Description
Welcome! Come for a cup of tea at my home!
Where lavender greets you at the door and wisteria climbs the side of our home and creeps into the wood paneled gables.
A felt and embroidery template has been included in this pattern to create my home, however the possibilities are endless to create your own version of this Play House.
That’s why we’ve also included a comprehensive Embroidery and Embellishment Guide to get you on your way to designing your own Play House!
Ideas can include but are not limited to: Your own home, barn, shop, circus, story book home, gingerbread house, nativity scene, market, hospital, doctors room, fairy house, hobbit hole, fire station, school, church and more!
Allow the user to create their own world of play within its walls and enjoy the open ended play it inspires.
Customise this delightful Play House to your own desires.
Features:
- Instant PDF digital download of the Pattern, Tutorial and Embroidery and Embellishment Guide
- Fully lined Play House
- Two handles
- Two fastening options: Elastic loop and button, or tab with velcro
- Can be created to be fully collapsible for travel
- Photo and Video Tutorial for the entire Play House construction
- Embroidery and Embellishment Guide includes: 8 stitch types, felt application and 17 embroidery and felt templates
- Pattern templates for you to design your own
- Colouring in sheet for your Little Creative to design their own home
- Full tutorial, photos, video and support to help you create your own Play House
Sewing Level:
This Play House has been designed with adventurous beginners in mind. The tutorial is detailed with full colour photos, video, and step by step process walking you through the construction of this house.
Adventurous beginners will learn or practice new skills such as embroidery and felt application, lining pattern pieces, sewing in buttons and loops. If you have some previous experience in sewing and feel confident in giving these skills a go, you’ll enjoy this thorough tutorial which will walk you through the process step by step.
The more advanced will appreciate the professional finish of the pattern and the ability to customise to their hearts content!
Fabric Suggestions:
We’ve suggested quilting cottons, but you can go crazy with spare and scrap fabrics. Add textures with wools, corduroy and cottons, and play with colour combinations.
Fabric and Notions required:
Fabric:
Quilting cotton recommended for main and lining (or spare and scrap fabrics).*
– Main Fabric: 0.75m (5/6 yd)
– Lining Fabric: 0.75m (5/6 yd)
– Batting (cheapest quality is sufficient): 0.75m (5/6 yd)
– Mesh Plastic Sheets: 3 X (26 x 33 cm) (10 1/4” x 13”)
OR similar (stiff plastic, recycled plastic placemats, plastic quilting templates etc). See notes below for more recommendations on Mesh Inserts.
* Trim the pattern to use less fabric. See the tutorial for more information.
Notions:
– 5 x small squares of velcro pairs
OR
– 5 x 15mm (5/8”) shank buttons**
– 5 x 60mm (2 1/2”) thin elastic (flat recommended)**
** to create a fully collapsible Play House, use 9 x buttons and elastic / tabs.
Optional:
– Iron-on interfacing (use on light weight fabrics or behind satin stitch details)
– Felt details (with a heat n bond adhesive)
– Embroidery thread
What You Get When You Purchase:
This pattern is available as a PDF digital download, with the additional option of pre-cut plastic mesh canvas sent to your letterbox!
PDF Pattern
Digital files emailed and stored in your Below the Kōwhai account for future use. Includes files for pattern to print at home, tutorial, and embroidery and embellishment guide.
These downloads will also be available in the “My Account + Downloads” section of this website when you are logged in. This is where the most updated version of your purchases will be and you can access them any time. In the future I may revise this pattern and slightly alter it. If you’re sewing in the future, check back for the latest version.
You can print the Play House pattern at home.
The digital pattern is 13 pages long in black and white, and can be printed on A4 or US Letter paper on your home computer and then assembled for use.
You will also receive a comprehensive tutorial with instructions, photos, video and tips to guide you in your sewing of this Play House. Please view this tutorial on your device or computer to save the trees, or if you must print, print in colour.
Plastic Mesh Sheets
We recommend using Plastic Mesh Canvas Sheets for your Play House inserts. This product has holes in the sheets allowing you to sew through them to join the wall sections and apply velcro. Additionally, it is very hard wearing and will bounce back if sat on and squashed. Alternatively, other plastic sheeting may be used.
We recommend plastic sheeting rather than cardboard for it’s longevity and durability. We hope your Play House can be enjoyed by many generations and can withstand lots of passionate play!
What’s a PDF?
A digital document viewable in Adobe Acrobat Reader (download for free here). You will be able to save, view and print these documents on your computer or device.
Returns and Support:
This digital product can be saved to your computer. Therefore, I am not able to offer returns on any purchase unless at some fault of my own. Please choose carefully and make sure you are purchasing the correct pattern, and you have used a correct email address!
In lieu of returns I offer comprehensive online support to those who are sewing! You can contact me on Facebook, Instagram and email, and you can expect a prompt reply! I will endeavour to help you in any way I can.
Get Sewing!
So, what are you waiting for? Starting designing and create your own Play House with this pattern and show off your creations!
