Kids’ Latch Box

My friend had commented that she liked the idea of a latch board for her sons to play with. You’ve probably seen them all over Pinterest– they are basically 3/4-inch sheets of plywood with a variety of latched attached to them. Her little guy had a birthday approaching, and I thought this would be a perfect gift…except, I didn’t like the idea of a big piece of plywood. For safety, I thought it should be mounted to the wall…something I didn’t think my friend would love to attach to her walls. I started searching for inspiration and came across a latch box. (Ding!) Found my gift inspiration. I went and got some 1×8 pine boards. After I cut them to length to make a box (about 15″ in length) I sat there staring at them trying to figure out how to cut out the doors. The challenge was I needed the square “door” intact and didn’t want to cut into the side or frame of the box. My solution was to go to the tool shop and walk up and down the aisles. There HAD to be a way to do this…

Of course there was…and it required I buy a new tool. Hey, OKAY WITH ME! The new tool and blade that allowed me to make a plunge cut.

I mapped out where I wanted the doors to go. The three center lines (on the right) were marking where the center divider would go. I used my saw to plunge cut into each side of the square, and then used my jigsaw to cut out the shape. Now we pause to celebrate a minor victory and our new tool!

I opted to make two squares on each of the longer sides and a dome shape on each end. Once I had my “doors” cut out, I assembled the box. Here’s another point where I was pretty pleased with myself. I realized that it would be MUCH easier to paint the interior BEFORE I put the top on. I must be getting smart in my old age. The younger me would have fully assembled the box and then attempted to paint the interior, meaning I’d end up wearing a TON of paint!

I opted to paint the doors different colors (and I had the option because of my ever-expanding spray paint collection). Then the fun part was shopping for different latches. My only restrictions on latches — what would fit, which was sort of  a bummer because there are some neat gate latches — and what I thought the munchkin could manage. My assortment:

The finished product:

Each door features a different type of latch or lock mechanism. The top features a mail slot and two handles with plastic chains with carabiners to connect and disconnect one end of the chain.

The first end has two different type of latches.

Side 2:

I included a little surprise on the inside, a small touch light.

End 2: While I felt the keyed lock might be a little advanced at this point, my hope is that he would be able to “grow” with the toy. And work on those “fine motor skills” (Mom is a teacher).

I can’t really say what was the biggest thrill…opening the doors, or realizing that if his brother across the table opened the door on his side that they could see each other. They also had a great time slamming the doors! And had already started putting items into their box.

I realize I could have made it a tad smaller, but I wanted to err on the side that toys and treasures could fit inside. The only change I’d make is putting two hinges on each door. The single hinge has a little too much play for my liking…but nothing a strong little boy can fix by slamming the door shut! :)