You know what’s fun? Lumber. And spreadsheets. And cost breakdowns. Am I right?
PARTY TIME.
Here’s all the wood you’ll ever need for an upholstered bed (more on that here), and how much we paid:
Can I tell you a secret? These prices are after coupon. I’m talking a magic, beautiful piece of paper which knocks a pretty nice chunk of cash off the total. Snag one for yourself before you make your purchase please. And remember: most of the big ol’ home improvement stores take competitor’s coupons. So there’s that. Cha-ching.
Other supplies you’ll need:
Nailhead trim.
I paid $27.60 for 10 yards the last time around, and I think I have enough left over to make this bed too. I bought mine here because I couldn’t find it at a brick-and-mortar place near me, but if you could cut out shipping costs, that’d be sweet.
Batting.
Haven’t bought this yet. I’m going to check to see if a mattress cover will work first.
Six yards of fabric.
I bought this.
Regular price: $49.99 per yard
50% off sale: $24.99
Times six yards: 149.94
After 20% coupon: 119.95
Total after tax and shipping: 141.24
Six yards of Muslin.
Still need to pick this up too!
Tools.
To cut out the headboard, Andy uses a skillsaw on the edges and a jigsaw for the curved edge, but he promises you can use a jigsaw for the whole deal. You could also use a tiny hand saw, but I would not recommend it. He also used a nailgun and screwdriver for the bed frame.
Staple gun
Yes, this is also a tool, but it gets its own category. If you’re doing this – if you’re really doing this – get a good one. We bought and returned two junky ones, and we’ve upgraded to this AWESOME pneumatic version for this project. Also buy four hundred million staples. (Okay, about two boxes should do ya.)
If you want to replicate our headboard shape from last time, have I got a fancy little present for you! Here’s a nice little diagram. It looks crazier than it is. You can absolutely just wing it: draw the shape out onto the plywood with a ruler, and make your own little compass for the rounded parts using a pencil, a thumbtack and some string. That’s what Andy did:
Update: Follow along with this whole tutorial on this post.
This post contains affiliate links.
Hi, I'm Kelly. Glad you're here! This little blog is where I chronicle our efforts to fix up our beaten-down home on a tiny budget. We're not there yet, but here's a peek at the view along the way...
yeah.. i don't even have a bed that needs a headboard and i want it! 🙂
So glad you posted this–we (I) want to make our own headboard and it's nice to know what kind of costs we're looking at!
the cost is really reasonable. that's great! too bad about the wrong cuts but at least he was having fun when he cut the first one.
learned a lot
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Can you offer a link that has all the instructions on one page? I know it’s a ton, but I’m wanting this built, unfortunately unable to build it myself, but have a great cheap cost to have someone build it for me. I just want to be able to send them one link with it all included, does that exist?
could you please update the amount of batting that you used? did you ultimately have to buy 18 yards of batting since you tripled the thickness of the 8oz. batting?
Yes, we used 3 yards x 3 layers = 9 yards of batting for the headboard, and 3 yards x 3 layers = 9 yards of batting for the platform. This is really a matter of personal preference and what thickness of batting you choose though, so I’d definitely just feel it out and see what you like best. Good luck!
Is the diagram above for a queen/king size headboard
It’s for a queen.
Awesome thank you!
Wow, awesome blog layout! How long have you been blogging for? you make blogging look easy. The overall look of your web site is fantastic, let alone the content!. Thanks For Your article about 301 Moved Permanently .
SO happy that I found your blog!! I’m buying everything that I need to do this today 😀
I will tell you that the nailhead trim price is now $17.99 on that website but the cheapest shipping is via fedex for $14.70!!! Crazy.
Thanks for doing this–I will definitely be a follower of your blog now!
Rachel
i am going to recreate this headboard over the weekend i love it u did an amazing job how much batting did u use
love your bed! love your tutorial! can you tell me exactly what size piece of plywood you used for the main body of the headboard? i am making a king headboard and am not sure plywood even comes in sheets large enough to accommodate the shape. might need to piece two together. just curious exactly what size this one is so i can go up from there! thanks for your insight!
A standard piece of plywood is 4 feet by 8 feet. Your headboard would be just a couple inches wider than your mattress, so you should be able to measure your headboard and see if it comes in under 8 feet. Hope that helps, and good luck!
hey! this looks incredible!! you don’t still need to get rid of the old headboard, do you??? i’d take that puppy off your hands in a heartbeat!
Thank you! Nope, it’s found a happy new home via craigslist. 🙂
Hi! How much fabric would you need for just the headboard? 6 yards ? Wasn’t sure if the 6 yards was for just the headboard of the whole platform bed?
I had the same question. I want to do just the headboard and attach it to a metal frame.
You would just need 3 yards for the headboard. You might be able to get by with 2, but I’d get three just to be safe.
Love the headboard! We are remodeling three bedrooms and need a new headboard in one. Will modify the size on this one because I’ll need king size. Thanks for the wonderful advice!
Can you give suggestion for extrapolating measurements of headboard and frame to work for king size bed?
I haven’t tried to make it as a king size bed, but hopefully you can find how wide a king size mattress is compared to a queen, then just add that many inches to the width of the platform. You’d just need longer boards and a little more fabric. You can experiment a little with your headboard shape and see where you can add those inches. We just drew the shape out with a pencil the first time – it’s really just about finding what looks good to you. Good luck!
I know this is way late, but FYI everyone, JoAnn has this fabric (and all fabric) on sale. The cost for this exact fabric right now is $21.99/yd, and if you get 6 yd you can get free shipping with a coupon. I got the “limestone” hue in the linen slub by Robert Allen ($19.99/yd) and I’m on a mission to make this bed!!!!!!
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