Before I forget… remember Kirsten’s dress set ends this evening on Ebay! Here is a link to her dress set! If you click on it, you can see the listing.
Now, you all were right in guessing that it was a bed for one of my dolls and a few of you zoomed in to see what size the flat piece of wood was and determined from that that it was for Navi, my tiny 6 1/2″ Twinkle, a My Meadow doll.
So, do you want to see what I made?
I found this fancy carved piece of wood at Hobby Lobby and thought it would make a great head and footboard for Navi. It was actually in the shape of an open frame like piece, but I forgot to take a picture of it before I had cut it and glued a flat piece of wood to the cut out part.
I had my hubby cut it in half with his compound miter saw and then I decided I wanted the footboard to be a little shorter so he cut a little bit more than half off the other end. The wood piece in the middle is to fill in the open part of the fancy wood cut out. I also used a piece of wool on the back side just to stabilize it. I used wood glue to hold it in place and let it dry over night. It’s pretty sturdy.
I showed you this piece the other day… It’s the wood piece I used for the bed.
I found these little “man” pieces, as they were called, and had my hubby cut off about half an inch from them to make the bed a little shorter… After all, Navi is pretty tiny, so I didn’t want her to have to use a ladder to get into bed. I just glued the pieces to the corners of the underside of the flat board.
Then when I had the footboard glued on, I spray painted it white, doing several coats very lightly, and letting them dry for an hour or so between coats.
It was turning out pretty cute for my first doll bed…if you don’t count the ones I used to make with a shoe box and pencils as a canopy bed for my Barbie dolls.
When I got it finished and sanded between spray painting each coat, I was pretty excited to see what I could come up with for some bedding.
I first needed a soft mattress… well, I decided I didn’t want it too fluffy so I just used some warm and natural batting and did a quick quilting job and then serged the edges.
Then I found this fabulous fabric in my stash that I’ve had for years that is satiny on one side with little moons and the other side is a soft flannel… I think it was called cuddle flannel…
Since my headboard was on the inside of the bed, I had to sort of cut out the corners and make it fit around my bed. I used Velcro to hook it underneath. I think Navi can use it either way… soft or satiny! :o)
It’s not super cushy, but I didn’t want it too fluffy so Navi could sit easily along the edges. I don’t think she’ll be IN the bed too much, just around it or sitting on the side.
Next I made a little quilt out of pink flocked fabric I had… super sheer and delicate.
Of course I had to make a sweet little pillow…
Navi was anxious to try it out…
“Thank you God, for my new bed mommy made me!”
“I like it very much, Mommy!”
So that’s what I made and who I made it for…
Okay, so here’s the scoop… When I saw that little flat board it said it was 7 1/4″ long…and I thought, “perfect, Navi is 6 1/2” long… there will be plenty of room for her to fit in it. BUT..when I glued my headboard and my footboard on the inside of the board, it took up some of the bed length so Navi can’t actually stretch out in it, but it’s okay…as she’ll mostly be standing beside it.
I really like how it turned out and hope to make a cute diorama using it when I make something for her next…
So who’s going to try one?
See you tomorrow,
Blessings, Jeanne
Whee! I guessed right–as did a bunch of others!
Navi’s bed turned out very cute, and what a nice idea, taking some “ordinary” pieces and repurposing them into something so special! I wonder if something like that could work out for a little bigger bed, so for a Little Darling?!
HI Charlotte,
I’m glad you like Navi’s bed… she does too! I think if you found the right pieces you could make any bed like this…any size!
Thanks so much, Charlotte,
Blessings, Jeanne
So, now you are in the furniture making business too! What CAN’T you do, Jeanne! That is such an adorable little bed, and would look so cute on a shelf with Navi close by modeling some cute nightwear or undies! Now, maybe you can figure out how to make a little dressing table with a skirt for her!
Your step-by-step instructions were very clear and easy to follow, and I wonder how many ladies will make a bed just following your example. Those little dolls are really a lot of fun, aren’t they?
No, Linda, I’m not in the furniture making business, but just took a little time from sewing to do a fun craft. It really was fun to do and Navi certainly appreciated it! She really is an adorable little doll and I can’t seem to stop playing around with her. She said she needs a sister, but I just can’t right now…
Thanks for the compliments, Linda,
Blessings, Jeanne
Creative genius! That’s darling. What a fun project. You’ve done it again and in a different medium. Thanks for sharing.
HI Susette,
Yes, a new and different medium for me… although some fabric WAS involved! :o)
Thanks Susette,
Blessings, Jeanne
You have a great imagination Jeanne!
The bed is just too cute!
Thank you Marla,
Had you guessed that it was a bed? I think it was pretty obvious! :o)
Blessings to you, Jeanne
Absolutely genius, Jeanne! Navi looks so adorable I Her new Princess bed! You created something beautiful and madeca tutorial at the same time! I’m keeping this post :)?
HI Shara,
Oh, great idea… I’ll call it her Princess Bed.. because it really is, I guess. All white and pink… just like a princess!
