Recently 4Mothers was sent a cardboard playhouse called My Pretty Playhouse, by Cascades, and I was the lucky one who got to try it out at my house.
Part of Cascade’s ecological boutique, the playhouse is made from 100% recycled paper, and was quite easy to set up. It’s also quite sturdy, and didn’t get knocked over easily. It also presents various play possibilities besides using it as a house: as soon as my boys saw it, they grabbed their paints and for two days, we painted away, making the house our own.
My boys found new ways to play with it when friends came over, and actually used it as a house. The house is recommended for 3 years and up, but our 15 month old baby toodled in there and explored on his own terms quite comfortably.
It’s possible, of course, to create your own cardboard playhouse out of a big box, and we did do that a year or two ago. But we rarely buy a new refrigerator or furnace, so My Pretty Playhouse is a delightful shortcut to some good old-fashioned fun with paper. Plus, who would make sweet attic windows from a refrigerator box?
Also, sturdy as it is, being made of recycled paper also means the playhouse won’t last forever – ours didn’t survive a particularly rambunctious playdate – but for us, this is part of the charm of the cardboard playhouse. Cascades’ lovely playhouse is big, and our house is small, so the fact that it wasn’t a permanent fixture worked well for us.
The bottom line? The playhouse is a lot of fun, easy to put up, and comes down in its own time for the recycling bin: a great toy. And for every playhouse sold, Cascades donates $2 to Habitat for Humanity, thus helping to make real houses where they are needed too. Other fun items, like cardboard Christmas trees and furniture, can be found in their ecological boutique.
It’s my pleasure to announce that Cascades is generously offering one My Pretty Playhouse to a 4Mothers reader! Simply leave us a comment, and you will automatically be part of the pool from which we’ll randomly pick a winner and announce on Monday morning. Cascades says that they can ship within 5 days, so with any luck, you could have this sweet toy over the holidays. Please note this giveaway is available to readers in Canada.
Dear Readers, there are no strings to this giveaway. There is no skill-testing question, you will not be charged for shipping, you will not be peppered with spam, you don’t have to sign up for anything, it is not a hoax. You don’t have to do anything except leave your name and sit patiently while a playhouse makes its way to your door. This is a gift from Cascades and a thank you from 4Mothers to you, because we love our readers. Please enter!
ps. We’ll keep the giveaway open until Sunday, December 16 at 10 pm EST. Good luck!
Congratulations to Anna, our giveaway winner, who wrote:
Sounds wonderful! Crossing our fingers up here in Thunder Bay!!
And thank you to everyone who played along with us!
What a brilliant idea. I have 2 young granddaughters (4 and 2), who would love to decorate and live in the house. Hoping we are chosen……
Love this idea! Like you, I don’t gave the occasion for big purchase that comes in a big box. This would be popular with my kids and nephews 🙂
Hi Sheryl and Mireille,
I’m sure your grandkids and kids would enjoy it – thanks for entering and good luck in the draw!
Sounds wonderful! Crossing our fingers up here in Thunder Bay!!
very cute, i love the sky light idea–our box houses have always been too dark to play in for long
Yes, the skylight is brilliant. Can you imagine taking it outdoors and looking at the stars…?
I love these! And I know my kids would too. The smaller the space for them to crawl inside, to create their imaginary world, the better. I can only imagine the hours of fun they would spend inside (and outside, colouring) the My Pretty Playhouse.
Looks like lot’s of fun! Lots of newspaper on the floor when painting it!
Sarah, I can’t tell you how much I wish I’d remembered that before starting to paint!
I had no idea this ecological boutique existed before today. What a great idea! I will be ordering a few things from the boutique but I will hold out my hope to win the playhouse! 😉
I love this house… I love that they can paint it however they want it to look… that alone must be super fun for them. 🙂 I’m definitely putting my name in for that! thanks for the review and the link!
I think painting might even have been the best part for my boys, Pegges!
that’s what I thought. Would have been my favorite part too! 🙂
What a wonderful idea! This house sure beats the cardboard houses I attempt to make with LCBO boxes!
My son has been playing in his “fort,” an old printer box that is too small – he just sits in it and pulls the flaps closed around his armpits. He would go crazy for a real playhouse!
Ooooh! This would be so fun for indoor play on cold winter days! Thanks for sharing the fun!
… would help us brace for the winter, yes?
I love this! My kids have a thing for playhouses and I’m a sucker for paper ones. Cascades sounds like a very socially responsible company. Thanks so much for hosting this giveaway.
It’s our pleasure, Stephany!
Nice to see a recycled/recyclable toy
my boys would have a ball with this. Three five year old boys – yeah, your right probably wouldn’t last too long. I love the idea it is made of recycled paper.
How lovely! Crossing fingers for a win, but also just so happy to have a good idea and to find your blog. _Love_ the pic of the four moms!
Thanks Holly!
That would be countless hours of fun at our house!
I love the idea of a card board house as opposed to plastic. How lovely.
My 3 kidlets would have a blast with one of these creative houses!
My 3 little kidlets would love to play and design this creative playhouse!
My kids played in one of these play houses at the Green Living show last year! It was fantastic!
Some of my best memories are playing in other people’s cardboard boxes and being so jealous that my family never bought appliances. With this playhouse, my children could stop pressuring me to replace our fridge !
It looks like a wonderful playhouse and I love that the kids can decorate it! My son and daughter would love it!
This looks like such a fun playhouse!!
Oh this would be lovely for my boys!!!
My sweet boys would love this and my daughter would love to help them decorate 🙂
My kids would love this playhouse! The painting part is definitely the best part of it.