I find play value in everything.  This isn’t always an admirable quality.  My house overflows with strange objects and if anyone offers random things for free, I perk up like an eager child in class.   I’m certain it’s an occupational hazard and I’m not alone.

My latest acquisition was an electrical spool. Pictures can be deceptive and I hadn’t anticipated something quite as big, when I accepted it.  When my husband discovered this eyesore in the garden, I sensed he didn’t share my enthusiasm for my latest scrap heap challenge.

Knowing it will be useful, doesn’t always equate to having  a finished product in mind.  Sometimes, I prefer to leave things as  loose parts  , so the children can find their own use for them but the weight of the spool prohibited them from moving it. I positioned it in front of the potion mixing station,  hoping it would be integrated into potion play but the children had other plans.

 I left  pavement chalk near the spool and they decorated the top in bright colours. We don’t have many suitable surfaces for chalking in the back garden, so I sprayed the top of the spool with blackboard paint.  I added hardware hooks around the edge for storage.  Choosing what to hang from the hooks is a work in progress. We currently have a basket holding bug catchers and magnifiers and another containing small world fairies, a cloth for wiping the blackboard, a cowbell and a crystal.

The girls helped to paint the sides and my eldest painted windows and a door for the fairies.

The bottom was decorated with old cd’s that we cut up and mounted with no more nails to make a rainbow mosaic

I am eager to see how the children will use the new addition. I’ll keep you posted.

Other  ideas for spools can be found on my Reclaimed Materials  Pinterest board.