Upholstered Headboard Project

Here is the result of my first attempt at making an upholstered headboard.

I did some research on line to get an idea of a size I would want and the general instructions. I went to Home Depot and purchased a sheet of 1/4" plywood. They also offer a cutting service so I was able to get them to cut it to the size I needed. You have to purchase the whole sheet and I took the rest home for possible use on something else. This project was fun so you never know what I might try next.

The next step I did was mark where I wanted the buttons and drilled the holes for them.

I purchased the batting, fabric and buttons from Hancocks. The lady at Hancock's recommended upholstery batting. I bought enough batting to have 3 layers on the headboard. I wanted it padded well.

After getting the batting in place, I wrapped it around the back and stapled it to the plywood. After I stapled it on, I turned it over to the right side to make sure it was smooth.

I then cut the fabric leaving 6-8" all around to overlap the batting. I folded the edges under about an inch and stapled one side. Before stapling the other side, I made sure the fabric was pulled tight and evenly placed. I then stapled the rest. For the corners, I pleated and folded so that the edges were smooth before stapling.

I covered 1" buttons with the fabric. I used a long needle with a large eye for ease in getting through the layers of batting and the holes . I considered using fishing twine or something similar but didn't have any at home so opted for the embroidery thread (all 6 strands) to attach the buttons. I wasn't sure how to keep the buttons in place so I put a staple near the hole on the back and wrapped the thread around it. I stapled it so that their was room under the staple to put the needle through. To make it look tufted, I pushed on the button in while tightening the thread on the back.

Here is the finished product.

Instead of attaching it to my bed, I used "hercules hooks" to hang it on the wall. Hercules hooks are great for sheetrock. They hold up to 150lbs, make small holes in the sheetrock and you can put them through without any tools. I ordered them off QVC when I first moved into my house about a year ago and have used them for everything I've had to hang.

Here is a closer view. I'm not sure what I'm going to put over the bed - possibly something metal. For one of the other walls I plan to frame some of my flower pictures. I am also planning to make colored pillows to match the flower pictures to put on the bed.

The cost for the headboard was approximately $64

Plywood $18

Batting, Fabric $38

Buttons $8