IKEA Doll Bed Makeover - part 2

Hey folks!
 I'm back with part 2 of the IKEA doll bed makeover! Check out part 1 here.
Also, did you know we're having a huge giveaway? Seriously; you could win a whole doll! Head over to our Facebook page and click on the note to enter. And if you're going to have this beautiful doll, he or she will need a place to sleep, right? Right! So, back to our bed makeover...

Last time we built the bed, then painted and varnished it. This time, I'm going to make a new linens set, since the one it comes with is frankly a little sad.

First; off to JoAnn Fabric for us! Max really loves when he gets to pick out the raw materials, though it does cut down on the surprise factor. I decided to knit a blanket and sew a pillowcase & sheet, so he got to pick both fabric and yarn.

He picked alligator print flannel and a big bulky boucle yarn in teal.

It's good I had him pick, since I never would have come up with that particular combination.

Ok, back home. And now I did the actual work while he was at preschool. I'm using this high density craft foam for the mattress. Just measure and cut to fit! If you have the same bed I do it's 12" x 19."

Since my foam was a little too short I cut a little strip of the extra to go at the bottom of the sheet case.

For the pillow, I couldn't find a craft pillow small enough, so I bought the 12" x 12" one, cut it in half, then sewed up the gap. You could also just sew a rectangle and stuff it with polyfill. Ok, un-dressed pillow and mattress:

You can see a peak of the mattress patch there at the bottom.

Next up is covers! For the mattress, I basically made a pillowcase. I wanted something removable (for the inevitable washing), but not like a real sheet because I think that would just fall off while he was playing. For my 12" x 19" mattress, I cut a 30" x 23" rectangle, folded it so that I had a 15" x 23" rectangle, sewed the bottom, the long side, then hemmed the open top.
For the pillow, I cut a 8" x 30" rectangle, folded it in half into a 8" x 15" rectangle, then sewed the two long sides and hemmed the open top.

Just slip in the mattress (or mattress pieces) and the pillow and you have an adorable bed set!

I have to admit, the alligators are growing on me.

Ok, now we need a blanket. The yarn Max picked is a super bulky size, so I used a big size 11 (8mm) circular needle. This isn't the sort of yarn I'm usually fond of, especially because it's so soft and loopy that you can barely see the stitches, so I went very basic.

Cast on 50 st.
1-2) Knit

3) Knit
4) K2, P to last 2 st, K2
5) Knit
6) K2, P to last 2 st, K2
7) Knit

8-52) repeat rows 3-7, 15 times

53-54) Knit
Bind off

This results in a very simple blanket of alternating knit and purl bands. I think it actually looks really warm and snuggly. I guess Max knows what he's doing!

Don't you want to just crawl in there?

 Here's Clara modeling the bed for us:

Ack! The cuteness! Now I have to go hide the bed until Christmas. By then he will have forgotten all about it and it will be a surprise again!

And there you have it! Blah to fantastic! If any of you give this a try be sure to tell us about it. Or, better yet, share your pictures! You can link in the comments, if you like, or share them on our Facebook page!

TTFN!
Cady