upholstered headboard

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project:  Upholstered Headboard

room:     Ian and Missy’s Bedroom

date:      May 21-22, 2005

labor:     Yimmy – 2 hours
              Missy – 3 hours (4 hours if you include an aborted trip to the fabric store   due to the screaming tantrum of a certain two year old)
 

materials & budget:

Place Purchased	Item	Quantity	Price	Total Cost
Fabricana	Fabric (meters)	1.9	11.49	21.83
Rona	Glue	1	3.38	3.38
	Bolts	4	0.16	0.64
	Nuts	4	0.07	0.28
	Washers	4	0.04	0.16
The Foam Shop	2" Foam (27" x 62")	1	32.49	32.49
	Batting (meters)	2	7.98	15.96
Jimmy's Garage	1x4 Boards	2
	OSB Plywood	1
	Staple Gun	1
			Subtotal	74.74
			Taxes	10.46
			TOTAL	85.20

 

comments:

This project was pretty low stress and easy – especially because I had my dad do the hard part for me!  I would recommend it to the inexperienced DIYer .

• I already had a good idea of what I wanted before I started, so I didn’t do any research.  I just emailed my dad a picture that I found on the internet and let him work out the design.  I decided on a rectangular shape because I’ve never upholstered anything before and thought I should keep it as simple as possible.

• I figured out the height that I wanted by making a newspaper template and taping it to the wall at varying heights.  I took digital pictures of all the heights, emailed them to my dad and we agreed that the best height would be 48” from the floor.  Luckily my mom has the same bed frame as me, so he was able to do all the measurements and calculating for the support system at their house (they live 5 hours away from us).

• My dad precut the plywood and brought it down.  It only needed a minor adjustment for our bed.  He then attached the 1x4 to the back of the plywood (for added support) and bolted it to the bed frame (it’s really good and sturdy).

• I took the headboard off the bed, laid it on the floor and glued the foam to the OSB.  I let it dry for about ½ an hour.

• I then smoothed the batting over the foam and attached it securely with a staple gun all the way around the back.

• Then I did the same with the fabric.  It’s best to have two people for this step.  I smoothed and stretched and held the fabric while Ian stapled.  You could probably do it alone, but it would be hard to get the tension even.

• The corners were the only tricky thing – I tried a couple of different ways, but took them out because they looked weird.  I just kept fooling around with them until they were somewhat smooth.  I really enjoyed working with the staple gun (as opposed to sewing) because it was so easy to fasten (and unfasten) things.

• Then I re-bolted it to the bed and voila – a beautiful new headboard!

 

notes for future reference:

• I got my dad to cut the headboard 2” wider than my mattress.  I thought it might be a little wide, but it looks really good.  My blankets stick out kind of far from my bed, so it seems to be a good size

• My dad has warned me about the OSB plywood.  YOU CAN’T GET IT WET!!  It totally soaks up the water, splits and falls apart.  I don’t think this will be an issue with my headboard, but if you think you might get yours wet (not just damp, but really wet), go for real plywood instead.

• I like the fabric that I used.  It’s rich and warm.  BUT, I can see that I might get tired of it after a while.  No problem.  It would be really straight forward to sew a slip cover for it.  I think I will make a summer slip cover with a light, pretty fabric and use the suede for the winter.  I’m excited about the possibilities.

 

final verdict:

• I’m basically happy with the finished product, although I think it needs some detail.  I’m thinking about tufting it with buttons or adding some upholstery tacks or cording…

• I would like to paint our room and get new bedding.  The look I’m going for is cozy, comfortable and inviting.  I like the plaid bedding, but we’ve had it for several years, and I think we need a change.  I’m thinking of sewing a duvet cover and window treatments.  Oh boy, my to-do list is getting longer and longer by the minute!