The Little Free Library is Coming to Selkie Wood Works! Discussion and Plans

Hi Everyone,

(As a side note: the train table project is moving along nicely and I'll post about that on Friday),

Ok, hello again,

I've been asked by a neighbor to build a Little Free Library for our neighborhood and I've agreed. In the past I had thought to build a library and place it on our lawn but there didn't seem to be much interest in one at the time so I dropped the idea. But we have new neighbors and lots of young couples with kids living here now so this is an idea who's time has come.

Discussion
I've spent the last week researching how these are built and displayed and I've also carefully considered the rugged climate we have here. Here's my thoughts on this:

• The library box needs to be water tight with a waterproof finish to keep rain and snow out of the interior and ruining the books.
• It needs to be large enough to accommodate a large range of book sizes, from large picture books for kids to smaller, pocket book type books.
• Special attention needs to be directed at the roof-it needs to shed water just like the roof on a house does.
• The door should be self closing with a magnetic catch so if someone leaves the door open, it will close on it's own. 
• The door also needs a large window so the books are displayed to the public.
• And it needs to be attractive and well situated in the ground with a 4x4 post.

The little libraries I've seen have been made out of all sorts of materials but the predominate materials are plywood and solid pine or cedar. Some are painted and some are stained. Others are covered in cedar shingles. They look pretty cool.

Plans

I will be using the following plans from the Little Free Library website,

• A modified Little Library design with a materials list – courtesy of Hannah Lane-Davies of Kalamazoo Little Free Libraries. Many thanks to Hannah and her family for posting these plans.

My plan is to build a little library with-

• Exterior grade plywood and solid pine
• Use Lexan, a hard to break material, for the window
• Use self closing hinges and a magnetic catch for the door
• Use exterior grade paint and/or waterproofing deck sealer on the sides and front
• Use construction mastic and bathroom caulk to seal the joints to keep water out
• And build the roof to mimic the roofs in my neighborhood to shed water and snow.

Here are two photos of the basic materials and hardware:

The first thing I'll do is sand the sides of the plywood very smooth and paint the interior side with some yellow exterior paint to seal the surface to to make the interior a little less dark. Then I'll mark and cut out the sides, bottom, and roof panels on the table saw. I'll also mark out where some interior shelves are to be attached to the sides to make it easier to install them. Then I'll begin construction of the library and I'll put all of this online so you can see it.

If you have built a little library feel free to comment during the build.

I will finish the train table and then begin the library.

It's cold outside now and I'm going in to make some homemade cinnamon rolls with my grandson.

See you later this week,

VW