Monday, February 4, 2013

DIY Barn Door Headboard

I’ve been drooling over barn door headboards for years now and finally found the perfect one! 

Simple to make, fit the budget, and most importantly, a willing father to help! My dad came into town for the holidays and we busted this thing out in probably a total of 8 hours all together. It was insane. And the price… that’s the best part. The grand total was under $200!





This was my inspiration for the headboard. I saw it on Pinterest months ago and loved its simplicity…



Unfortunately it didn’t link back to any of the correct places and I couldn’t find a tutorial, so it was kind of made up as we went :) . So here it goes…
DIY Barn Door Headboard

Supplies:

Wood (1x6 8ft) $5.32 each at Home Depot 22 pieces
Miter Saw
Drill
Hammer
Pipe Clamps
Wood Glue
Screws
Stain
Degreaser
Measuring Tape
Pen


Ok, take a deep breath before you get started. It seems like a lot with too many supplies, but it's actually pretty easy!

I wanted my headboard 7ft tall (perfect for my ceiling height and still able to fit through standard doors and awkward hallways easily) so start out by deciding how big you want it. Keep in mind the sizing I used is based on a king bed. Cut your vertical pieces of wood to the height you want.
 Each barn door will be created separately. First, put together 8 of your vertical boards UPSIDE DOWN and tighten with pipe clamps. Measure the boards across and cut a  horizontal piece to fit.

Put wood glue on the back of the board to help secure it better.

Place the board underneath and use a hammer to secure it and make sure it’s even. Then screw in the board, using 2 screws per vertical board. (Sorry, no screws shown here yet. Keep reading for a visual of the back.)


Repeat these steps 3 more times. One at the bottom and two in between, measuring first to make sure they’re even.
Stand the barn door up and holding your top diagonal piece, measure it and use a pen to mark the cut. Repeat for the bottom diagonal piece.

Cover back with wood glue

Fit in place. If it doesn't quite fit perfectly you can shave off a little at a time with your saw.

While the door is still upright put a screw on each end (through the back) to secure the board in place. Then lay the entire door flat so you can drill the screws into the diagonal piece. Use a board as your guide so you don't drill your screw through the front.

This is what the back should look like with all the screws in place...

Repeat steps to complete the other side, making sure your diagonal pieces are opposite. When your doors are finished give them a quick sanding, then lift the doors up and smile :) !

I used a few scrap pieces of wood to test colors and ended up with a mixture of these stains: Rust-oleum "Sunbleached" and Minwax "Classic Gray". (Not 100% sure you're supposed to mix brands, but it worked, so I went with it! :) )

Brush stain on with a paintbrush and quickly wipe off. My stain (of course) took a lot darker on the actual barn door, so I used a wet rag to apply, then rubbed with a degreaser to remove some of the stain and give it that worn look. I ended up scrubbing quite a bit to get the look I wanted.

When you’re happy with the color, wait for it to dry then place your lights (optional). Drill a hole for the cord to come through the back and screw the lights into the board where you want them.
( I purchased these lights in the outdoor light section of Home Depot. They come without cords on them. All you have to do it purchase a separate cord- in the same section-, then cut 1/2 inch of the lights plastic covering over the wires and connect those wires to the cord wires. Wow, did that make any sense? )
To hang my headboard we screwed three small pieces of wood into the studs of my wall, then drilled three screws diagonally into the top of the headboard and straight through those pieces.
When it was finished one door was sticking out a little more than the other (which was fine by me!), but my dad decided it wasn’t good enough so he cut square, angled pieces to connect both doors.




  

I could not be happier with the results! I finally have the bedroom of my dreams and L.O.V.E walking into my room every single time! It’s fun, it’s different, and totally me!
If you have any questions about it I’d love to help! Send an email to littleyellowbarn@gmail.com .

35 comments:

  1. I LOVE this! So classic and yet personal to your taste. Awesome. Pinning :)

    Kari
    Newlyweds on a Budget

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  2. I'm so in love with this. Thanks for taking the time to make it into an awesome tutorial, too! So glad to have you partying with us this week! You're being featured on today's Tuesday Ten: http://www.ishouldbemoppingthefloor.com/2013/02/the-tuesday-ten.html

    Have a fabulous week!
    {HUGS},
    kristi

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  3. Really, really cute! Great job, I'm inspired and will be pinning this too! Little Bit from www.DecorateWithaLittleBit.com

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  4. This is gorgeous!!!! I wish I had an extra room to decorate just to make one!!!

