True Value Blog Squad Challange - A Bed Fit for a King! Part 1

So....we have been working on a new bed now for a while. When we took on the  DIY Blog Squad and the challenge to create new and exciting DIY projects, we committed to challenge ourselves - and we sure did with this one! The bed has been an exciting challenge to say the least! We started off looking to buy a bed, and couldn't find exactly what we wanted. After much research and inspecting the hundreds of beds we went to look at, Joey announced "I can build this!"......and the mission began!

After drafting up some plans, we headed over to the True Value Lumber Yard in the Bronx and picked up some wood. It was a bit intimidating coming home with just a few pieces of wood and thinking we could whip it up into an actual bed. A bed we would sleep in that wouldn't come crashing to the floor in the middle of the night!

You can see from the photos how intimidating this was! But we measured a thousand times, and were convinced we can make magic!. The first step we took was creating the bedframe. The actual piece which would hold the boxspring and mattress. All of the details we will walk through are that of a king size bed.

Here is what we did, how we did it and what it cost:

80"X83" is the frame of the box spring: 2"X12" (at about 8 feet long) wood is what we purchased 1 piece for the foot of the bed and 2 piece for the sides.

For stability of the boxspring we bought 2"X4" at about 8 feet long to frame the inside of the 2"X12" then laid the 1"X4" over the 2"X"4 like this:

Even though this part is the part no one will see, it is super important to built this nice and sturdy! We used wood screws to attached everything with a drill. At this point make triangle supports - but do NOT attach them yet. Right now we are just laying out, measuring, and using screws to assemble to ensure perfection. Here is what you want to accomplish at this point:

The 2"X12" wood will show when we are done, but not how you see it here. We decided to upholster the bed and headboard. At this point we are focusing on the stability of the bedframe. Is it secure?

So there you go! Step numbro uno! Now the wood looks like something! Next step is to buy the wood for the headboard. We purchased two 8ft X 4ft (3/4 inch thick) plywood. Now is a good time to pick out the fabric you are going to use to upholster the bed along with a nice thick foam and batting. Also pick up some spray glue and upholstery grade thread and needles.

So once again, your True Value Shopping list is:

2"X12" wood X 3 at about 8 ft long (you will have to cut)

2"X4" wood  X 3 at about 8 ft long (you won't need all of it, you will have to cut to size of the 2"X12")

1"X4" wood bundle of 8 8 ft long (we didn't use them all)

Wood Screws 1 Box of each:  2 1/2 in and 1 1/12 in

2 8ft X 4ft (3/4 inch thick) plywood

We also suggest: tape measurer, level, thick pencils and sharpies to mark wood

Lets get legal: We were one of the 10 bloggers True Value has chosen to work on The Blog Squad , and we are way excited to take on the challenge of showing you exciting DIY projects.  They have compensated us for our time and writing, and provided materials for the projects we have worked on. However, our opinions are entirely our own and we have not been paid to publish positive comments. Did we mention we are excited to show you our DIY Blog Squad Projects?

Comments

[Margaret]

Hi, The bed looks good! What was the final cost?

[Joey and Lana Make a House a Home]

@ Margaret The whole bed ( wood, fabric, hardware) cost about $250 in wood, $50 in hardware, and about $100 in fabric. Not bad considering we were thinking about paying $ 3,000+!!! final post coming this week!