Build a Dolly Wagon with Nicholas & Leonard!
Nicholas Bear Cub likes to be prepared. For instance, what if he is up in the Far Meadow, and he finds a good harvest of acorns but he has no wagon to carry them? That is why his wagon is always bumping along behind him. Nicholas can often be spotted pulling a wagonful of supplies from far-flung corners of the Village to his favorite project spot in the Tinkering Yard.
One such morning just last week, Leonard Blue Jay heard the rattling of wagon wheels and poked his head out of the Guest House window. There was Nicholas, trundling down the High Meadow path.
“Hullo, Nicholas!” Leonard called. “Sounds like your wagon wheel’s got a rattle!”
“Hi there, Lenny!” answered Nicholas, stopping to chat. “I guess it’s seen better days, sure enough.” This was plainly true. Though Nicholas loved his trusty wagon, he knew it was not in the finest shape. “I’ve been meaning to build myself a new one, but I just haven’t gotten around to it yet.”
“Would you like me to lend a wing?” offered Leonard. “If we start planning now and start building by noon, I estimate we could have it finished by suppertime.”
“Gee, that’d be swell!” Nicholas replied. He was quite impressed by Leonard’s efficient forethought.
Leonard promptly produced a measuring tape from his pocket and got right to work. “Of course, the first step is to measure this wagon, and then we’ll draw up some plans for the new one.”
In this blog post, you will learn how to build your own version of Nicholas’s new wagon! We used a combination of craft wood and cardboard for this project, but you can use just cardboard if you prefer. We will provide instructions along the way for how you can modify these steps to make a cardboard-only version.
Here is what you will need:
- Cardboard
- Scissors
- A ruler
- A pencil
- Craft glue
- 2 wooden skewers (available at the grocery store)
- 2 plastic straws
- Paint + a paintbrush
- Some string, twine, or yarn
- Optional:
- Craft wood (we recommend basswood rather than balsa)
- Wood glue
- A saw
Build the Wagon Box
For the absolute simplest version of this project, you do not need to build a wagon box at all – simply use any small cardboard box, and skip this section of instructions entirely. A Hazel Village one-doll shipping box would do nicely!
To make the the crate-style wagon as pictured, you will need an assortment of planks as well as four corner columns. We used basswood strips from our local craft store. You can also use any thick/sturdy cardboard.
If you are using wood, please make sure to work safely! We do not recommend saw stuff for any kids unless they are assisted by a confident adult.
For the 1" wide planks, measure and cut:
- Six 9” long strips
- Two 5” long strips
- Six 4 1/2” long strips
If you are using cardboard, you can give your project a cleaner look by glueing thin strips of paper over all the raw cardboard edges. Check out our bed craft tutorial for this technique!
For the corner columns, measure and cut:
- Four pieces which are 1/2" square and about 3 1/4” tall
We purchased a 1/2" square stick of basswood and and cut it into the appropriate pieces. If you are using cardboard, we recommend glueing two or three 1/2" wide strips together to make square columns.
To start assembling the wagon box, glue the ends of one 9" plank and one 4 1/2" plank together outside of a corner column. It should look like this:
Repeat with the remaining corners, and let dry. (Make sure not to mix up your 4 1/2" planks and your 5" planks – save the 5" ones for later.)
Flip this structure upside down and repeat the previous step to attach the second outer row of planks. Let dry.
Glue the middle planks into place. They should be evenly spaced so there are narrow gaps between the planks on all four sides of the box. Let dry.
Place the box on top of some cardboard and trace the shape of the inside. Cut out the cardboard shape.
You should have two 5" planks remaining. Glue them to the bottom of the box, spaced about 1 1/2" from the edge:
Apply glue to the inside of these two planks and settle the cardboard panel on top of them to create the bottom of box.
You may find there are some narrow gaps around the inside edges. If this bothers you, you can glue strips of paper over them or use liquid craft glue to fill in the gaps.
When the glue is dry, your wagon box has been fully assembled and is ready for decorating!
We mixed some acrylic paint to a light brown shade and watered it down quite a bit before painting it over the wagon. Watering down the paint makes it semi-transparent, creating an effect that is similar to a wood stain.
Make the Wheels
Look around your house for something round that measures about 2" across. (Leonard and Nicholas used a dolly-size saucer.) Trace that thing onto cardboard to get the right size circle.
To make four wheels, cut out twelve cardboard circles. Glue three circles together to make one wheel.
To give the wheels a more finished look, we opted to cover up the bare cardboard edges. You can cut narrow strips of any paper for this, or you can do what we did: carefully pull the thin top layer off of a narrow strip of cardboard, and use that.
Mark the center point of a wheel and poke through it with your wooden skewer. It is important that this hole should fit snugly around the stick.
Trim the edges of the wheel if they are uneven, and then glue the paper strip overtop. Allow to dry, then trim off any bits that are sticking out.
Repeat these steps to make the remaining three wheels, then decorate as desired. If there are any gaps between the paper wheel covering and the wheel body, you can use your paint to fill them in and make the wheel look smooth.
Final Assembly
Cut two plastic straws to 5" long each. Glue them to the planks on the wagon bottom.
Cut two wooden skewers to create two sticks that are 6 1/2" long each. (Make sure you are cutting off the pointy ends, and be careful!) Thread the sticks through the straws, and place the wheels on each end.
The wheels should fit snugly onto the sticks, but if there is any wobbliness then you may need to reinforce them with glue. Just make sure that no part of the wheel or stick is glued to the wagon itself, or else it will not roll properly.
You can use any sort of string to make the wagon pull. Nicholas and Leonard used three strands of blue-gray embroidery floss to make a braided rope that measured about 20" long.
Poke the ends of your string through the front of the wagon as pictured in the photo below, and tie them together in a knot on the inside.
Tie the string into another knot on the outside, like this:
Then your wagon is all done! Huzzah!!
Nicholas and Leonard finished building the new wagon just as their tummies began to rumble. They were very proud of their work, and agreed that it had turned out quite splendidly.
"Hop in and I'll take you for a ride!" Nicholas said to Leonard, who gladly obliged. As the clanging sound of the Lodge bell rang out over the Village (for Gracie Cat was ringing it to let the other animals know that a big tasty meal was ready for eating), Leonard and Nicholas trundled along the path towards supper.
In case you are curious, Nicholas is keeping his old wagon too. He says it is always good to have a backup! Right now he is using it to store firewood beside the back door of his cottage.
Thank you for reading, friend! Did you make this craft at home? Send us a photo or tag us on social media @hazelvillage! If you have any questions, please feel free to email us at hello@hazelvillage.com.
Our friend Leonard is a limited-edition visiting animal! Shop him now before he departs the Village: Leonard Blue Jay
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