Monday, June 6, 2016

Box Magic


A box can be a magical thing.  Before the lid is lifted, it can contain anything!


In this case, it can be a full bedroom and wardrobe for a small doll :-)

I've been working on this project, slowly, for the last few weeks.  It is something I have wanted to do for quite a long time.  I am in love with boxes!  Especially the memory boxes sold at Michael's.  You can usually pick them up for a couple of dollars, and every time I go there, I always come out with one or two more.  

I've always thought they would make a lovely presentation box for a doll, and maybe even a wardrobe.  But how about a wardrobe/bedroom/presentation box!

  
So, I gathered together some interesting items, plus the doll I wanted my BoxBedroom to fit.  In this case I am using Yun Shu, the doll I've been making for the past several weeks; she is about eight inches tall and slender, which is perfect for this project.  I used a dowel rod and a couple of spools to create a closet rod for hanging clothing, and a couple of papier mache boxes to create a  set of shelves.  I also printed out some colorful printables to cut out and paste to the wall of the bedroom and on the shelves.

I painted the inside and outside of the papier mache boxes, then glued them together to create the shelves.  I glued the printables to the back wall, then placed the closet rod two inches from the top and and inch from the edge of the box.  The shelves were then glued into the box, and the printables glued to the shelves.

While all of this was drying, I crocheted a bed that is 5 inches wide and 10 inches long, using three pieces of high loft batting as the mattress.  The bed, coverlet, and pillow were made with Knit Picks Brava Sport in assorted colors.

As you can see, the doll, her bed, and all her gear fit neatly into the box!  Remove the lid and place the wardrobe portion onto it, pull the bed out and put it in the lid and under the closet rod, and now she has a sweet little bedroom all her own :-)

And of course, I couldn't forget an extensive collection of clothing!  Nightgown, shoes, undies, shorts, dresses, skirt, tops, and even a knit short sleeve sweater.  

And all from a simple box :-)

A picture of the bed mattress, for Linda :-)

40 comments:

  1. This is so imaginative and just perfect! Love everything about it.

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    1. Thank you so much, Lorraine :-)

      warmly,

      Beth

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  2. What a wonderful idea! This kind of thing would have been a dream for me when I was little. So sweet!

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    1. Same here, Kimi; I think that's one of the reasons I love making dolls :-)

      warmly,

      Beth

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  3. Ay, Bet, cómo me gusta todo lo que haces!!! ♥

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    1. Muchas gracias por tus buenas palabras, Zuleta :-)

      con gusto,

      Beth

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  4. This is really an amazing project!!! <3 I just love it!!
    Lots of hugs :)
    Rux

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    1. Thanks so much, Rux; it was fun :-)

      warmly,

      Beth

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  5. Utterly gorgeous so magical, love, love love it, and so creative...a perfect gift if I could bare to part with it LOL

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  6. I love your box/bedroom/wardrobe! What an amazing idea! Thank you so much for sharing. Could you share more close-ups of the bed? I'd like to see the mattress up close!

    You are so creative! I wonder. How many dolls do you think you've made and what do you do with them all? Do you have them in a display of some kind, or have you sold/given away many of them?

    I was passing through Indiana on Tues on my way home from Michigan and back to central Illinois around Indianapolis and thought...wouldn't it be nice to see Beth! LOL

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    1. Thank you for your sweet words, Amber :-) Gosh, I honestly have no idea how many dolls I've made over the years...I've gifted many, given many to my parents church for their Christmas bazaar, and have even sold a few :-) And still, the house is full of dolls!

      I will add a couple pictures of the bed's mattress; I think I have at least one.

      warmly,

      Beth

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  7. Dear Joyce...as I eagerly await whatever YOU are working on now :-)

    I made the hangers with a 10 inche piece of 22 gauge wire used for jewelry making. I made a jig with two dowel rods 2 inches apart, for the long part of the hanger, brought the wires together in the center and twisted them tightly to the end. Pull off the wire from the jig and twist the long ends (22 gauge was too flimsy to leave it like a normal looking hanger), then bend the 'tail' end around the dowel rod to make the hooked part of the hanger.

    Thank you for your dear, sweet words my friend :-)

    warmly,

    Beth

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  8. The box/bedroom/wardrobe is an amazing idea! You always have good ideas and the accomplishment is perfect. The doll, her shoes and the extensive collection of pretty clothes are a delightful gift for someone. Thanks for sharing the idea and the beautiful pictures.

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    1. Thank you so much for your sweet words, Sirkka :-)

      warmly,

      Beth

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  9. Un proyecto precioso, imaginativo y bien ejecutado. La muñeca es un encanto y dispone de una buen equipamiento.

