The infamous Kmart Cubby House makeover hack! We thought we'd try our hands at renovating one as the main present for our son's first birthday (23rd of July 2020), and this is the result! If you've had your eye on purchasing one of these, don't delay! They sell out constantly! If you'd like to purchase a Kmart (Australia) Cubby House, click here.
If you're thinking of starting this project, great! It's really rewarding once you see your Cubby House made over with fresh paint and your style of decor. But be warned, we found it's fairly time consuming, so give yourself more time than you think you'd need!
In addition to this, it can also cost a small fortune (see our total bill below!) to makeover this Cubby House (if you let your creativity blow out), but in my opinion, if this job is worth doing, it's worth doing properly. In saying that, it is a kids toy after all, and there's no reason why quality (and safe) second-hand items or cheaper alternatives cannot be used for this makeover!
KMART CUBBY HOUSE BEFORE THE MAKEOVER:
KMART CUBBY HOUSE AFTER THE MAKEOVER:
To renovate our Kmart Cubby House, we purchased the following items*:
CUBBY HOUSE
1 x Wooden Cubby House from Kmart Australia- $149.00 | BUY HERE
PAINT
1 x Dulux 1-Step Oil Based Primer Undercoat 1L - $44.60 | BUY HERE
1 x Dulux Weathershield Low Sheen Paint in colour Vivid White 2L - $57.70 | BUY HERE
1 x Dulux Weathershield Low Sheen Paint in colour Ahoy 1L - $53.15 | BUY HERE
1 x Paint Brush Set- $8.78 | BUY HERE
1 x Painting Drop Sheet - $9.98 | BUY HERE
DECORATIONS
1 x Brass Ship Bell - $19.00 | BUY HERE
1 x Brass House Numbers '23'- $18.28 | BUY HERE
1 x Brass Door Handle - $8.32 | BUY HERE
1 x Magnetic Strip for Door- $16.80 | BUY HERE
2 x White Children's Chairs - $35.00 | BUY HERE
REAL ESTATE SIGN & STAND
1 x Real Estate Agency For Sale Corflute Sign and Stand - $43.93 | BUY HERE
AWNING
1 x 1m of Navy and White Striped Fabric - $10.80 | BUY HERE
2 x White Sibbhult Brackets- $2.00 | BUY HERE
1 x plastic white sheet from Bunnings Warehouse - $5.00
FLOORING
1 x Navy and White Striped Floor Mat - $6.00 | BUY HERE
1 x Woven Semi Circle Mat - $12.00 | BUY HERE
2 x Packs of Wooden Flooring - $59.98 | BUY HERE
FLOWERS
2 x Hanging Green Vines - $15.98 | BUY HERE
4 x Sunflower Stems $22.36 | BUY HERE
2 x Floral Foam boxes (to hold artificial flowers) - $13.89 | BUY HERE
TOTAL SPENT: $612.55 AUD
* All links and prices were correct at the time of posting.
CUBBY HOUSE MAKEOVER INSTRUCTIONS
STEP ONE
As the Cubby House arrives in a box in pieces, we found it's easier to keep it this way while we painted. Using trestle tables and a painting plastic drop sheet, we painted the front and back of each piece with Dulux Primer Undercoat paint. I don't think this step is necessarily detrimental to the Cubby House, but the painting shop assistants insisted that a primer is a must for its longevity in a hot and humid Australian environment, so we bought one. There are quite a few pieces to this Cubby House, it takes longer than you think you need so if you're planning on tackling this project soon, make sure you plan ahead if you're working to a deadline like we were for our son Brooks' 1st birthday!
STEP TWO
Once the primer was sufficiently coated on every piece, we started painting the walls, windows and trimmings in Dulux Weathershield paint in the colour Vivid White. We found a 2 litre tin was enough to paint the inside of the Cubby twice, and the outside three times. You might be asking, why so many coats of paint? Well, there are lots of little nail marks etc. that show through, so I was insistent on covering these up as much as possible.
STEP THREE
We then started to paint the Cubby House door, roof and front flower-boxes in Dulux Weathershield paint in the navy colour Ahoy. We did two coats of paint and found a 1 litre tin was enough.
STEP FOUR
Once the painting was complete, Sam (dada) built the Cubby House as per Kmart's instructions. It didn't take too long, and an electric drill, Phillips head screwdriver (the star one), a hammer and a second set of hands were needed.
STEP FIVE
Once the Cubby House was upright and built, I went over it with a paint brush and the Vivid White paint to see if any touchups were needed. But once its dry and you're happy with the paint job, its time to start decorating! The best part of this project!
STEP SIX
This is your chance to decorate the Cubby House in your own personal style, to suit your children or your back yard. There are so many options, I've seen really cute Cubby Houses that have been transformed into cafes, lemonade stands and market stalls thanks to their creative parents! We chose a simple, nautical, beach shack theme of navy and white for our son Brooks, because we live near the ocean. Everything we purchased to decorate Brooks' Cubby House is listed above.
So that's it! We hope you enjoyed our little guide on how we did the Kmart Cubby House makeover hack! ♡ Any questions or comments? Are you starting this project soon, too? We'd love to hear from you! Tag us at @thejohannessenfamily or contact us!
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