This sewing pattern is by Sophie Laughton-Mutu. Sewists and children around the world have tested this pattern. Please leave a review, or pop over to our Facebook VIP Community to show us a photo of your finished Play House!
hannahevans5 –
The sweetest most genius idea for a play pattern! My children haven’t stopped playing with theirs! Taken in the car for my 3 year old to play with, and out on our seasonal shelf means for so much imaginary play that they are coming back to time and time again. A perfect base for practicing and exploring with embroidery, and all around a really really fun pattern to make and sew!
Sally Stevens (verified owner) –
Such a fabulous and fun idea! This little play house was the perfect mix of slow mindful creativity for myself and open imaginative play for my kids. I really enjoyed being able to create something truely unique for my children to enjoy for years to come! Thanks for another wonderful pattern.
philippa.fergusson –
My new go to gift! Fun, cute and useable toy. A delight to sew. I used an old placemat to add structure to the house and it worked a treat. The perfect scrap buster too so didnt have to buy any new fabric. Win win.
pennyandlimebaby –
Such a fun pattern that my kids absolutely loved! I loved that the pattern is so versatile, we now have a normal house but also a fun circus tent. Great pattern for slowing down and learning to embroider. Thanks for yet another beautiful BTK pattern 🙂
Roxan Bungcayao –
My little girl is in LOVE with this! It was so fun to plan what kind of house she wanted and to be able to personalize it the way she wanted made this even more special. Instructions are so clear and easy to follow. But just to have absolute creative freedom on the end result is what makes this so worth the make!
Amy Chiles –
Such a great gift idea and hours of imaginative play. My daughter’s playhouse instantly became her wee bear’s home. I made another for my nephews and it is robust enough to stand up to rough and tumble. I recommend Velcro fastenings for smaller hands. I will use this pattern many times as gifts. Thanks BTK for a great pattern with plenty of room to be creative.
Ali Radford (verified owner) –
This was a joy to sew from start to finish. Fantastic instructions and the ability to embroider and embelish for that personal touch was such a quiet enjoyable time. It came together so quickly in the end. Cant wait to give it to my grand daughter. Thx BTK – another superb pattern.
Hayley Gibson (verified owner) –
This play house was so much fun to sew! I’m a fairly novice sewer (straight lines are not guaranteed) but this pattern was easy to follow and forgiving of mistakes. The attached guide provided heaps of inspiration and directions, my first embroidery turned out far better than I expected! This play house has made a fantastic nativity stable for the kids to play with (fits an 8cm peg doll perfectly too). Thanks for creating this pattern!
jillsauve (verified owner) –
I have made a few of these adorable houses and took two of them to church for the kids to play with….BUT two of my grandchildren snuck home with them😉They are the cutest little houses to make and then to watch the kids play their make-believe stories with them is wonderful. Easy directions to follow and when taken slowly even a novice seamstress can enjoy making this little Play House. So much imagination and inspiration can be applied as you sew these up and the ideas I have seen here have been fabulous!! Thankyou Sophie for this pattern and the joy it gives to both seamstress and child!
Mary-Lynne Eason (verified owner) –
Great pattern, lots of possibilities!
Katie Smithson (verified owner) –
Such a beautiful pattern and really easy to follow. I love how you can tailor it to your child and the ideas are endless. Can’t wait to make another one. Thanks for also including embroidery templates and ideas for this tired mother! It’s got me inspired to do more embroidery.
Jessica Bankin (verified owner) –
This play house was so much fun to make. I’ve never made anything similar before, but the instructions were easy to follow and full of ideas.
My child loves the little house I made.
Tracey Wright (verified owner) –
Such a lovely little pattern with scope to completely make it your own. I made a grown up version by adding pockets and a pin cushion to the inside to make it a sewing box! It looks so sweet in my sewing space and warms my heart every time I get it down to do embroidery on a new project. Thanks for a great pattern.
Naomi Radunovic (verified owner) –
I’ve been wanting to sew a little Take-a-long house for a while now but didn’t know how to go about it. Then came the BTK Playhouse! It’s such a fun base pattern with a whole bunch of possibilities. Will definitely be making many, many more ☺️
Nicola (verified owner) –
Such an awesome wee pattern! I used the PDF printable pattern and it was so simple to use, especially with the online tutorial guide. I’d never done embroidery before and the instructions were so easy to follow – I loved doing it! I’ll definitely be making more.
I gave it to a special little girl for her birthday and she loves it too. I’m sure it will inspire many hours of fun and imagination 🙂
Diana Skelton (verified owner) –
I absolutely loved making this pattern! The instructions were easy to follow and the embroidery designs are beautiful. It was such a fun make, and my daughter absolutely loves her little fairy house. I can’t wait to make another one!
Sam (verified owner) –
Another well written pattern. I loved putting my own spin on the embroidery and making details that would catch my child’s eye. I used the PDF pattern and purchased the mesh inserts which made putting the playhouse together a breeze.
alison Donnelly (verified owner) –
What a great pattern! Endless ideas for personalisation using fabric, embellishments and embroidery. After making a cute little cottage, I’ve already had my kids request a firehouse, a shop, and a spooky Halloween house!