18-Inch Doll Sofa or Couch

This is a two-part project: a simple wood frame, plus real sewn upholstery rather than a bought cushion pad glued on. Build the wood frame first — arms attached to supports at two different heights (front up 3/4", back up 1/2") to give the finished piece a slight seat-back lean, then the seat back and bottom joined and set inside the arms. Round the arm tops and the top back piece with a jigsaw before finishing, since these are the edges most likely to catch on hands or furniture at this small scale.

The sofa and chair share the exact same construction, just at two different sizes — build either one, or both to make a matching two-piece set. The cushion is where this project becomes a genuine sewing project: cut fabric pieces for the seat cushion and pillows, sew with right sides together and 1/4" seams, leaving an opening to turn each piece right-side out and stuff.

Boxing the cushion corners is the one sewing technique worth practicing on scrap fabric first — pull the corner's seams into alignment, mark a line perpendicular to the seam where the diagonal measures 1", and sew along it; done correctly, this squares off what would otherwise be a flat, floppy cushion into a true box shape that sits properly in the seat opening.