Converting a Box Spring into a Platform Bed

When I was thinking about all the different kinds of beds I could make for E.  My main goal was to reuse as much as possible.  I already have 3 bed frames in my garage and I did not want anymore.  I had this vision of reusing the box spring. I figured reupholstering it and adding legs could turn it into a platform bed.  This is how it turned out. 

 

I can't say how much I love this bed.  I've made every bed in my home and I think this is my all time favorite.  This bed was a pure calibration between E. and I and that made it super special.

I started out shopping for fabric.  These were our top three choices.  I like the top right one the most, but we only 3.5 yards, I didn't think we had enough so we went with the bottom gray.

Here's E.'s box spring.  I removed the corner plastic protectors for a clean finish.

 

Next, I wrapped the fabric all around the box spring because I did not want a single seam.

I cut the fabric 4-5 inches from the edge.

 

I pinned and stitched the corners together.

 

I originally planned to sew the fabric right to the box spring.  However, after a few stitches and some throbbing fingers, I decided this plan was definitely a no go.  I searched through my fabric remnants and found a piece that was nearly the exact size of the box spring so I decided to sew that piece of fabric together with my gray fabric.

After sewing all around, I flipped the right side out.

 

I laid it over the box spring and stapled it into place.

Next, it was time to pick out some legs.  Traditional?

Nope.  How about this?

Nope.  How about mid century?

Yes!  However, they were too tiny in diameter to support my bed.  So I ordered these babies.

These are 6 inch mid century legs.  I love them, but since they were a little pricey, I didn't purchase them for 3 weeks.  Now it was time to attach them to the bed.  I used these furniture leg plates I found at the hardware store.

In the midst of the 3 week wait, I decided to change the fabric on the box spring again.  I went with my first choice (the fabric that I only had 3.5 yards of).  I made it work with a seam on each side of the box spring.  I know I didn't want a seam, but I loved the fabric too much.  I barely notice the seam so I'm happy with the choice.

Just love the linen look.

Back to the bed legs.  I cut the fabric where the screws were going to be and then predrilled some holes.  I then screwed the plate in place.  Easy peesy. 

 

Next, I attached the legs.  I already love it.

 

I decided to buy some glides for the bottom of the leg so that it would protect the wood at the same time allowing me to push the bed into place.

 

I love the addition.

I added some supports to the center of the box spring as well.  Since I didn't have enough wood to attach the leg plate, I added a scrap piece of wood.

Here are all the leg placements.  The center legs are different because I didn't want to splurge on mid century legs that wouldn't be seen.  Instead I got the cheapest 6 inch legs I could find. 

After flipping the box spring over, I get my semi-mid century bed.

I would have been happy to stop there even though I had originally planned to put nailhead trim on the box spring.  I showed E. his bed and he said, "I love it..but I think it would nice if it had the same trim as the head board."  I guess he was thinking of the exact same thing I was.

Therefore, I hammered the trim into place.

 

We started with this setup when E. moved into his new room last month.  A mattress sitting on a box spring which sat on the floor.

 

A little inspiration and a lot of research gave us this:

E.'s reaction was, "this is SOOO awesome Mom.  I love it."  I love it too!  I love every bit of it.

Here's he run down of converting the box spring into a bed:
Fabric - $2.25
Bed Legs - $42.91
Furniture Leg Plates - $14.18

Total cost - $59.24

I also made the head board.  You can find the tutorial here.  The final total cost of the complete bed is $122.17.  That's a little more than what I anticipated on spending, but I find the areas that I did splurge (nail head and bed legs) to be completely worth it because in the end, there is nothing I would change about the bed because I simply love it.

Here's where I bought everything:
Nailhead trim direct from the manufacturer.  I bought the #5 French Natural Nailhead Trim.  You can also get this.
6 inch tapered Mid Century Furniture Legs were bought here or some look alikes here.
Square Furniture Legs for the center of the bed and Leg Plates were bought here.
All the bedding was bought from Target except for the grey quilt which is West Elm's Frayed Edge Quilt.  The striped shams were taken from a duvet set which I converted into the striped curtains you see.  Tutorial for that can be read here.  The green pillows, throw and rug were also purchased from Target.

Bed is done, now we need some artwork on the wall.  Once we tackle that, we will face the other side of the bedroom.  I can't wait!  The room is slowly coming together.

Nailhead Trimmed and Tufted Headboard

I'm working on E.'s new room and the first thing that popped into my head was a gray upholstered headboard.  I wanted a linen type fabric and I wanted it tufted.  On top of that, I wanted a nail head trim.  A lot of I wants, right?  I started with this headboard and I ended up with what you see.  I love how it turned out.

