Yesterday I showed you Mia’s room  and the beautiful stenciled walls using Cutting Edge’s Charlotte Allover stencil.  Today I want to show you how we do crazy things without plans around here.  Yes, crazy!! Because I repurpose and reuse just about everything around here-decorating is no exception.  Her room colors were chosen by paint I already had {admittedly I love them too}, but while we are pulling up carpet and deciding what to do next in the middle of Christmas and an ice storm… I chose to take her iron daybed that we had {again reused} from my older daughter and retire it… it creaked with every movement and was just… well- done.  I had this marvelous idea {as all of them are} because I have a garage full of headboards… “daybed made from headboards… you know hunny, like they make the benches from headboards only it will be Mia’s bed”… Perfect idea… but NO plans to build it off of but what’s sitting in my head.  Oh my husband loves me… and I him… but man it was a doozy of a time!! And we did have one epic fail and one little tizzy fit I might or might not have thrown because he just didn’t have my vision… I mean really I could learn to draw better or say what I have in my head better but I didn’t… sigh…  You will always get the how it didn’t work around here.. that’s what builds character and knowledge!!

So here’s the picture journey for you… It’s 3 headboards.  One French provincial king headboard in it’s entirety makes the back.  One full size {Davis cabinet company- had small heart attack when I cut it up} made the sides, the two tall posts are from a French provincial footboard that was broken- so victory in saving it for such a time as this!! We are no strangers to building things… so I marched on so confidently that this would be fast and easy.  I mean we built my son’s bunk beds and queen platform bed- I’ve never shown you I realize… but we did.  And we built that awesome trestle table.. how hard could a daybed be?? difficult when one plan doesn’t match other plan and you have a bit of two control freaks not sure of other word to use.. 🙂

 

Anyway, we will start with epic fail… we thought {I will say we to include us both- but this isn’t “me” in the we} we could use the exiting platform from the iron bed to attach to new daybed made from headboard to create an entire structure that wouldn’t fall for our little princess… the two posts that it was screwed to fell… didn’t work to much torque. Below you can see it was just attached to the metal frame and we are building the new platform…  you will also see that said little helper painted up the floor, her toes and part of the post on her bed…

 

 

So now WE were headed in the right direction.  Platform… just like K’s and not attached to bed so it doesn’t over time make any noises… please.  Why yes.  It also meant that the headboards didn’t have to provide any structural support… and later when I want to turn this into more of a big bed for her we just have to build a new platform without taking the headboards apart!! Victory!! {for building purposes- we attached the cut in half solid thick headboard to the king headboard using screws through the back in 3 places.  We attached screw in legs from home depot to the 4 legs.- if this piece was bearing any weight other than itself… you would need to do more bracing than we did}

We always used a flip down safety rail- I wanted something more permanent so we started with that.  D attached to boards with brackets and I batted and quilted it.  During this my beloved stapler went out… I was so sad

 

 

 

And we recruited a little extra help…

And we were on our way… I painted out the entire bed in APC Navajo White and clear waxed.  I added in some Maison Blanche light brown wax to highlight the details and add some aging to it.  I don’t want it to look knew but don’t want it to be distressed… It will do that naturally over time.  The Navajo white it the perfect vintage white color.  And covered perfectly with one full coat and then a little touch up here and there.  I love this paint!! So rich and creamy!! Below you can see I have the left with a little darker wax…

 

 

Now we have a stable structure to make pretty!!  The platform itself has 6 legs constructed from 2 x 4’s and the posts are screwed into the front of the platform to give it the front legs- and keep it from tipping forward.} That meant batting the platform and adding in a bedskirt… I bought a full size bedskirt from Target and the batting is from Hobby Lobby that comes in a big roll.  I had bought a new upholster gun from Amazon because my old one died and I love it!! {Porter and Cable 22 guage }  Thank you Miss Mustard Seed for your timely post on your favorite gun… as mine had died just days before!!

 

 

And you can see we went from decking to underlayment to bead board… it was exciting.. But here are the beauty shots of the bed.  It got rose trim that I also got at Hobby Lobby- took 4 yards and only $13.27 because of coupon… yay.  And I had touches of Modern Masters Oyster on the bed… I was stenciling the floor and loved the shimmer and decided to add it to the bed!! I am so glad I did.  It is absolute the touch I didn’t know it needed!!

 

 

 

 

 

And because I love you… I am going to share with you how my room started… See little miss mia loves to wake up early and empty all the drawers she can… And a sweet little hutch that was in her room will not be making the journey back in as it’s contents seemed to only make it to the floor in a much disastrous way…

 

And now…. it’s done.. but I have a little of small things to really finish it off… paint door knobs, caulk shoe molding, finish the canopy above her bed, choose new curtains…. those sorts of things that will happen over time.

So there you have it.. collect up those beds friends… because they’ll be the prettiest daybed made from headboards!!

 

So much better!! Thank you so much for coming back… Tomorrow I will be sharing some quick ideas Christmas gifts!! So please come back!!