Thank you so much,
Blessings, Jeanne
Oh, I’m sure Navi appreciates this beautiful bed. She looks so cute! I just heard her say, “Where’s my new nightgown?” I can just see her in a long nightie with a little mop cap. I’ve seen nightwear like long johns for her for sale, but not sweet gowns. or what about some baby doll nighties and panties like were worn in my youth? 🙂
As to the bed construction, when you said you stabilized it with wool, I thought there was a typo. But, no, you had actually used wool! Great idea. Love how you constructed the bedding too. Fits perfectly. Another grand Jeanne idea comes to fruition.
I’m doing the happy dance this morning. An ebay purchase I made came from PA and made it to CA. Then according to tracking, was headed an hour north from the bay area to our town. The package arrived at a tiny little hamlet a couple of hours north of us. And there it has remained for five days. Lost in Willits. I tried to call their P.O. but got no answer. Go figure. Then, I filed a missing claim with the P.O. and still nothing happened. No movement from Willits. This morning, I had an email update, and somehow, the little package had arrived back in the bay area and was now headed north yet again. Hoping this time they stop in Santa Rosa and let off that poor tiny kitty in my mailbox. 🙂
HI Joy,
Yes, some nightgowns might be in order for her… I have some wonderful fabrics that just might work for her. Thanks Joy!
I hope by now you have received your package and aren’t having to wait any longer… Waiting is the hardest part, isn’t it? Don’t forget to show pictures… :o)
Blessings, Jeanne
Dear Joy, hello.
Next time you order something from PA, let me know. I will alert the Doll Police so they can be sure it gets to you right away (laugh). Seriously though, sorry about the delay. I hope it arrives quickly.
Yes the poor delayed 3″ long Boyd’s Bears kitty arrived today in perfect shape. Well packaged in PA. 🙂 Just had to make an extra long journey up and down the north coast of CA. My little Romy is currently hanging on to it for dear life. I think she is afraid that one of her sisters might want a turn. Must teach sharing tomorrow.
As an added note, my grandfather is buried in Lititz, PA. His family dates back to the 1700’s there. It is on my list as a place to visit one day.
Joy, oh my goodness, you MUST come to Lititz! It’s about an hour from where I live. My daughter went to Linden Hall School for Girls in Lititz and we lived in the town while she was in high school. I love Lititz. I would have stayed there but the commute was too far from where I worked.
When you DO come (I am putting that out in the universe), I will treat for dinner.
I am happy to share my email address if you like. Let’s see how we can do this through Jeanne.
If you are on the Little Darling ning site, we can communicate directly through that.
That is the cutest bed. It’s going to be great fun to see what you make Navi so that the bed can be her prop. I sort of hope that that’s your next project. How could you resist?
Good luck to Joy and her package. I hope they are together soon. I once sent warm socks and leftover Halloween candy to friends — it arrived in May, but Halloween candy can survive a lot.
HI Marilyn,
It is sort of fun to make things for this tiny little girl. She is just so adorable and almost mesmerizing to me. I am really glad I bought her… she is very loved here! :o)
Oh my… that’s a long wait for that package to arrive… it must have been stuck in some dark place for a while before someone noticed that it was there. :o(
Thanks Marilyn,
Blessings, Jeanne
Gorgeous bed! Since You said Navi can’t really stretch out I think a princess and the pea photo shoot is called for! You could even include a mattress, pillow, and maybe a green bead, er I mean pea. Just look so forward to all your posts, sending a million smiles Dorothy
HI Dorothy,
What a great idea about the Princess and the Pea….I just might have to ponder on that one.
I look for your comments everyday too! :o)
Thanks so much,
Blessings, Jeanne
Dear Jeanne, I echo the other Dorothy, yes do a Princess and the Pea photograph! That would be so cute.
I love the bed. Navi is so cute.
My favorite photo is the Dolly Prayers one. Does anyone make a doll calendar? That would make a wonderful October 2019 page.
Thank you Dorothy,
We’ll 2 Dorothy”s with the same idea…I guess I better really consider The Princess and the Pea photo shoot…it would be kind of fun!
Thanks so much,
Blessings, Jeanne
Love the bed and Navi looks so cute saying her prayers! What a cute idea! I like the princess and the pea idea–it just sounds precious. Can’t you just see her in her nightgown? Great idea!!! I hope Joy got her package as it’s very hard to wait. for something special. Kind of like little ones waiting for Christmas-all the excitement and watching for the postman. Wonderful bed Jeanne.
What a sweet bed! I’m sure Navi loves it, and it will make a really cute prop.
When I saw it, I thought you were going to do a satin-y insert in the headboard and footboard. I imagined a piece of plastic or cardboard with a bit of batting, a piece of satin, and some tufting tied in the back to hide it (or a tiny beads pulling it in). But after seeing it was for your Navi, it’s pretty tiny for that kind of work.
Somehow I missed a blog post so I didn’t have a chance to guess. I always look for your posts, it just wasn’t there. Weird. Anyway, the bed is totally adorable. I love it!
That little bed turned out so cute? How did you look at that frame and imagine a bed? Such a creative mind God gave you! The pink and white theme works so well. My hubby made the granddaughters doll beds one year….when there were 5 of them . Big lots had little dressers that were made as jewelry boxes but he turned them around and made the little dressers as headboards. I made them dresses and pj’s..shoes and accessories. It was so cute . Each girl had her wardrobe in a different color. The doll was a 14 inch repro Patsy, a nice well made vinyl that could take abuse. I hope they all kept them.
How adorable! What a lovely idea.