My daughter and I have been busy renovating our lovely dolls house, as she wanted a contemporary and modern house, rather than the previous Victorian style. However, it’s harder to find modern beds or shelving units to buy. So she found some images of a minimalist bed and shelving unit and I turned them into these designs. As the style is minimalist, this made it easier to do (I did try a more complicated design for the bed frame but the angles were too tricky and I gave up!). I’m not a carpenter (and please don’t look too closely at the storage unit because it’s a bit wonky!). Even being a few millimetres out makes a big difference when you’re working in miniature! Follow the instructions below to make your own dolls house bed and storage unit.
Supplies and equipment:
Storage Cube
- Wood (I used pine) – w 3.5 x d 0.6 x l 50 cm (buy a longer length in case of mistakes)
- Wood glue
- Small saw
- Fine sandpaper
- Ruler and set square or protractor
- Patience – wood glue dries slowly!
Bed and Bedding
- Wood (I used pine) – w 0.8 x d 0.8 x l 120 cm
- Wood glue
- Small saw
- Fine sandpaper
- Ruler and set square or protractor
- Sewing machine – or hand sew
- Fabric scraps or old tee shirts or plush
- Wadding 2.5 cm thickness (for mattress)
- Toy stuffing (small amount for pillow and cushions)
- Approx 100 x 0.5 cm pom poms and cardboard – if you want to make the rug as well!
Making the Bed Frame
Start by measuring and marking with pencil the following lengths on your 0.8 x 0.8 cm wood:
- 4 x 11 cm lengths for the upright corner pillars
- 4 x 13 cm lengths for the long edges of the top and bottom of the frame
- 4 x 7 cm lengths for the short ends of the top and bottom of the frame
Then cut each piece of wood to the correct length using your saw. Lightly sand the newly cut ends to make them smooth and make sure that they are not wonky.
Next start to construct the one end of the frame. To do this place 1 x 7 cm length on a flat surface and glue 1 x 11 cm corner pillar at each end. Then glue the second 1 x 7 cm length at the other end of the two 11 cm corner pillars. The corner pillars sit on the outside of the other lengths of wood. Leave to dry for the recommended length of time, making sure before it is dry that all of the pieces are at right angles using a set square.
Repeat to make the other end of the bed frame.
When both ends of the frame are dry, glue them together using the 4 x 13 cm lengths of wood. To do this, I did one side at a time – propping the frame up against a wall whilst it dried to make sure the angles were correct.
Making the mattress and cover
Cut a piece of wadding to form a 7 x 6.5 cm rectangle to form the mattress. To make the mattress cover, cut a piece of fabric 35.5 x 11.5 cm (14″ x 4 1/2″). I used a grey plush fabric because it’s soft and cosy but other fabrics would be suitable. Fold the fabric in half so short ends are together and right side in, then sew along the long edges to make a pouch.
Then pinch and flatten each corner of the folded end and sew a seam about 1.5 cm from corner point – see photos as it’s hard to describe.
Trim the excess fabric from the corners and turn right side out. Stuff with the wadding. Then fold raw edges in, like an envelope, and hand stitch closed.
Making the Duvet and Pillow
From your chosen fabric (I used a tee shirt with a cute Unicorn pattern on – smaller patterns are best for dolls house scale projects) cut 2 rectangles 15 x 14 cm (6″ x 5 1/2″). With wrong sides together, stitch a seam around all four edges, leaving a 5 cm gap. Trim the corners and turn right side out. Push corners out, then press – folding in the remaining raw edges. You can either leave it as it is, or add some stuffing. Then sew the gap closed by hand to finish.
To make a pillow, follow the method above – but start with a 7.5 x 5 cm rectangle of fabric. You will need to stuff the pillow at the end before sewing up the hole.
Cushions
To make the cushions, I used scraps of coordinating fabric and the same method as the pillow. I drew the faces on the cloud using a fabric marker pen.
I also made the pom pom rug – this is an easy make. Just cut a circle of cardboard about 10 cm diameter. Then glue (I used PVA glue) pom poms in circles, starting from the centre and working out.
Making the storage cube unit
Start by measuring and marking with pencil the following lengths on your 3.5 x 0.6 cm wood:
- Top and base 2 x 8.5 cm
- Side pieces 2 x 7.5 cm
- Horizontal shelf 1 x 7.4 cm
- Verticals 2 x 3.4 cm
Then cut each piece of wood to the correct length using your saw. Lightly sand the newly cut ends to make them smooth and make sure that they are not wonky (mine were a bit wonky…)
Place the base piece on a flat surface on its side and glue the two side pieces and the top piece together, making sure the corners are all square. Leave to dry.
Next glue the horizontal shelf between the side pieces and the two vertical pieces to the top and bottom of the horizontal shelf. Make sure the shelves are all square and leave to dry.
Happy Making!! Let me know how you get on.
