My six-year-old grandson, Mars, has been diagnosed as autistic. With his birthday coming up, I decided to build him a hut – one that could go outside or in the garage; one where he could do whatever he wanted to and it wouldn’t be a problem.
Mars likes tools, so a place where he could randomly hammer some nails, for example, was part of the thinking. Mars is always on the go, bouncing from one activity to another, to the point at which I’ve taken to calling him ‘Jumping Jack’. After a brief conversation with his parents, I set to work.
It began with a pallet
I decided to start with a pallet; I had a number on hand as I like to work with pallet wood – you never know what you’re going to find, but some of it is just beautiful.
This pallet was a fairly typical 1200x1000mm, which proved to be a perfect size. I would prepare it as a floor, so I turned it over and started with the three pieces that spanned the underside. I sanded them down smoothly
