The other day a friend asked me what I could recommend to restore or change the headboard of the bed. Thinking about ideas, I remembered a DIY that I saw a long time ago at FVM with Kelly Souza and that used recycled cardboard to make a low cost bed head
This idea is similar to the one I showed you a few weeks ago to hide computer cables. In this particular case, it seems that the author of this DIY project had a piece of fabric with a lattice pattern, but not big enough to cover the entire width of the bed. To solve this problem she came up with the idea of make the header by overlapping two pieces of cardboard, each lined with a different fabric. In this creative way, not only has it solved the problem, but it has also managed to create a very decorative effect of a headboard with a frame.
Materials
These are the materials you used To make this low cost DIY headboard:
– Two rectangles of paperboard one meter high and about 5/10 centimeters wider than the bed. To get a cardboard of the right size, you can go, for example, to stores that sell large appliances or mattresses, since they always have large boxes to pack.
– Cloth for the upper part of the headboard (in this case with lattice pattern).
– Cloth for the back of the headboard (in this case a hessian fabric that he found on sale).
– Glue for crafts or carpenter’s glue.
– spray glue.
– Wadding or interlining gross.
– adhesive strips to hang pictures.
Step by step to make a low cost headboard
The Steps that were given to make this DIY project were the following:
1º.- The first place must select or devise a design and transfer it to the cardboard. In this case, a triangular shape with stair-shaped sides was chosen. To draw and cut it, a ruler was used for straight lines and a plate for curved shapes. To cut the cardboard, we should use a cutter and guide ourselves with the ruler or plate.
On the other hand, the author recommends starting with the smaller of the two pieces of cardboard.
2º.- For the largest piece of cardboard we will be guided by the smallest piece of cardboard, leaving a few centimeters of margin so that the difference in size between the two is noticeable when they are superimposed.
3º.- To cover the cardboard with fabric, start with the largest piece of cardboard. For this you have to cut the wadding or interfacing a couple of centimeters larger than the cardboard silhouette.
The wadding or interfacing will be fixed to the cardboard with spray glue.
4º.- The next step will consist of pin the fabric to the battingfor this the same steps that have been given in point 3 are repeated.
It is convenient that the fabric is without wrinkles and well stretched before gluing it to the wadding, iron it if necessary.
5º.- Do small diagonal cuts on the excess of the fabric so that when it is folded it adjusts to the shape of the headboard when we line the cardboard edge.
6th.- In the curved areas, several cuts will be made in the fabric to accommodate it when folded over the cardboard.
7º.- Once all the necessary cuts have been made so that the fabric adapts to the design of the headboard, fold it and fix it to the back of the cardboard with glue.
The same steps that have been done to cover the large cardboard must be repeated to cover the small cardboard.
8º.- Before joining the two sheets of cardboard already covered with fabric, wait until the adhesive that we have used to cover the edges is completely dry.
The two panels can be joined with craft glue or carpenter’s glue (personally I prefer this last option because it improves the resistance of the cardboard). Finally, we should place something heavy on top of the head while the glue dries (for example, some books).
9º.-Finally, with adhesive strips for pictures the headboard is fixed to the wall and we have it finished.
What do you think of this DIY idea to make a low cost headboard with recycled cardboard? Of course, it cannot be denied that it is not a decorative, simple and economical solution to put a headboard on the bed. Do you dare to do it?
If you liked this post, I would appreciate it if you shared it on your social networks 😉
Images: FVM with Kelly Souza
