I have a confession to make. I have never liked my guest room headboard.
Until now…
Now I love it.
I lived with this wicker headboard for umpteen years.
I could live with the wicker, but I never really liked it. It was in the guest room, so I didn’t see it every day.
But when I was spring cleaning, I noticed that the wicker was only attached with screws and a plywood backing.
The wheels started turning…and before I knew it, I had removed the wicker insert.
I had fabric that I knew would work for an upholstered headboard insert, so I just needed plywood, batting, and foam. Oh, and spray paint for the frame.
I went to Lowe’s for supplies and had the plywood cut to size. *STOP THE STORY RIGHT HERE.*
If you learn nothing else from this post – although I hope you learn how to upholster a headboard, too, but if you learn nothing else – learn this: when you have a piece of wood cut at a hardware store, make sure you measure the cut piece before you leave the store. Make sure it’s actually cut to the right measurements.
Because I watched the guy measure the wood and then cut it, and I just assumed he was accurate.
He wasn’t. He cut it an eighth of an inch too big. And that’s a lot when you need the plywood for an insert.
Unfortunately, I didn’t notice this until I had already upholstered the board and tried to fit it into the headboard. Oops.
I ended up sanding the board down the eighth of an inch I needed and it fit perfectly. Whew. Lesson learned.
OK, back to our upholstering story…
To upholster the board, I first cut foam to the size of the board (I got the foam and batting at a local fabric store). I took the board outside, sprayed it with spray adhesive, and attached the foam.
Then I brought it in and laid out the fabric and batting so that the fabric was positioned how I wanted it:
Then I wrapped the batting and fabric around the board, and, pulling it tight, stapled it in place with a staple gun.
To make the corners neat, fold them the way you would when gift-wrapping a present.
And there it is.
For the frame, I spray painted it with Rustoleum Universal – Paint and Primer in One – in Satin Black.
Once the paint had dried completely, I attached the upholstered plywood to the frame with the original screws.
And now I love this headboard.
Thank you for stopping by!
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