Doll Box

$5 - $10 (based on 2019 prices)

Makes one box

 

My niece has always been fond of my dolls. In fact, she tried to steel the creepy doll in 2016’s haunted farm. In 2019, I gave her the jagged mouth doll from 2017’s La Llorona haunt (the one she constantly made passing references to); however, I wanted to present the prop in a fun box. Because of its versatility, the item can be altered in a variety of ways to cater it toward your specific needs: paper covered in spells and vintage images of frogs can make it witch themed, for instance, or whimsical wrapping paper and ticket stubs can transform it into a circus motif.

• One cardboard shoe box (15” long, 5” wide, 7” high)
• Six pieces of 8” x 11.5” cream-colored paper
• One piece of 8” x 11.5” gray-colored paper
• One piece of 8” x 11.5” tan-colored paper with vintage spider images printed on it
• One piece of 8” x 11.5” yellow-colored paper
• One 4 oz. bottle of all-purpose tacky glue*
• One 10 oz. can of interior/exterior, fast-drying spray paint in flat brown*
• One 2 oz. bottle of acrylic paint in flat red*
• A random assortment of buttons
• Three to four yards of brown twine

1. After locating a box large enough to comfortably house your desired content, cut it in half lengthwise to provide a flat work surface. This can be done by simply separating the seam which holds the box together.

2. Apply a light coat of glue to the outside of the box and cover its surface with the sheets of cream-colored paper. To enhance the level of distress, do not focus on making the paper as smooth as possible, since this will only add to the creepiness. However, for a cleaner appearance, use a firm piece of plastic, like a credit card, to remove any bubbles and wrinkles.

3. Tear apart the sheets of gray, tan, and yellow paper. Here, too, your chosen aesthetic will dictate how this is done: a dishevelled appearance will want random pieces with tattered edges, whereas a neater look will require uniform squares with straight edges.

4. Once you have created the types of patches you want, adhere them to the box with glue. Again, your desired appearance will determine how they are applied, with a haphazard scattering elevating the spookiness or a methodical arrangement enhancing the cleaner display.

5. For an added level of age and distress, lightly dust the box with a coat of brown spray paint to give the illusion of dirt. If you are going for a nicer look, this step can be skipped or the brown spray paint can be replaced with a coat of glitter spray paint.

6. Use red paint to cover the surface in bloody handprints and words like dolly, play, and toys. As before, this can be altered based on your desired theme, with brighter colors used to write the same words or variations of them.

7. Add further embellishments to the box by gluing buttons and other items associated with your theme to its surface. I also elected to sew random patterns with twine into the box for an additional level of oddity (if you decide to do this, utilize a darning needle to thoroughly go through the cardboard).

8. Glue the box together along its original seam. If the content is fairly heavy, you may want to consider using hot glue or super glue to give the item a little added reinforcement.

9. Once the content has been added, use the twine to bind the box closed and attached the name tag. I used brown twine for this to continue my theme, but you can use elements like colorful ribbon.

*You will not use the entire bottle’s content for this project.