How to make a life size barbie box – Her Little Scoop (2024)

Posted On September 17, 2021

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If you are here that means probably you have already had the amazing idea of making a life-size barbie box. The life-size Barbie box is not very easy to find. So it is best if you make it yourself through simple DIY steps. The life-size barbie box can be a unique and attractive feature of a themed party.

The life-size barbie box can be also used as an excellent photo booth to pose inside by the guests. But in order to make it yourself, you need to first assemble the tools. Except that you need to sketch or plan exactly which type of barbie box you are trying to make.

After that is done you need to be patient with each step otherwise the barbie box would be as glamorous as you might have imagined and expected. The best part of making it yourself through DIY steps is that you can make it precisely with the details you want. The design, color, and font can be customized to properly fit in with the theme or occasion.

If you have a daughter then this life-size barbie box can be an adorable addition to her birthday party. Her friends would go crazy over it and might even have a fight for who will be posing more. The amazing fact is that once you learn to make this life-size barbie box on your own then you can use the basic steps to make this type of box for other themes and parties as well.

The easy way for a less sophisticated box

Sometimes you wouldn’t have the time for a long time to take a procedure. But the need or the urge for making a life-size barbie box might be the same. So here you will learn less time-consuming simple steps for making the barbie box.

But as the steps here are given keeping in mind the cramped time schedule the end product might not be as wonderful and sophisticated as the more time-consuming and patient ones. The steps for making an unplanned simple life barbie box are as follows:

Getting the right fit

Now the first task in your hand will be to find the right-sized cardboard box. It would be very unlikely to find such a large cardboard box right in your house. The first right move would be to call your friends and extended family members who might have bought new furniture or a large refrigerator recently. If you don’t find luck then it’s time to hit the stores directly.

The appliance stores or the furniture packers would be happy to help you might your wish. But be sure when the box you choose that the guests will be able to fit themselves inside or not. You can compromise and adjust if it’s a little bigger than expected. But if the cardboard box turns out smaller then you would be at risk in the process of making a life sized barbie box.

A family posing inside a Barbie and Ken life size box.

The initial cutting

Now after you have found the box and brought it home. It’s time to get to work building the life size barbie box. Put the cardboard box in a spacious room and make it stand vertically, just like you would want the barbie box to stand in the final stage after completion.

Check on the windows of the box and decide how you will be removing it. Using a sharp knife or a large scissor would be ideal for the cutting. After the windows have come off, keep them safe because you will need them later on. By windows, it’s meant the flaps of the box which are initially opened by any user for bringing out the object inside.

Customizing the box

You would have then found the basic structure of your life size barbie box after the cutting process. Now use one flap of the box to make the base stronger. Attach it to the lower portion of the box using a permanent glue. Cut the excessive portions out and keep them with the other spare cardboard flap.

Now the other flap can be used in the lower door type format of the box. If you try to remember a conventional barbie box you would get it that a barbie box has the lower front face cardboard cover mostly on all the sides with the word ‘barbie’ written over in the branded font size and shape.

So in order to recreate the barbie box as much as possible, you need to fold the remaining flap slightly and do it with strong pressure. This would keep it like that for some time. The objective with the second flap is to cover the lower part of the barbie box with it making it actually work as a small door.

So you need to attach the folded part against one wall of the box in the lowest portion. This will give the life size barbie box a more original look. You can use the same permanent glue to attach it but leave one side of the flap unattached so that you can open and close it properly.

The symbol and painting

Your life size barbie box would be mostly ready if you had followed the above steps. Now there will be two necessary steps left in the process. One will be to properly paint the whole box. The other one will be to make the symbol or writing of the word ‘Barbie’.

The left out of the cardboard can be used for that purpose. If that doesn’t be enough for the symbol you can bring out a mediocre-sized box from the storeroom. All you have to do is first trace out the symbol of Barbie on cardboard with a pencil and then again over it with a marker. Use a paper-knife to cut out the shape properly. Then it will be the time to paint it all.

Use shiny pink paint to cover the whole body of the barbie box. Buy a good quality wall paint that stays shiny and hides the cardboard very well. Use the combination of white and pink on the ‘Barbie’ symbol to make it stand out. After the painting will be complete it will be time for you to take some rest and let the box paint dry properly.

A life-size Barbie box in a children’s birthday party setup.

After the paint has dried totally you should then attach the barbie symbol on the front flap door. You can use white or any other color that will go with the pink or will be similar to the original barbie box sets.

The more time consuming perfect box

If you have a lot of time in your hand and your decision for making a life-size barbie box has come up early then this detailed process will be perfect for you. This barbie box would look very much like a real one and many guests will even ask you for the place you bought it from.

If you follow all the steps and use tools properly, be prepared for a lot of praise from everyone. The first task in this more perfect barbie box DIY project would be to make sure you have all the tools with you. If you lack one or two, buy them from the stores. The tools you will be needed are as follows:

Paint tray
Ruler of metal variant
Cutting mat
Xacto knife
Paint roller or large brush
Glue gun and specific sticks for the gun
Foam board box

For this process, you will need to use extra tools than the previous process. The type of main material you will be using is foam board. Instead of cardboard, using a good quality foam board will prove to be much better in holding the colors and fitting people inside. If the guests will be around six to ten years of age then you will be needing two foam boards of dimension 4′ breadth and 8′ in length.

The thickness should be about ½”. If you don’t get such a large board from the art supply store then you can buy four 40″ x60″ boards. For specifically designing it keeping younger children in mind you will need only one foam board of 4’x8′ dimensions.

A detailed chart of the cutout sizes.

The detailed steps are as follows:

First, you have to cut out all the pieces from the foam board. So use the ruler and marker to mark out each fragment which will be stuck together to form the life size barbie box. The main part will be the back of the box. So mark it first followed by the sides and then the top and bottom. Don’t try to cut out a front face door too because it won’t be needed.

First, you need to place the back of the box flat on the floor. Then with the use of a glue gun, you need to attach one sideboard to it. Use something for supporting the side piece in its place temporarily even before using the hot glue. You can use metal pins for temporary support that you can remove later on.

Immediately after one sideboard is attached using one of the smaller cutouts for making the top of the box that will also act as a support one with the single side box attached.

Then it will be time to attach the second sideboard with the glue. Don’t forget to use the pins for temporary support. After you attach the second sideboard you will be feeling satisfied as the structure would be most visible. Fix the only baseboard that will be left to be attached for forming the structure of the box.

So after you have attached all the pieces together for the box, the best task will be to paint the whole box. You can spray-paint the bubbly pink color that is much aesthetic to the Barbie brand. You can also use the roller directly for painting.

You should paint the inside first and then the outside of the box. Applying two coats of paint in a couple of minutes gap would properly make the paint pop its color.

The other foamboard you bought with a smaller size of dimensions- 20″ x30″ will come in use then for making the front of the box. You need to cut it vertically to make two pieces out of it.

You need to paint the new boards and let them properly dry till you attach them to the front.

You will be able to download the Barbie logo from the internet easily. So use it to make a cut out that you can stick in front.

You can perfectly execute the lettering by tracing the letters on the foamboard. Then with the help of your xacto take the letters out. Place your letters on the pink foam board maintaining space. Put the letters in front of the box and you will be done.

Conclusion

The life size barbie box can be a huge attraction at parties with children. If you have a daughter then she would love to pose inside this box and get her pictures clicked often. If you have read all of the above steps you already know how to make a life size barbie box. You should take up this DIY project and impress your child with the efforts and results. The whole idea can also be transformed for making other kinds of life size boxes for your son as well.