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  5. Wow I never would have thought to DIY that. It looks fabulous!!

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  6. Beautiful! The stain color is perfect! Can you tell me what "degreaser" you used? Did you spray it on and then wipe the stain back, or how did you apply it? Thanks!

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    Replies
    1. Honestly I was out of my favorite degreaser (Citra Solv) so I used whatever I had! :) It was a citrus based degreaser though. I'd stick to more natural degreasers on this one, although I have used goof off to remove stain also! To apply it I dumped a little on a wet rag then rubbed it over the wood. At the end I completely soaked the rag in the degreaser and scrubbed it until I liked the color and left it like it was. Hope this helps! Let me know if not!! :)

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  7. Beautiful headboard (Cabeceira). Looks amazing in natural wooden look.

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  8. um....yes. this looks great, and how fabulous that it's diy!

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  9. Seriously, this is amazing! Pining for future reference.

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  10. beautiful! I would love to feature your headboard if that would be ok please let me know.
    lauren

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  11. Gorgeous - what a statement headboard!
    Kelly

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  12. Oh girl you knocked that one out of the park SUPER cute!!

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  13. THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR YOUR COMMENTS!!! Wow I've been so touched with all of your sweet remarks! Glad you like it :) Thanks again!

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  14. love the barn door, but I really love your bedding! Tell me about that! Did you sew it yourself or can you tell me where you found it?

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  15. This is beautiful! I was wondering, where did you get your bedding? I LOVE it!!! Please share.

    Thanks,
    Andrea

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    Replies
    1. Thank you! :) I love it too :) It's from Pottery Barn, here is the link if you'd like it ..... http://www.potterybarn.com/products/alessandra-duvet-cover-sham-porcelain-blue/?pkey=cpatterned-duvet-covers-shams

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  16. very very nice idea. I would never think of transforming a barn door into a headboard.

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  17. Ashley, what a fabulous tutorial. I shared it on my Facebook Page with a link to your website. LOVE IT!

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  18. Ahhh... Gorgeous! This looks amazing! Thanks for the price estimate and detailed photos. I love the look you created. What a great project. Stopping by from your feature on The Scoop.

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  19. Unfortunately, a king-sized bed won't fit my space. Do you think this would look "odd" in a double bed size (pretty narrow for barn doors; more like a shed :-)

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  20. I love this!! Thank you for sharing this!! Where did you get the reading lamps?? They fit perfectly into the theme!

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  21. THIS IS BEAUTIFUL I'M SURE WISH IHAD SEEN THIS B4 I BOUGHT A CRAPPY UN ORIGINAL BACKBOARD! BUT IT LOOKS PRETTY SIMPLE ENOUGH TO TRY TO GET A LITTLE HELP N TRY TO DO THIS I HOPE IT COMES OUT LOOKIN AS GOOD AS THIS ONE , I ABSOLUTELY AM IN LOVE WITH THIS, THANKS 4 UR HARD WORK N TUTERAL I CANT WAIT TO GET STARTED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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  22. I love this also -if you want to make it for a smaller bed just go ahead and make it wide enough to add a shelf at bedside table height so it is a headboard and bedside table together...saw this idea on TV home improvement show and it was really cute. When I saw it I thought-Oh that is such a great idea and I don't have to move the bedside table or chest every time I vacuum the carper under it...!!!

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  23. WOW! I seriously had to contemplate not showing this to my wife, because I know that she is going to drop everything, and make me help her do this this weekend.
    Why not get a shorter screw instead of using wood glue? I guess it really doesn't matter for this application.

    Thanks for sharing!

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  24. Did you include the lights in the cost? Was is $200 with or without the lights? Love the bed by the way! I'm hoping to get my hubby to build this soon! :)
    Thanks for sharing!
    tesia

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  25. Thank you for sharing such an informative post with all of us. Really inspired and I am planing to make barn doors using the same technique. Hope it comes out the way I want.

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  26. Thank you for sharing such an informative post with all of us. Really inspired and I am planing to make barn doors using the same technique. Hope it comes out the way I want.

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  27. where did you get your light fixtures?

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  28. I really appreciate your article. the post has excellent tips which are useful.Thanks for sharing this information.

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  29. Amazing job you're doing. Good work with the pipe clamps!

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  30. I really appreciate your article. the post has excellent tips which are useful.Thanks for sharing this information.
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