How to Make an American Girl Bean Bag Toss Game

My granddaughter suggested this project after she saw my floating wine bottle pillar. She said all I needed to do was add more holes for a bean bag toss game for her dolls.

Supplies and Equipment for the Bean Bag Toss Game

• 8½" x 11" x ¼" piece of  Baltic birch plywood
• ¼" dowel rod
• Proxxon Table Saw FET
• Proxxon MICRO Bandsaw MBS/E
• Proxxon Disc Sander TSG 250/E
• Proxxon Delta Sander OZI/E
• Proxxon Bench Drill Press TBM 115
• Proxxon  Scroll Saw DS 460 or hole saw
• Proxxon Profession Rotary Tool IBS/E and Drill Stand MB
• Wood adhesive
• FolkArt Ultra Dye and Ultra Dye Satin Varnish
• Template for Bean Bag Toss Game

Directions for Making the Bean Bag Toss Game

1. Use the table saw to cut the plywood to size using the auxiliary stop as necessary.
   
2. Use the bandsaw to cut two 2½" long pieces of ¼" dowel.
3. Use a quarter to mark the rounded corners of the game board.
   
4. Round the corners using the disc sander.
   
5. Use the template to mark the centers of the large holes and the position of the ¼" holes for the dowels.
   
6. Use the drill press to drill the ¼" holes and the centers of the large holes.
7. Use the scroll saw or a hole saw to cut the large holes. If using the scroll saw, mount the pattern onto the board, thread the blade through a center hole, and cut out the circle following the pattern.
8. Mount the rotary tool in the drill stand, and rotate it 90°. 
   
9. Use a sanding drum to sand the insides of the large game board holes.
   
10. Sand the surfaces with the Delta sander using progressively finer grits of sandpaper.
    
11. Glue the dowels in the ¼" holes at the top of the game board.
    
12. When the glue has thoroughly dried, paint and finish the game board.
    
13. Optionally, add numbers for scoring.
    

Note: I made tiny 1¼" square bean bags from fabric scraps and filled them with rice. Alternatively, you could use a small bouncing ball or jack ball.

Carole

18" Doll Accessories

My six year old grand daughter is deep into her American Girls doll and accessories. It's so much fun, and so much more affordable, to create our own accessories. Our latest project was a set of colored pencils—doll sized. These tiny pencils measure 1¾ inches.

We started with a set of  3 ½ inch pencils from the dollar store that were sharpened on one end. The first step was to sharpen the other end. Then, I measured the length, divided by two, and set the guide on my Proxxon scroll saw.

With the guide in place, it was an easy task to cut each pencil in half—down to doll size.

I love the fact that the Proxxon scroll saw is so easy to set up and use. It's as handy to use as a pair of scissors.

Now Kit (the doll) has a set of colored pencils that fit into her backpack and are ready for her to use at her desk.

Carole

Hangers for Doll Clothes

My six year old grand-daughter loves playing with Kit, her American Girl doll. It seems that Kit has as many clothes as I do !! :) And they all need hangers so they will go in Kit's special closet. Perfect project for my Proxxon scroll saw!!

I prepared my pattern as detailed in my business card holder post.

As I was getting the scroll saw set up, my son came into the room, and he had to cut a hanger. Hence the man-hands you see in this pic.

After the hangers were cut, I gave them each a quick sanding using the Proxxon Delta Sander and a fine grit sandpaper. 

I gave each hanger a base coat of acrylic paint. Here they are "hanging" to dry.

When that coat was dry, I added the white polka dots by dipped a pencil eraser in the white paint and stamping onto the hanger. They now live in Kit's armoire, just waiting for clothes.

SVG pattern for the hangers

PDF pattern for the hangers

Carole