DIY Doll Bed for American Girl from Scrapwood

Let me just start off by saying that after paying $130 for a doll...I wasn't about to spend just as much on her bed.  No ma'am. Sorry. Not gonna happy.  Not now. Not ever.  But if you've been following along on Instagram you know I have been working on a DIY doll bed for Miss Rebecca - my 5 year old's first American Girl.

I'm not really a furniture maker.  And by that I mean I don't really have any clue if what I made would actually hold a human if made to scale.  I mean I did make a shelf out of pallets for my bathroom so I guess I can cut and screw together a few pieces of scrap wood to make a doll bed for an 18" doll, right?  Here's to hoping....

This thing doesn't look like much..and that's because it's not really.  It's just a few pieces of wood I had lying around the garage put together enough that my 5 year old is satisfied that her dearest Rebecca doesn't have to sleep on the hardwood floor (gasp!) or even worse her bed. Can you imagine?!

Okay so there's not really a tutorial here so I'm gonna let the pictures do most of the talking....

How to cut chair rail trim with a miter box saw (Photos and Video)

Okay, so before I explain all this to you, let me just tell you that I learned how to cut trim with a miter box saw the hard way - by screwing it up.   I quickly learned that not only do you have to pay attention to the angle of the cut, which is determined by the corner, you also have to be careful about the way you position the piece of wood in the saw.


Since my recent $100  $84.41 bathroom makeover was my first go at it and I screwed it up, I had to live with my mistake and fix it as best as I could so I didn't blow my budget.

But now I'm here to tell you how to use a miter box saw correctly so you don't screw it up and end up with this...

Large DIY Wood Clock from Fence Posts or Pallet Wood

I am so excited to finally be able to share my DIY clock with you all.  I have been working on the clock for the better part of the month - not that it took that long to make - it really didn't take long at all.  I was trying to find cheap DIY clock parts and that was a bit of a struggle.  The whole point of me making a large wooden clock myself was to keep costs down, but DIY clock kits combined with shipping can be kinda pricey.   All the details on where I found the cheapest clock hands and movement in a minute, but first let's get to how I made the clock.

I started with three fence posts (or are they fence panels?) that were just sitting in the back area of my basement.  Pallet wood would also work...or you can buy lumber at the hardware store, of course. 

Small Bathroom Storage: DIY Pallet Board hanging shelf

And here's another sneak peek into how my $100 powder room makeover is going.  The great thing about this guy is he cost me next to nothing!  I used all pallet wood and I had the screws and stain on hand.  I did have to purchase the rope and the hook at the top, but you can actually make this without either.  (My little secret is they're just for decoration, they're not actually keeping the shelf on the wall.)

The lovely ladies over at Shanty 2 Chic inspired me to make this shelf.  They built a similar one for that odd wasted space over the toilet.   The only difference is mine is pallet wood (free) and they paid for their boards (better quality).  I believe she said she still made it for about $10...which is still quite the steal.