be an access panel to a secret chamber where she can hinde precious stuff from an annoying brother or sister. Like a secret drawer in a secretary.

[Corey Hallagan]

Great job Shelly, someone is going to be awefull happy!

corey

[Frank Chaffee]

Shelley,
Very nicely made dresser, and yet another construction of yours that pays homage to the imagination of children. You may be over twenty years old, but you deserve the title of “Honorary Child”!

Will you find a market for the children’s furniture you’ve been developing? Yes, without a doubt. The “transformer” aspect that you designed into this piece multiplies its value. The dresser appears to be made well enough that I can imagine Rachel giving it to her grand daughter.

Tim Rowledge and Julio Navarro have good suggestions. Provide simple means to prevent the dresser from tipping, a secret compartment, and a secondary use for the roof.

What I am really waiting for you to build though, is a dresser with a secret passageway to a small room known only to the child. A false wall during a room remodel and the parents need be none the wiser. Of course, the child will grow and eventually be unable to pass through to the space, but the precious memory of it will never be lost.

Frank

[George Gong]

This project goes beyond making what you need, it also makes what you will need. Truely awesome!!!

[Jerry Olexa]

Nice work. Cool conversion too!!

[Mark Pruitt]

I know this will never get onto the pages of Fine Woodworking………..

Certainly looks to me like something worthy of publication. Beautiful job!

[Dave Klear]

I'm mostly a lurker but that is way too cool not to say something. Great design

[Chris Barton]

Good Morning Shelley,

As usual, your work is excellent. I do think like the others that a potential market exists for high quality kids furniture. The concept of "convetable" furniture is nothing new and I have books that show pieces from over 300 years ago that essentially acomplished the same thing. The idea that the furniture will "grow" with the child makes sense but, rarely gets executed in a way that adds value to the piece. As I have learned from my friends in the sales and marketing arm of my company, market research is everything. Best of luck with a great idea!

[Gail O'Rourke]

Shelley, it's delightful, and very pleasing to the eye. Awesome job.

[Shelley Bolster]

Thanks for taking the time for you comments and suggestions……all of them great.

Shelly, is there any way to use the beautifull elaborate gable as a shelf when converted to a more grown up chest of drawers?
The gingerbread latice work looks like a natural bracket if halved and turned upside down.
You know Julio, I never gave any real thought to “transforming” the roof section - pretty much considered it disposable once she grew out of the “theme” idea, but you now have me thinking that I should have indeed, given this more thought. If there is a next one, I will look towards a secondary use for the roof. Thanks for the idea.



Nice idea Shelley. Something worth considering with designs aimed at kids is the safety aspect; kids do climb on stuff and even when they don't it sometimes seems like climbing to reach that... top... drawer...whoops! Making sure there is a way to stabilize the piece would make a big difference.
Hmm, how would I do it? You might consider a small metal toungue stcking out of the back of the feet to tuck under the edge of the baseboard that a chest would probably be pushed up against, for example.
Oh and for a girls chest I'd make that eaves window be an access panel to a secret chamber where she can hide precious stuff from an annoying brother or sister. Like a secret drawer in a secretary.

You are so right Tim…..safety is paramount when designing and building furniture designed for kids. And YES!, they do climb in and on everything. That was the very reason why I beefed up and reinforced the drawer bottoms and used the 100 lb slides. The very fact that they are full extension only adds to the tip-ability of it so Karen and I did talk about stabilizing it……our decision was just to screw it directly to a stud. Sounds somewhat crude but the hole made will not be much worse one to hang a picture or shelf and less noticeable because it will be lower down. And a small hole to fill is nothing when it comes to the safety of a child. I really like your idea of the metal bracket/tongue that slips under the baseboard……..a none intrusive means of stabilizing. However, I wonder if it is not used properly ( say the chest of drawers becomes pulled away from the wall) what ones liability would be? Chest of drawers have been falling over on children for hundreds of years, often causing serious injuries. It is something to really consider before making children’s furniture for sure…..safety and liability. I think a whole thread could start over how and if one can protect themselves from a lawsuit when a parent did not take the proper precautions to insure their child’s safety.
Ahhhh…….the secret compartment. Another thing I did think of - after the fact. I was building the roof “on the fly” one evening……really had no idea how it was going to end up when I started. I do enjoy now and again building that way…..in a way, it lends itself to creativity I think. For a lot of things I work from measured plans that I draw up ahead of time but more and more lately, I find myself winging it. So - the roof was one of these times. I had some scrap ¼” hardboard left over from the back of the dresser and wardrobes, so that it what I used on the roof. I then looked around the shop for something to make shingles out of and found some more scraps - this time some 1/8” mahogany door skins (I use it for backing on some pieces of furniture) and voila - shingles. My staples for the air stapler were too long (I also glued them so little fingers could not pry them up) so they stuck through the hardboard a bit …….so I scrapped the idea of making it accessible through the window.
I am calling Rachel my “prototype child”……Grandma is experimenting on her so she will get the firsts……..ones that can no doubt be improved upon.



As usual, your work is excellent. I do think like the others that a potential market exists for high quality kids furniture. The concept of "convetable" furniture is nothing new and I have books that show pieces from over 300 years ago that essentially acomplished the same thing. The idea that the furniture will "grow" with the child makes sense but, rarely gets executed in a way that adds value to the piece. As I have learned from my friends in the sales and marketing arm of my company, market research is everything. Best of luck with a great idea!

Thanks Chris both for the kind remarks and the info. I have no doubt that this is not an original concept. Furniture and furniture makers have been around for too long to really come up with something completely unique. People have been for years, taking conventional furniture and changing it into the unordinary however, I have not personally seen furniture designed with that in mind since conception. I took me a little longer (and I confused everyone around me) because I made the After first and the Beginning after. It would have been quicker for me to just do the “house” look without having first to make the “chest of drawers” but I needed it to illustrate to those who might not “see”, just how it is in fact, an actual piece of furniture under all that paint.

With my suggestion of developing a line I have to remind everyone that I am in fact just one person working in what amounts to no more than a nice hobbyist shop so, no way is this going to be some production thing. I can only make so much, so market research really doesn’t apply to me……..a sale here, a sale there and that will be all I can handle. My main market remains my own kids……..their orders never cease!
Thanks again for the comments - they are appreciated. More than anything, this was a project of love and FUN. I think those of us that woodwork as more of a vocation than a hobby need to, every now and again, just play. I know this has helped me get back the enthusiasm that I found I was losing - so both Rachel and I benefited. :)