 

This is how I made it.  I stripped the fabric off the old headboard so that I could reuse the wood.  I recalculated the tufting spaces and drilled holes where I wanted the buttons to be.  I wanted rows of alternating 6 and 7 buttons with a total of 4 rows.  It was time to do some math because I wanted the spacing perfect.

 

Once that was done, I cut a piece of 2x2 to trim the headboard which is 62w x 60h.  

The distance of the legs from floor to the bottom of the headboard should be the height of the top of your bed or smaller so there will be no gap.

I stripped a piece of scrap wood to place behind each leg so that it will be completely flush with the back of the head board.

 

Next, I added 2 inch foam in the center of the headboard and then added a couple of layers of batting on top of that.

 

Next came the tufting tools that I used.

 

I bought 2 packages of these button covers.

 

I also bought waxed button thread.  At $4.99, I'm not sure this would be worth it.  The wax did keep the thread from moving back through, but it was a bit pricey.  Fortunately, I only had to pay $2.70 with my coupon :)

 

What I do find completely worth it was this double pointed needle.  I had lost my tufting needle so I needed a replacement and I decided to try this one.  I used my 50% off coupon to bring the price down to $4.99.  However, with all the time it saved me, I would have gladly paid 3 times the price and that is saying a lot.

 

Covering the buttons was a cinch.  Cut the fabric to the size of the template.  Place it in the white well and then place the front of the button on top. 

 

Use the blue plastic push to insert the front of the button down into the fabric.  Tuck all the lose ends of the fabric into the well.

 

Next add the back of the button and push into place again.

  

Pop the button out of the well.

 

Repeat until you have all your buttons.

 

I normally would have the headboard standing up and have a helper, but I didn't have anyone so I had to be a little creative.  I propped the head board on the edge of the bed and lifted the other ends with some ottomans.  I would crawl under to thread the needle through the holes.

 

Insert the double sided needle through the hole with the thread.  Un-thread the needle and insert thread through the button.  Re-thread the needle and pull through.  Here is where the double sided needle comes in handy.  If you do not have one of those, you will have to pull the needed out completely and then poke it back through.  You think that is easy, but it takes a lot of time and patience to find the tiny hole you created in the head board.  Therefore, this double-sided needle saved me hours of trying to find the tufting holes.

 

I could not do anymore by myself so I had to beg for some help (well I bribed one with a hershey kiss).  I got my sons to push the button down as far as possible while I laid underneath the head board and pulled the thread tight.  This was the only way to get it super tight.

     

Underneath the bed, I stapled the thread in place.  I normally use a washer or a button, but I didn't have any and didn't want to go out and get some.  I will have to say using a washer is SO much easier than stapling especially when you are working on your own.

 

26 buttons later and I'm finally done!

Now it is time to staple the edges down.  I started in the center and worked my way to the edge until I was done.

 

For the legs?  I cut a separate piece of fabric for the bottom.  I folded the top and bottom edges and then stapled from behind.

 

The front looks like this.

 

The verdict?  I love it!

 

I had to wait a week to get my nail head trim I ordered.  I didn't like the nail head trim in the store because the heads did not match the trim so when you hammered the nail heads into the trim, it looked too different for my liking.  I found some nail heads online that I loved, but everyone was selling it for too much.  Add shipping costs and it was causing me to rethink my plans.  I emailed the company that made the nail head trim I wanted directly and they said they would sell it to me!!!  I was so ecstatic.  I had to still pay an arm and a leg for the shipping, but I got three times the amount of product for less than any other online retailer. Score for me!

I was so giddy when it arrived. It was super easy.  I laid the trim where I wanted it.

 

Then I used the nail heads and hammered into place.  I didn't want to pay for a nylon tip hammer so I just placed a sock over my regular hammer to protect the nail heads.  It worked perfectly!

Finally, I got my new headboard for E who absolutely loves it!

 

Can I say I love it too?  I'm a bit jealous myself.  I may have to make me one :)

It's my first experience with nail heads and I couldn't be happier with the experience and the result.

Perfect bed for the perfect kid.

Here's the breakdown of my costs

Fabric $2.25 (can't beat $1.50 a yard now can you?)
Button Cover Kits $9.99
Double Sided Needle $4.99
Waxed Thread $2.70
Nail head Trim $43 (my splurge - $25 for the nail heads, $18 for shipping)

Total cost for this project was $62.93.  That's a little pricey I know, but the bulk costs came from the nail heads which were technically bought for another project as well so to me it was worth it.  If I split the costs of the nail head trim between the two projects, this one totals $41.43.  I'm okay with that because I love love the bed head board.  Speaking of which, I have a new head board so now I need a new bed, right?  That's for another post!