DIY Project #1 - Headboard

I love "DIY" (Do It Yourself) Projects. I love eveything about them....they are personalized, less expensive, and just fun to make! I love the entire process of brainstorming, gathering ideas from crafty friends and HGTV (of course!), and going to the store  to figure out how I am going to actually attempt to create this "perfect" idea that I have in my mind. 

Now, it is very important to keep in mind that sometimes my DIY projects turn out wonderful and I love everything about them......and sometimes they turn out not so wonderful. In fact, sometimes they end up being just a waste of money. Haha. BUT, that is the beauty of DIY projects, right? -- It's all about being creative and having fun!


So, last week I set out to make a fabric covered headboard for our queen sized bed! I've been wanting to make our bedroom more of a cohesive room that "fits" together.  So, this is my first step!

This is what our room looked like before....

So, I went to Lowe's and purchased a LARGE piece of plywood.  At Lowe's, they only sell plywood in sheets of 4x8 feet. So, since my little SUV isn't that big & I wanted the headboard to be a smaller size, I had the nice Lowe's guy cut it to be 4x6 feet. 

Then, I went to the fabric store and picked out some fabric.  This is the fun part!  There are so many options of fabric, it was a hard choice....I was probably in the store for 45 minutes trying to make up my mind. Ha! Decisions, decisions... I also purchased some white batting to cover the plywood before the fabric went on.  However, the batting I chose wasn't thick enough and I ended up having to make a second trip to JoAnn's to purcahase something thicker.  The second trip, I decided to get 1/2" foam. This did the trick. 

I realized very quickly how much the fabric and foam can add up.  (This was the bulk of the cost for this project!) But, since I went on Memorial Day, JoAnn's was having a big sale...so I got it all for 50% off! Yay for discounts!

I used a staple gun to fasten the foam and fabric on the back of the plywood:

Now, it's time for the details! I wanted to add buttons on the front, so I used a power drill to make several holes from the back of the headboard.  My handy husband did the math and helped me measure the distance between each hole for the buttons. Once I drilled the holes, I used a needle and brown thread to sew on some buttons.  Here are a few pictures up close:

I love how the button is pulled tightly and you are able to see the definition of the foam and fabric. The tricky part was making sure the thread was tightly fastened on the back side. After trying many different solutions of my own, my wonderful husband came up with a perfect solution to keep the thread pulled tight and fastened on the back of the headboard..... I put a staple over the hole, and tied the thread to the staple:

I did the same thing for all the button holes.  Finally, I was finished! I love the way it looks...

 Here is an "after" picture of our bedroom once the fabric headboard was completed:

This DIY project turned out just how I wanted it. Success! I love our beautiful room.  It's simple, classy and calming.  (It also helps that Kyle hung the curtains in the room for me....thanks, babe! He is so great to support my far-out ideas for projects.  And, he frequently offers a helping hand!) I'm already brainstorming for my next project.....see that chest of drawers on the left? I'm going to do refinish it one day. One day... :)


That's all for now! I'll probably post some pictures of our new home later on today for my Mom and Mom-in-law to see! We have little by little transformed our tiny apartment into a cozy home! Thanks to my Mom, my brother, Randall, and our dear friends Travis & Lindsay Cooper for helping us move 2 weeks ago! It was a hot and humid day, and we have WAY MORE stuff than I even realized, but with the help of these wonderful selfless people-- we made it happen!


Blessings!

Bethany