Recycled Doll Bed – perfect for American Girl Dolls
In this recycled project, a breakfast tray is flipped upside down and transformed into a dolly bed. The linens and pillows are made from fleece and flannel and are no sew – just a drop or two of fabric glue is all we used. From the It’s a Dolls World episode of Creative Juice.
This project was featured on Creative Juice on HGTV. You can watch the full episode on watch.hgtv.com. Watch all seasons on watch.HGTV.com.
Materials:
breakfast tray with collapsible legs
wood glue
wood screws
4 wood balls or blocks (bed legs)
2″ thick foam
1/2 yd. flannel sheeting
1/2 yd. polar fleece
2 empty 6-oz. gelatin boxes
Fabric-Tac glue
measuring tape
pinking/scalloping shears
craft paint (optional)
Steps:
1. To make the head and foot board of the bed, flip the tray over and, using wood glue and screws, secure the legs in a locked open position. Let glue dry.
2. Using wood glue and a screw, add legs to the bed at the four corners and let dry. The bed legs are an opportunity to use your creativity: wooden blocks, drawer pulls, wood balls, etc., can be used — just look for objects that match in size.
4. Using a kitchen knife, cut foam/mattress to fit base of tray.
5. Cut flannel 10″ larger, length and width, than foam mattress measurements. Wrap foam, gift style, with flannel sheet and secure on the bottom with Fabri-Tac glue.
6. For the bedspread, cut fleece, adding 6″ to width and 4″ to length of mattress measurements. Trim edges with scallop shears.
7. For pillows, wrap two large, empty gelatin boxes with fun fur, leaving 1″ on each end. Using Fabri-Tac glue, glue fur to boxes, tuck ends into box sides and secure with drops of glue. Fill boxes with crumpled scrap paper for additional strength.
This project was featured on Creative Juice on HGTV. You can watch the full episode on watch.hgtv.com. Watch all seasons on watch.HGTV.com.
I see all you feedback on kids bed and it appears like some of you are looking for more designs…so keep posting your comments with suggested topics.
I have just discovered your blog from the link on “one pretty thing” and I can’t begin to tell you how excited I am about this posting! I actually have two trays in my shed that were about to go to the thrift shop – I will now be able to make little beds out of them! Perfect for playing babies and hospitals with my 3 year old daughter! You are a genious! Thank you!
I am so makeing this
don’t give her credit, this wasn’t her idea! it was diy’s idea- she even copied the pictures- i can report you and you can get sued for copyrighting-which i think i might just do now
Excuse me Anonymous!
Perhaps you should do a little homework before accusing me of stealing.
I am Cathie Filian and this is my blog – I executive produce, write and host Creative Juice on DIY Network and HGTV.
The hands in the photos are mine, I wrote this project for Creative Juice. I think I’ll edit this post to show a photo of myself making this project.
This is a wonderful idea!!! I can’t wait to make one! thanks!
I am definitely going to ask my dad to help me make this project. I will tell you when I make it!
I like this idea, but I don’t have any trays and haven’t seen them in thrift stores either, is there soem thing else we could use instead??
I just made one of these and am making another. Thank you so much for the suggestion – they turned out amazingly well and my older daughter loves hers!
My daughter and I have been bonding over making beds for her doll & the dolls in our neighborhood….we’ve actually started a business:
My product tester & quality control manager, Liam, feels it is necessary to jump up and down on the beds, to be extra sure they are strong enough to support those extremely heavy 10 oz. dolls (Insert Liam’s picture 19 months old, here).
The production department is very thorough when building and painting the beds. One coat of paint would be sufficient, however, Kathleen (insert Kathleen’s 7-year-old picture here) my “pre-painter” prefers to begin the process in an art-deco free-form manner. This is quickly followed up with a second coat of paint by the finish-painter (me).
Bedding and embellishments are laid out on the display area (kitchen table) and thoroughly examined and rated for color clarity, softness, and durability by the quality control department (anyone who can reach them).
Check us out at: http://www.AmericanMadeGirlDollBeds.com and yes, that’s my cutie-pie on the home page. 🙂
This is a wonderful project!
My daughter & I took this a step further….
Check us out at:
http://www.AmericanMadeGirlDollBeds.com
We made these ourselves for all the dolls in our neighborhood!
does it have to be a brefast try all i have is a tv tray??
this is very nice blog thanks for posting keep posting
I love this bed! Thanks for posting it for us. I am going to make two for my daughters AG dolls, Molly and Emily. She is absolutely going to love finding these under the Christmas tree. I just have one question, where did you get the breakfast tray, by chance?
So cool! I will try to make one to!
My daughter has an 18″ doll who needs a bed — this is perfect, thanks for the inspiration! I wonder… have you tried modifying your original idea to make a crib? The Bitty Baby cribs are considerably more than I want to spend, I might try to make one using this idea.
To people who’ve wondered where to get the trays, Bed Bath and Beyond stocks them!