Monday, June 14, 2021

Doll Backdrop Tutorial

Awhile back I created this folding 
doll backdrop.
I wanted to showcase some of my dishes and teacups,
but needed a background for a tea house.

SO, I made this backdrop. 
It makes a great convertible room and backdrop
for photos.  When not in use it folds up and slides
into a closet or behind a dresser!

I made it using one of these display boards 
you can find at any craft or office supply.
My backdrop is covered in fabric, but wall paper
or craft paper could be used as well.

I created this backdrop for a teahouse, but...

It was also the backdrop for the Back to School post.

And more recently the backdrop was used for our 

A couple of my readers suggested a tutorial might be
interesting to other doll collectors.
So, here we go!

Today's backdrop is for smaller dolls, like my
Little Miss Revlon, Julia.
I'm actually making this for a Swap, so
this is going to be mailed out after it is finished.

My piece of cardboard is 16" tall.

And about 26" wide.

I made a slit down the center in back to help it fold.
You can use a box cutter, or I keep an old
steak knife for cardboard cutting.

Next you'll need white glue, scissors, a brush and
decorative paper from the craft store.
OR
You can also use fabric instead of paper!

Water down some glue and brush it
 thinly on the cardboard and glue down your
top layer of paper.

The top of the wall is covered in a patterned paper
 and the bottom 6" I chose a solid color.

OK, paper is all glued.
Wrinkles will get better as it dries.
(sadly all wrinkles will not go away)

After the paper is dry I like to use this elastic
as a chair rail. It also covers up any uneven
paper border. 

Next I searched for "Picture Clipart" and
print and cut it out. Use gluestick to apply 
paper 'pictures' to your wall.

I wanted to add some flowers.  I used these 
items and created a wall wreath.

Twist the wires in 3 circles, then hotglue
small flowers. These little flowers I found
in the photo album area of the craft store.

I wanted to have a table for this backdrop,
but it needed to fold flat for mailing.
Here is my solution.

The top is taped to the support and
the second support slides into
a slot.  When not in use it can be
unslid and folded flat for storage.

Cardboard is a perfect tool for small doll furniture.
Click this link to see more tutorials.

Ready to see the finished backdrop?

Here

It

Is!!

Thanks for visiting us!
I hope this is helpful!

6 comments:

  1. It looks great! I've been very intrigued with the idea of making some photo backdrops for my AG dolls, and this will be very helpful!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Maryn.
      I actually made an AG doll room with the large display boards. It works great for the larger dolls. I am glad you found this helpful.
      Hugs
      Brenda

      Delete
  2. Hi Brenda,
    What a neat idea and easy to do as well. I like the idea of being able to store it easily. They really do look like a complete room in the photos.
    Thanks for sharing
    Anna

    ReplyDelete
  3. Thank you Anna,
    I am glad you like this idea. I love sharing ideas like this. It’s easy and does give the impression of an entire room. The best part is it can fold up and get stored out of the way.
    Hugs
    Brenda

    ReplyDelete
  4. Dear Brenda,
    I too love to create these backdrops for my AG dolls. I have used fabric sometimes as well as scrap book paper sheets and also wrapping paper and burlap fabric. I don't like the dried glue look either and mostly am using a hot glue gun now and only glue down the edges..bit by bit. Seems to hold up well over time and during storage. To save on space I also have decorated both sides of the boards. I also have decorated the bottom third of the boards and then used fabric pieces cut to size and draped and pinned in place to change out the top 2/3rds. Just a couple more ideas to share with you and your blog readers.
    thanks for sharing this post...I love reading your blog and that you have many different types and sizes of dolls to collect and share with your readers.
    Doreen in Arkansas

    ReplyDelete
  5. THank you Doreen,
    The first time I made one of these back drops was to create a 'bedroom' for my daughters AG dolls. I actually cut one of the big display boards in half and made a room for my daughter's doll and one for her friends doll. I have mde several versions over the years.
    I am so glad you enjoy my blog! The reason I started this blog was to share all the things I enjoy about my doll collection. I like having differnt sizes and styles of dolls. It adds interest. I think a lot of my dolls friends feel the smae and have several different sizes of dolls.
    HUgs
    Brenda

    ReplyDelete

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