Making a dolls house pram.
Wire
The wire is used in two parts in the making of the pram. It could be any size you want, depending on the style you are looking for.
For the little shelf at the bottom I used 0.5mm or 1.0mm. This is optional you don’t have to have one like this, or you don’t have to have that style. Some people I know have used plastic or little wire baskets, but it does help to keep the structure of the pram and keep it upright. the wire should be easy enough to bend into place.
For the main part (where the actual body of the pram sits on I’ve also used 1.5mm or 2.5mm but its protected by plastic) just sculpt the wire around so that the body of the pram sits comfortable on it. It will hold its place once modelled into position. ensure that it is securley fitted to the bottom of the wire shelf at the bottom of the pram for sfatey, before modelling it into the position. i then painted the wire that is covered in plastic silver.
Body of the pram.
This is just made out of cardboard. Its easy to sculpt into position; if you want it sitting up just make the top bit where the head lies, a bit more upright. If you think that the cardboard is going to break try putting two layers in and glue together with pva glue or even a glue stick. I’ve also used foam board in some of the others ive made, just to make it a bit more solid, and padded. I then covered it in any material, and did a little fleecy blanket and cover to go with it.
Hood.
Hood.
Again this is just made out of the same material as ive used on the body, but it doesn’t have to be the same its as you want to look. There’s two pieces of wire in there, hidden by the material. Its glued onto the main body in an archway tucked away behind the material, sometimes its hard to do this all at once so on some of the prams ive just stuck an extra little piece of material over the wire. There’s on wire going over the front and then there’s one in the middle.
wheels.
The wheels were bought from a model shop years ago, some people I know just used some from model cars etc, so it’s a matter of looking around and being creative.
i will try and find a list of supliers, for the materials used in this design. as i say ive had it all for years and am not sure where they were from. model shops should have them in..
i will try and find a list of supliers, for the materials used in this design. as i say ive had it all for years and am not sure where they were from. model shops should have them in..
Hi Sophie, well done, your prams look great and I'd been wondering how to make them. Can I just ask a few -well quite alot actually - of things. On the ones you said you'd got from ebay - as I'd been looking at them too - is the material glued or sewn for all the different parts like the main bit, the hood and the bag etc? Also, it sounds like it would be quite difficult to make the wire bend so that it's nice and even on both sides of the pushchair, and on the basket bit. Is it difficult to get it even, I can just imagine it looking really uneven if I have a go! Is the basket made from lots of different pieces of wire, and if so do you have to solder them together or what? Also, how do you secure the main body wire onto the basket? And when you say the wire is covered in plastic, do you mean that you bought wire that is already covered in plastic or did you cover it in plastic and if so then how? - sorry, so many questions but as you can tell i'm a beginner at this sort of thing! Thanks ever so much in advance! Shelley
ReplyDeletehi there, thanks.
ReplyDelete1) the material is glued on- so you make the actual seat/moses basket thing where the baby goes and the hood, and then u just glue your material on them as neatly as you can. the bag is sown together, but you can also glue it on with fabric glue.
2) the wire can be a bit fidly to bend,and i used pliers..you dont have to use wire, you could perhaps use plastic and to ensure that it stays in position you you used dowel around the edges on the inside of the storage space.
3) the wire i thats covered in plasic i indeed bought it like that, im just recently trying out new ideas, and you can use plastic bracelets you can get from jewlrey places like claires. you know the mulitcolour childresn plastic ones that are like for a pound.. they do just the job- and then cover the wire in it..
4) you can buy the mesh from ebay but its cheaper to buy it from garden centres. all it is is the thinest piece you can get- its for chicken coops and hutches etc. now when you get it its a fairly big piece, but it comes in handy for making baskets etc, and indeed for parts of the pram and the carseat etc. my partner just cut it, to the size he wanted, and then slightly bent the wire into the shape we wanted, so theres no gluing or soidering involved. just bend it into shape.
im in the middle of re-doing the instructions, so will post them up when i have chance.
im happy to help :)
Hi, I tried to post a reply yesterday but it didn't seem to go on. Just wanted to say, thanks - you're a star, I can't wait to get on with having a go at it. Can I just ask, how does the basket stay in place as I can't see that it rests on anything? Thanks for your wonderful help!
ReplyDeleteMe again - sorry! The black bits on the 2.5mm wire - is that just paint, and if so what sort of paint? Thanks yet again!
ReplyDeletethe basket is superglued onto the wires that join the two wheels together. yes the black bits are painted as is the silver wire (this was pale pink before). the paint is just normal acrylic paint.
ReplyDeleteand no worries glad i can be of some help :)
Thank you again! Is the main body of the pram glued on too as I can't see what that rests on?
ReplyDeletethe actual main body of the pram where the baby lies just happens to balance ok between the wires on either side.. it did move slightly so u could glue, the wires on either side, to the actual main body to stop it from moving,
ReplyDeleteas the wires go all the way round the main body, u could glue the wire and the main body together too just under the hood
You've been so helpful, I'm still trying to get the hood fabric sizes right but will persevere - the rest of it would have taken me much much longer without your help so it's very much appreciated!
ReplyDeleteno worries, let me know how you get on would love to see the end product :)
ReplyDeleteHi, had a busy couple of weeks so it's going slowly, but i'm back on the case now! I'm stuck on the hood bit. I can't work out how it's attached - i've tried using brads or mini nuts and bolts but they're both too lumpy once the wires wrapped around them too. Also, am I right in thinking that the wires for the hood are attached to the body of the pram before the material is stuck on to the body or the hood? It's been baffling me all week, I bet I haven't thought of something that's probably quite obvious! Thanks, Shelley
ReplyDeleteHi again, I just thought I'd say - I know you said in your instructions that he hood is glued on with an archway, but do you mean that theres a third piece of wire in the shape of an archway. I'm not sure how i'd be able to get the hood to move up and down like this - are the wires all joined together at the bottom or something? Sorry - i'll get there in the end!
ReplyDeletehiya yes sorry there is a thrid piece of wire, in the hood, just to hold its shape and its attached to the cardboard of the main body,
ReplyDelete