Ideas on How to Use a Summer Playhouse in the Garden with Children
There’s nothing quite like summer in the garden—sunshine, fresh air, and the sound of giggles floating through the breeze. This season, why not turn your outdoor space into a dreamy escape with a summer hideaway house for your children?
Whether it’s a wooden playhouse, pop-up tent, or DIY garden fort, a hideaway house inspires creativity, independence, and hours of screen-free fun. In this post, we’ll share five ways to use your children’s garden hideaway—plus how to bring the outdoor magic indoors with our children’s wall prints. Our playhouse, which is featured in this blog post, is from Plum Play.
1. Turn It Into a Garden Reading Nook
Playhouses makes great outdoor reading nooks for kids. Create a cozy corner inside the hideaway with cushions, a blanket, and a basket of favourite storybooks. Reading outside under the trees is a calming and special experience for little ones. If you want to extend the magic, you could decorate the space with one of our kids' wall prints to bring characters to life.
2. Set Up an Outdoor Art Station
My go-to kids' garden activity is art. Paint, colour, draw—let your child’s imagination run wild inside their summer playhouse. Hang up paper or bring a clipboard into the hideaway for a mini art gallery. Our printable colouring posters or personalised kids wall art are perfect companions for your child’s masterpiece-making moments.
3. Host a Teddy Bear Picnic Party
A summer playhouse makes the perfect venue for a mini picnic with teddy bears and dolls. Lay out a gingham cloth, prepare bite-sized snacks, and add paper cups of juice. Use bunting, soft music, and maybe even a food-themed wall print to make the day extra memorable.
4. Create a Stargazing Fort at Night
As the day cools down, bring the kids back outside with cozy blankets and lanterns. Add glow-in-the-dark stars to the roof of the hideaway, or bring out a flashlight for storytelling time. Our space-themed prints can keep the wonder alive inside after the stars fade.
5. Create a Mini Garden HQ
Let your little one take the lead in gardening! The hideaway becomes their official "base" to plan planting, water flowers, and explore nature. Tie it in with our floral wall art for indoor learning through play.
Summer hideaway houses are more than just play spaces—they're stages for imagination, creativity, and connection. Whether you're reading, painting, planting, or pretending, these tiny houses help make unforgettable family memories in the sunshine.
Don't forget to explore our full kids' wall print collection to find the perfect pieces to decorate your hideaway—and beyond!