Our Reading Nooks: Perfect for Summer Reading!

Hello Readers!

I’m super excited to participate in the Gifted Blog Hop coordinated by Hoagie’s Gifted!

Hoagie's Gifted Blog Hop: Summer Reading!

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The topic for July is Summer Reading.

(***Pamela Ryan created the cool Hoagie's Gifted Blog Hop button for Summer Reading, so a big thanks to her for making it look so nice! )

 

We at Sunrise Learning Lab have something that ties in with Summer Reading: 

reading nooks! 

My husband and I have always been fascinated with unique homes with secret rooms and cool nooks. The wardrobe in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe really appealed to both of us. That became the inspiration for our reading nooks!

We discussed the possibility of somehow creating a neat space in our home. We came up with the idea to cut through the dry wall in our son’s closet that backs up into our playroom closet. 

It was a bit of an undertaking to clear out both closets and to find new storage space for things, but by eliminating using the closets as storage, they became amazing little spaces for reading nooks! Perfect for summer reading, to be certain! 

To create reading nooks from closet spaces, you have to first know the layout of your plumbing and wiring. You also have to know if the wall is load bearing or not.
(Caution: If you are unsure regarding whether or not a particular wall could be load bearing, it would be wise to check with a contractor before proceeding.)
 

We checked and the wall that was shared between Little Bro's bedroom closet and the playroom closet was not load bearing and in addition, it did not have any electrical wires or any plumbing running through it. To make things even better, the space between the studs was just wide enough to cut a tiny rectangular doorway / passageway. Once the dry wall was cut away, my Dear Hubby reinforced the space with plywood and then, sanded and painted it all.

We decided to make the spaces light and bright.

Most of the walls are painted bright yellow. LEGO pieces have been used instead of wood trim around the little passageway. We brought in bean bag chairs, one for each nook. We also added small book shelves, one per nook. In what used to be used as my son’s bedroom closet, we kept the wire shelving and have all of his stuffed animals stored on the shelving. 

The reading nooks turned out great! 

Big Bro has his nook in what used to be the playroom closet and Little Bro has his nook in what used to be his bedroom closet. 
We have transferred all of Little Bro's clothes into a freestanding IKEA wardrobe in his bedroom in order that his closet can be instead used as his reading nook. 

Both boys picked some of their favorite books for their reading nook book shelves.

Big Bro is currently finishing Lord of the Flies, as well as Hoot. 

Little Bro is wrapping up a great book, Robots, and has the Black Stallion books waiting for him to read on his shelves. 

Both boys can read, relax, and then, when they feel like doing something with their hands while reading, they can add some LEGO bricks to the LEGO trim around the passageway or else, when they feel inspired, they can grab a marker and can draw whatever pops into their minds on the graffiti wall.

Growing up, friends had a neat art nook with graffiti walls so the inspiration for the graffiti wall comes from them. Thanks KADA and family.

Well, here are some shots of the boys and their reading nooks...

Boys climbing through the passageway from one reading nook to the other.

Big Bro taking a break from Lord of the Flies to pose with our pup.

Big Bro enjoying some quality reading time.

Big Bro's summer reading stack...

Some comic strip fun for the summer: Calvin & Hobbes!

Little Bro taking in his Robots book

Little Bro's fun Summer Reading

A few more of Little Bro's Summer Reading selections

Our pup seems to like being in these photos!

 

Little Bro is getting a foot bath courtesy of our pup. Note LEGO bricks on the floor. When the boys feel like taking a break from reading, they can stretch and can add some LEGO pieces to the trim around the passageway, as well as the LEGO wall.

Stuffed animals are stored on the shelves of Little Bro's reading nook. They sometimes double as reading pillows!

Days of the Week organizers are for the school year. This is another view from Little Bro's reading nook into Big Bro's reading nook...

When they aren’t using the nooks, I have gone in and relaxed with a book myself. 

Both reading nooks are very comfy and cozy. 

Well, can’t wait to check out the other blogs in the Hoagie’s Gifted Blog Hop! 

If you have any neat ideas related to Summer Reading, please be sure to share in the comments. 

Happy summer!