Wednesday, June 5, 2013

The Handbuilt Bedroom, pt. 4: The Bed!

Time to get back to the Handbuilt Bedroom again, don’t you think?  With the chest of drawers built so his clothes were off the floor, it was time to tackle the bed so the boy could get off the floor! 

Red Hen Home Handbuilt Bedroom Bed 15

I used Ana White’s plans for the Farmhouse Storage Bed, with only a few modifications.  For one, I used a plank-style headboard more like the plans available in her book, The Handbuilt Home, rather than the on-line version.  It’s measurements are slightly different, but not enough to worry about. 

I was able to put the head- and foot-board together in a morning, and then I snapped a cell phone picture and sent it to all my friends!

Red Hen Home Handbuilt Bedroom Bed 1

I recruited my son to help with the “distressing.”  When you turn a hammer, screwdriver, and a chain over to your teenager with permission to beat up a newly-built piece of furniture—you enjoy a “cool mom” moment!

Red Hen Home Handbuilt Bedroom Bed 2

I’m not sure why I don’t have a better picture of the drawer boxes.  This is the part of the bed that gets expensive, as you have to use 3/4” plywood, and it ain’t cheap!  But for my son’s tiny room, I knew we’d need all the storage we could get.

I did choose to use iron-on edge banding for the exposed plywood edges.  None of the plans mentioned this, but it’s an inexpensive way to get a much more finished look, I think (bottom left box has the veneer; top right does not).

Red Hen Home Handbuilt Bedroom Bed 5

I used a mix of Minwax Antique Walnut and Weathered Oak stain, same as I’ve used on several tables

Red Hen Home Handbuilt Bedroom Bed 4

Since I sold my table, the dining room makes a convenient finishing spot!

Red Hen Home Handbuilt Bedroom Bed 6

The day of “bed assembly” was an absolute madhouse around here—it was good to have a project to escape to!

Here you can see one of the drawer boxes on it’s side.  Now I’ve added a long rail and two extra legs for mattress support.

Red Hen Home Handbuilt Bedroom Bed 9

There’s a lot of “extra” space in between the drawer boxes, and I couldn’t stand the thought of not being able to access it.  I’ve seen some really cool alterations for this bed that either included deeper drawers or a hinged footboard.  Deeper drawers weren’t an option, as you never would have been able to pull them out in his room, plus extra plywood gets pricey!  And I didn’t feel adequate to the whole “hinged footboard” idea.

Red Hen Home Handbuilt Bedroom Bed 10

So what I chose to do instead was to make the mattress slats “removable.” 

Red Hen Home Handbuilt Bedroom Bed 12

See?  I made three separate panels of slats, and they rest on a 2x2 rail screwed into the backs of the plywood boxes.

Red Hen Home Handbuilt Bedroom Bed 13

It makes a good space to store things like sleeping bags or off-season clothes.

Red Hen Home Handbuilt Bedroom Bed 11

It was fun to get out the new bedding and make up the bed—word to the wise, though—DO NOT buy IKEA sheets  for a non-IKEA bed!  They don’t fit, darn it!

Red Hen Home Handbuilt Bedroom Bed 14

If you look at the next picture, you’ll see that there are no drawers yet!  That will be our next installment  Winking smile

Red Hen Home Handbuilt Bedroom Bed 16

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17 comments:

Twice Nice said...

Wow! That is so, so cool! I really like the removable slat idea. Such great extra storage for the seasonal and rarely used items. I am so impressed with your rad skills!!

Yvonne @ StoneGable said...

Korrie, What a great project! Looks better and more sturdy than a store bought bed! LOVE the finish! Kudos to you!

Piera said...

Caspita! Grande impresa grande lavoro..Complimenti è bellissimooo!

My Repurposed Life said...

great job! how clever to do the bed slats in groups like that. I was thinking to myself, aren't they always removable? but in groups... pure genius Korrie! :)
gail

CreativaCale said...

Svaka cast.Krevet je odlicno uradjen.Ne znam samo zasto ste stavili letvice u sredini a niste stavili drvenu plocu celu?Pozdrav:))

Hetty said...

Great bed frame Korrie, and I will really try that Minwax mix you mentioned in your post. That looks really good!

Unknown said...

Like I have been saying....so impressive. Love how this turned out.

Sharon @ Elizabeth & Co. said...

That's an awesome bed! And storage too - even better! I can't even tell you how impressed I am by your furniture building skills!

Full Circle Creations said...

You've done a great job on it! I can't wait to see the drawers! And the space under the mattress is great! You've become quite the builder!

Cassie Bustamante said...

it looks amazing! LOVE the finish on it!

SImple and Serene Living said...

You never fail to amaze me, my friend, xo Laura

Kathy @ Creative Home Expressions said...

The bed looks great, Korrie! I love the slat idea to get to the middle storage. I've used the iron-on banding myself for the edges of shelves at our old house. It definitely gives a nice finished look. Too bad about the sheets. I just bought Queen sheets from Ikea for our guest room and they fit fine {not an Ikea bed}. I wouldn't buy them for our pillow top mattress in the master though. I need deep pocket sheets for that one.

Miss Charming said...

I've been loving your room reveal posts. And the bed looks great! You did such a wonderful job on it. Especially with the secret storage compartment!

ANNE said...

gorgeous and I love love love that stain colour!! Thanks for sharing the mix!

Sanditerese said...

Love the way it turned out! We're planning on building the same bed for my daughter so I hope it looks just as good!

Unknown said...

On your post about making a Farmhouse Table, you refer to using this same stain mixture. Then you talk about finishing it by "I gave everything three coats of Minwax Hand-rubbed Polyurethane, followed by one coat of Minwax Dark Wax." Did you do the same thing for this bed frame, or simply stain it? Thank you!!

Teacher Megan said...

I love this bed and am planning to make my own in a few weeks. Just a quick question, are you using both a mattress and box spring in the final picture? I'm going to have both and want to make sure it will look good and fit well.