DIY Doll-Sized Bike Helmets

 

 I made the helmets to go with the roller skates and roller blades that I found at Wal-Mart. I took pictures along the way so hopefully it will help someone else make an economical doll skating set.

First of all, I started off with this bowl set from Dollar Tree:

Don't be fooled by the label. I would call these cereal bowls, not mixing bowls. I used the smaller one:

It measures 4-1/2" on the inside at the widest point (diameter). This measurement is what you'll need to use to find a bowl for yourself, if you can't find the bowls at Dollar Tree.

Next, I created a stripe of color down the middle with Dollar Tree duct tape. Here's what mine looked like:

It's not as wide as regular duct tape. If you can't find it at Dollar Tree, I've seen this width in a lot of other stores, including Five Below.

I continued the tape into the inside of the bowl, to keep my ends hidden.

To make the chin straps, I used strips of fold-over elastic that I had picked up at Dollar Tree a few months ago. You could use regular elastic or another kind of elastic, if you want to. I used these because they best matched my project. You can also find the fold-over elastic by the roll at Hobby Lobby (which I discovered after I bought these). They are in with the ribbons and trims, and they have a good variety of colors.

I placed the bowl on each doll's head to determine how long the chin strap should be. It's important that you do this because both of our dolls required a different length. Paige is an American Girl, while Alex is a Springfield. It does make a difference.

You want the elastic to be stretching a bit because this is what's going to keep it on their heads.

Next I installed plastic snaps at each end of the elastic to mimic the look of the snaps on the American Girl helmet. They are for looks only, so you could use buttons if you wanted to. I used snaps because I had them in the right color and they look just like snaps (which they are, of course). :)

I placed the bowl on my cutting mat, centering it on some squares. This is how I came up with the proper placement for the chin straps, getting them right in the middle (well, technically the sides) where I wanted them. I used a Sharpie marker to put a small dot to help me place them.

Then I hot-glued each end of the chin strap where my marker points were. Yes, you read that right. I glued both ends to the helmet. As I mentioned before, the chin strap doesn't come off. You simply put the hat on the doll's head and slide the chin strap under their chin. It works perfectly!

This picture turned out a bit dark, but can you see the camo tape on Alex's? I loved it!

And look how well Paige's helmet is going to match both pairs of her skates!