Mood:
a-okNow Playing: XM 71 - Watercolors (light jazz)
Yesterday was like that. I turned around, and the day was done, I barely had anything besides exchanging carbon dioxide for oxygen to show for it. It was too difficult to come up with anything to blog about, so I didn't. Today, however, I got quite a bit done. For reasons too mundane to get into, I won't be spending money on dolls or anything for a while. Gonna have to use what I have for a bit, which is fine. I got too much of everything already ! I'd been idly looking at doll beds on eBay and online during the week - I even went on a thrift store-based hunt. Believe it or not, I found one - that was barking ugly *and* too small. Well, recent events changed those grandiose plans, but that's OK. I wasn't sure if the Cinderella/Disney Princess doll bed or the brass American Girls beds I liked (both made for 18-inch dolls) would work. No site told me the exact measurements, and I didn't want the bed to be too low, it'd look bad. Plus, I didn't wanna spend $20.+ without knowing exactly what I was getting. So tonight - I decided to make one !
It wasn't at all difficult. As you can probably see from the inexpertly doctored photo - used PaintShopPro to black out the junk in the background - it started out as a cardboard box ! Hardest part was getting started !
I'd originally intended to make her bed from the box she came in, but Elphie likes more space ! Then I thought to tape Elphie and Fiyero's boxes together, but they were too different. This is the box Beloved Hubby's birthday hat came in - 10 inches wide, eighteen inches long. Box without mattress comes right to the back of Elphie's knees. It was really not quite long enough, but I extended and taped the flaps and added a cardboard rectangle to it. Then it was eighteen inches long ! An impromptu check showed that Elphie can have overnight company, if she chooses. ;)
Must've gone through a dozen sheets and permutations thereof. At one point, it had black stretch velvet pinned to it, with a 'bed skirt' of lace. Ugh. It sounds better than it looked ! There was also attempts to cover the whole box in white t-shirt fabric, which looked worse than the box !
Finally, what I went with was - *A decorative Hobby Lobby bandanna, on sale last year, 2 for $1., trimmed and hemmed so it'd be longer at the bottom than the sides, with lace sewn to the edges. This is the bottom 'bed skirt', but a thin layer of flannel could easily make this into a bedspread. *A 'mattress' - basically some Hancock $1. grab bag fabric measured and stuffed with Polyfil or an old pillow's innards to fit the bed. Mismatched white buttons sewn through keep the stuffing from shifting, and adds contours. *A long 'body' pillow, made from fabric cut from the mattress piece, also stuffed. *A top sheet, basically another bandanna.
That's it. The bandannas are already hemmed, so making it the top sheet was as simple as touching it up with the iron. I'd thought to make some elements permanent, like a fabric ruffle 'bedskirt', but it was easier and more fun this way. I can change it at any time. And, I didn't spend a dime on anything. This is all 100% from the stash ! I hope to make some decorative pillows for it - and add that Jack Sparrow Happy Meal doll to it soon !
Only one thing bothers me. The Dumpster-dived Rubbermaid tote that houses my ribbons and lace is always bulging. Why is it, then, that when I actually take something out of it, it's even harder to close than it was before ?
