As someone who can never settle for something without flair, I knew I just had to take on this project myself. Afterall, I’m always up for a little DIY project! I take an embarrassing amount of joy in being able to respond to the question “Where’d you get that?” with, “I made it myself!”
I started with a piece of MDF bought from Lowe’s. I had them cut it in the store into a 3′x5′ square, the perfect size for a Queen bed.
Then I used a compass tool to draw out notches in the top corner. You can get pretty fancy here with shapes. I decided to do something eye catching yet still simple because I know I’m going to have a lot of color and pattern in the room so keeping the shape more basic is the way to go.
Then my husband cut out the shape with a jigsaw and I sanded down the rough edges.
I bought 2″ thick foam from Joann’s to cover it. You can go with different thicknesses depending on your preference though. One sheet of foam is only 2 feet so I had to use one sheet plus another cut in half. The foam is hard to cut but you can do it!
Just wrap it around the back and staple down tight. If you have rounded parts like I did on the corners you just make little pleats going around the curve. Put the staples close together and trim off the excess and you’re good! If it doesn’t look perfect don’t worry, you’re going to cover it with two more layers anyways!
Then I wrapped the whole thing in cheap muslin fabric just to make sure it was smooth underneath my fabric. You can use any fabric you have laying around to save dough. If you’re using an thinner foam I recommend using batting for this layer though.
Now grab your fabric and lay it face down with the headboard on top. I wanted to save my fabric to use for a different project later (because I’m always changing my decor!). So I used straight pins to attach it but if you’re going the more permanent route use your staple gun.
I didn’t put legs on mine so I attached it to my wall at the height I wanted using a french cleat, which you can purchase at any hardware store.
The bottom side attaches to your wall and the top side to your headboard and they hook onto each other like so.
And voila! A custom headboard!
Photo by Sarah Greenman
Psst: you can get the bench at the end of my bed here from Wisteria!
I used a vintage one of a kind Kantha Cloth purchased from our Wisteria Store here in Dallas. I just love the eclectic vibe they give to a room!
If a DIY seems a little daunting you can always buy one from Wisteria!