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    1. Gracias a Isabel tanta :-)

      con gusto,

      Beth

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  10. This must be every little girls dream! Just lovely!

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    1. It certainly was my dream as a child :-) Thank you so much for your good words always, Anita.

      warmly,

      Beth

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  11. That is fantastic idea. All you need is a box, isn't it :D Sometimes I wish I was little again so I could play with all the cool stuff :D

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    1. Aw, you don't have to be little to still play with dolls :-) I'm all grown up on the outside, but still about 12 on the inside!

      And yep, all you need is a box, and a little imagination....go for it!

      warmly,

      Beth

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  12. Beth, when the arms are left unstuffed (no wire either) and attached the way they are with this doll are there any issues stuffing the shoulders and torso? Have you had any difficulty keeping the stuffing in the shoulder and not going into the arm? Do you think a child's playing could dislodge it?

    Also, I've had difficulty with a hole at the underarm when I attached the arms. Have you had any problems with that and if so how did you solve it?

    I cannot thank you enough for everything that you share with the crochet community. I have been inspired so many times and have learned much about doll making through your blog.

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    1. Hi Linda,

      I haven't had any problems stuffing the torso and shoulders (don't stuff the shoulders a lot or she will look like a football player!), and no problems with stuffing migrating into the arms.

      I do end up with a small hole under the arm, but I use the yarn tails from the ends of the arm to sew this up with a couple of stitches. Works a treat :-)

      Hope this helps!

      warmly,

      Beth

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  13. Thanks Beth. That's what I did too.

    I found when I added pipe cleaners to another doll (different pattern) I was afraid they'd end up poking out. So far they haven't but then again the doll is sitting on my table and no little child has played with her yet! I plan to make the doll with no wires in the arms. And ever since I learned how to make dolls sit (Bleuette and Simply Amis) I always construct them that way. It's such a great technique that can be applied to any doll pattern, just like the moveable head.

    Thanks again!

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    1. I have the same problem with pipecleaner in the arms, and find that if you just don't stuff them, they can still be posed.

      And yep, those swing legs and move-able heads can be used on any doll pattern :-)

      Thank you for the good words,

      warmly,

      Beth

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  14. Is this doll from one of the patterns on your site?

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    1. Hi Rebecca,

      No, it isn't. It is a pattern freely available on Ravely called Yun Shu, by CrochetWawa. Here is a link you can copy and paste into your browser to find it:

      http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/yun-shu

      I made her different clothes, and I've been playing around with different hairstyles. The basic doll is a great platform for your own creativity :-)

      warmly,

      Beth

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  15. Hi Beth. The last week has been a bit obsessive. First I discovered arigurumi (made a teddy bear first, then a doll-like creature). Then I discovered your marvellous blog and patterns. Where to start? It is all so beautiful. I want to make all your patterns! I keep changing my mind about what to start with (thank goodness crochet is good to undo!). This bedroom-in-a-box is gorgeous. Thank you so much for all your creativity.

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    1. Thank you for your lovely words, Jenni :-) And have a lot of fun!

      warmly,

      Beth

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    2. Hi Jenni... I just had to jump in as a fellow doll lover and a By Hook By Hand follower. Beth's patterns are amazing! I love the simplicity of her Simply Ami dolls. I am not sure how many I've made so far. They are so easy to crochet and turn out so very sweet. And I've "remodeled" other doll patterns using the techniques I learned with Beth's patterns. So my suggestion would be to start with a Simply Ami, and I am betting that once you make one you will be forever hooked!

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    3. Thank you, Linda, for such a sweet endorsement :-)

      warmly,

      Beth

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  16. This is adorable!! I would love to make this! But, I'm having a hard time finding the clothing patterns. Could you help me?

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  17. Hello Glenda,

    The original doll pattern on Ravelry has instructions for a top that is crocheted onto the body; it just modified it so it could be removeable, then used that as the basis of most of the clothing, so there isn't really a pattern available for the clothes.

    warmly,

    Beth

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  18. I love your imagination and brilliance of bringing it all together! I dabble myself in "creation" with my crochet... may be giving this a whirl....Thank you for sharing it with us:))

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    1. Thank you for your kind words, Barbara; I love just making :-)

      warmly,

      Beth

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  19. Beth, this is just outstanding! Beautiful!

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  20. Would you be willing to do a tutorial of the hangers? I'd love to see the details of how you made them.

    Thanks so much....Linda

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  21. This is amazing! Thank you so much for starting a blog :) You have a new follower :D

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