All about adding a little free library to your neighborhood including information on buying a little library kit, plans to make your own community library box and more!
Little Free Library
If you came here looking to listen to the podcast episode. Click here to be taken directly to the podcast. It’s a conversational episode on how I put up the library box, what was involved in the design, what I think about it and more.
If you are here for the blog post of my little library, you are in the right place. On to the good stuff…
Free Library Box
If you know me then you know that I’m a huge reader. I’ve always dreamed of having a library inside my house; of course with the rolling library ladder and all.
We might eventually add a mini library in our hearth room (our old playroom but now turned workout space) but, until then, I found another way to share my love of reading, by adding a neighborhood book box to our yard.
What is a neighborhood library box?
It’s a book lending box where anyone can take a book to borrow or keep. It’s run on the honor system, so take a book and enjoy it. If you have a book on you, leave your book or bring a book or two next time you are by to leave for others to enjoy.
I’d seen the outdoor library boxes around town for years and have always thought they were such a neat way to foster more community within a neighborhood.
Since we are active walkers in our own neighborhood, we quickly learned after we moved into this house that a neighbor about fifteen minutes from us has a little library box. We’ve used their little library quite a bit over the past six years or so.
For a few years now, I’ve wanted to add my own little library to our house, but didn’t want to take away from the older couple who had one in the neighborhood. After really thinking about it and how far away their box is from our house, I decided that adding my own outdoor library box would add to the neighborhood in general.
I had three options for the library box: I could either DIY it, buy a library kit or purchase a ready-made little library. All three are honestly great options, depending on your skillset, budget and time allotment.
Let’s talk about each one just a bit and I’ll link to some great resources I found for all the options.
DIY Outdoor Library Box and Little Library Plans
There are so many different little free library plans that you can find online to help you build an inexpensive library box. You could even download a plan for the box and then modify it based on what you had in your wood scrap pile.
I read through a few of the little free library plans and it honestly seemed to be a beginner woodworking project. Eventually, I decided that based on the wood that we had in our pile and the time that I had available, I wanted to just buy a little library kit.
But, it would definitely save you money to make the outdoor library yourself. You just need to weigh the time investment versus budget scenario that we all have to think about when it comes to projects.
So, if you have a bit more budget and less time, a kit, like the one I bought might be the right decision for you.
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Little Free Library Kit
There are a few different mini library kits you can buy but I bought these:
The library kit came put together but unfinished. I had to take off the door and all the hardware and the paint before installing it.
I painted it with outdoor paint and made sure to paint inside the box to help with weathering (as well as underneath). Once the paint was dry, I put the hardware back on and gathered the supplies to install the library box.
My little library kit came with installation guidelines but I recently came across this installation how-to for installing the library box post that’s really great. If you are building your own, then that link might be helpful.
We had never put in a fence post or anything similar to that, so we had no idea how deep to dig the hole for the 4×4 or how much concrete to add to the hole, how tall to make the post, etc. Having the installation guidelines were a must-have for us.
Generalizing here, but it seemed like most recommendations for putting in a mini library box was to keep the height similar to the height of a mailbox post. Which to me, makes sense.
Supplies Needed for Installing the Outdoor Library Box
- Post digger
- 4×4 post
- Quick set concrete
- Wood supports
- Miter saw
- Screws
- Level
How to Install the Free Little Library Box
- Using the post digger, did your hole (approximately 24-28” deep).
- Using the miter saw, cut the 4×4 post to the correct height. Make sure to account for hole depth.
- Mix quick set concrete.
- Level 4×4 in hole. Pour in quick set concrete.
- Add temporary wood supports to 4×4 post until concrete has set.
- Let dry.
- Once dry, use screws to attach pole topper. Level pole topper.
- Attach library box to pole topper.
- Fill with books and enjoy!
Filling the Neighborhood Library Box
I’m in an Instagram bookclub called 4 Reading Women. I reached out on that platform to ask followers what their favorite books were of all time. I got a bunch of favorites. I then took that list and shopped at Thriftbooks to fill the neighborhood book box.
One of my biggest complaints with community library boxes are that they can just have random (not well-loved) books. I want mine to be a place to be inspired to read more. A place where you go to find books that are well-loved. So, I was careful to stock it with books that should be well-received by most.
If you haven’t guessed it, this project is so close to my heart. I absolutely love having it and just seeing people use it has given me so much joy. If you are on the fence for some reason or another, I’d highly suggest adding a mini library to your house. Plus, it adds to the curb appeal which is a good thing as well!
If you are new here and want to tune into the podcast on this, check it out. This isn’t a transcript of the podcast. On the podcast, you’ll hear my thoughts on my little library but also ideas to foster and create one for your community.
Community Library Box Podcast Episode
Listen below or find me on your favorite podcast app: iTunes, Stitcher, Spotify, GooglePlay, Amazon Music and Overcast
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