Lucian and Brooks are both pretty obsessed with balancing. You can find them balancing on curbs, parking barriers and anything else we will let them. I thought it was appropriate to add something to our yard for to encourage this interest! Usually we post our projects here and on Etsy, but today, I am posting here in hopes that others will take our idea and DIY it at home. This project was SO simple. Moms, if you have never used a drill, or are intimidated by DIY, this is the PERFECT project for you. OH, and did I mention… I only spent $10 on 2 balance beams!
At Home Depot, I bought:
- 1 Landscaping Timber : These have rounded edges and are pressure treated, so you don’t have to worry about them being outside!
- 1 Pressure Treated 2 x 4 x 4
- I already had screws, but you can buy something like these!
Tools you will need:
- drill (If you don’t have a drill, you could even use a hammer and nails!)
- chop saw (you can even get the board cut down for you, if you do not have access to a chop, handsaw or circular saw)
- sander ( You could use. sanding blocks if you don’t have a battery powered sander!)
Seriously, these can be made with simply a hammer if you don’t have access to tools!
Cut the wood to size:
I cut the Landscaping Timber in half to make two 4′ balance beams.
I cut the 2×4 in half and then cut those two pieces in half again to be the four ends for stability.
Again, you can get this done at the hardware store if you do not have access to a saw or just don’t feel comfortable.
Attach legs to balance beams:
I used two screws to attach a leg for stability to each end. I used a 2×4 as a spacer, but you can also just eyeball it or use a tape measure!
Sand the top and edges:
I used 80grit sandpaper to sand the top and round the edges.
YOU ARE DONE! Flip that baby over, pull up a chair and watch your kiddo have tons of fun balancing in your backyard! I am sure these will also be used as roads for toy cars and so many things that my imagination is not big enough to think of!
If you make these or get inspired to try out your own DIY project, please comment or tag us on social media, we would love to see.