Shipping What do people use for outer cardboard boxes when selling full dolls?

I used a Uhaul vacuum box once. It was a little big for the Fairyland doll box, but with some padding it worked out great.

 

Well I'm team make my own outer box. It's not very fun but I never manage to track down any of these convenient recommendations people post. You get used to it eventually, I guess box making is mildly satisfying in its own way. I try to construct one as properly as possible out of a large moving box. Occasionally I made one in two parts (lid and bottom) like doll boxes come. Was pretty proud when that turned out.
Anyway good luck!

 

i have enough space that sometimes I still have the bigger outer box lying around, OR a box someone else used when I bought something otherwise, making a box out of another box is easy! I recommend visiting your local hardware/uhaul (moving store)/walmart equivalent and checking out what the biggest box size they have is. make sure you measure yours first - I like to add an inch or so on all sides of my doll boxes so I can stuff extra padding (newsprint paper, bubble wrap, whatever), but that amount of space is up to you. In my experience that extra bit doesn't really add up to much, weight or length wise - but I use USPS.

Anyway, once you have your main box measurements, go find a box that's closest but still bigger than yours in lenght and width - depth can be pretty big because you'll end up cutting that away. afterwards, make a cut connecting one of the sides of the new box and lay it out, and from there it's pretty self explanatory because you're just mimicking the way the box folds already, just in a new size. make sure you really tape ALL your edges and corners, because those are already the weakest but it helps make up for any potential gaps you left. I do it both inside the new box and outside, but I'm just picky like that LOL. I really recommend doing this when selling dolls because it helps take the mystery out of shipping and packaging and that really helps a lot of selling anxiety for people who don't sell a lot imo!! seems like a big project but honestly just set aside an hour or so to do this. there's also box folding tutorials you can probably find online if you need to look at how a box folds. Or just cut out all the pieces and tape them together without any folding - you're just gonna really wanna make sure your tape is covering those edges and reinforced though.

If you use USPS, for smaller things this is a better way than the flat rate shipping boxes (DON'T make your new box out of flat rate boxes, they won't accept that lol) because it'll be a smaller and lighter box, therefore cheaper. sometimes it isn't though. YMMV!

 

I hold onto some good condition outer boxes that my dolls arrive in. Have not had good luck finding the right sized boxes myself otherwise.

 

I am neurotic and have saved every single outer shipping box for my dolls in case I do sell them. But I think you could make one by cutting and folding and taping.