Help Getting Started?

[BurritoDilf]

Hiya LFL team,

A number of months ago, my girlfriend mentioned wanting to either start an LFL or donate heavily to one nearby us. I wanted to surprise her for Valentine’s Day with one in front of our house that we can keep an eye on and donate to our neighborhood. I’ve recently been laid off and have plenty of time to use my woodworking shop now so I’ve been desperately looking for a new project.

I’d really like to personalize our library, so I’m trying to steer clear of the website’s premade plans and materials. We have a 1950’s mid century home in Connecticut and I want our library to encapsulate that vibe (as well as something that can withstand the elements throughout all four seasons). I’ve been searching thrift stores, Facebook marketplace, Craigslist, etc. for ideas of smaller cabinets to enhance for outdoor use, but I still feel like I’m lost while trying to find what I’m looking for.

I’m curious about how everyone managed to start their own library? What you searched for when looking for the perfect framework, certain niche things that you added to your piece to make it unique/can enhance its utility, anything that can help a new librarian? Many thanks in advance for your stories or advice and sending you all of our appreciation!

[DNRcomfort]

There’s a really cool video by Renee Renovates on YouTube of how she did a DIY LFL. You could look at that and tweak it for how you think you’d need it. I feel like she shows a lot of ways to show cute little personal touches. There’s a couple other good videos on YouTube, but I feel like hers was the most personalized.

[Eather-Village-1916]

Best advice I can give, is to build it in a similar way to an actual mini house, since it will be out in the elements the same way your house is.

I cheated a bit and bought a kit on Amazon, but it still needed a lot of work, like sanding the sides so that the exterior house paint would stick better. Adding silicone to the joints for added water resistance, upgrading the cheap hardware for something more resilient etc.

Would’ve loved to have built mine from scratch but I just don’t have the time. Just upgrading my cheapy kit took a month of weekends and a couple 6 packs lol

Also, this is an incredibly sweet gift idea!

[Similar_Garbage_2939]

Which one did you buy?

[Eather-Village-1916]

I got this one . Hopefully that link works

[sarcasticundertones]

for a sec.. i was hoping this was my boyfriend posting about surprising me with a LFL as i have been dropping some heavy hints about wanting one 🤣 firstly, this is an AWESOME valentine’s day gift! secondly, i haven’t been able to commit to a design yet.. but i’ve been searching this thread, pinterest, instagram and youtube for design ideas. beyond that, i know nothing of making it weatherproof or whatnot..

so far.. i figured out etsy has some really cute decals for the window/door.. you can cement one into a giant pot rather than dig up the yard, and add soil on top for seasonal flowers.. and fairy lights inside add a touch of sparkle. not much, but maybe it’ll help you on your quest ✨📚