After using our go-to technique to make a simple headboard for our son’s room last week, we had enough leftover materials to try the same idea in our daughter’s room—and we ended up with a free headboard for her. She helped choose the design and build it, so not only is it comfortable to lean against, she’s genuinely excited about the final look.
Before I explain how we made it, here’s a quick update on her room since we moved in. When we first toured the house it looked very different—see how it started when we first saw the place.
Like in our son’s room, we raised the ceiling to give the space more volume—there was an empty attic above and the roof already sloped that way, so no structural changes were required. We also replaced the popcorn ceiling with a plank-and-beam look. Our contractor handled this work while we were still in Virginia; we even shared progress photos during the renovation.
Now, a little over two months in, the room is mostly furnished with items we already owned. You might recognize the rug from our kids’ art room, the nightstands from the pink house, and the dresser and bedside lamps from her previous bedroom. We only bought a pendant light, window coverings, and a bed frame—everything else was repurposed.
We chose the new bed frame mainly for the generous under-bed storage: three sides of cubbies give us eight full bins for games, Legos, toys, and a library of books. It’s astonishing how much fits in there and it keeps the room tidy.
When we bought the house we were hesitant about an exterior door in a kids’ room—could it encourage teen sneaking out? We kept the door but added a secure deadbolt and a loud whole-house alarm that triggers if the door opens or is forced. An unexpected benefit: in the event of a fire, our kids on this side of the house can step directly outside. We might convert it to a window later for furniture layout options, but for now it feels safe and functional.
Now, back to the headboard. We floated the bed under the window, which left little room for a store-bought option. We’ve placed headboards in front of windows before, but this layout called for a different approach.
After making our son’s headboard, we had leftover fabric scraps—not large enough for a single-panel headboard but plenty to piece together. We decided to try a horizontal “channel tufting” look, inspired by several modern headboards we liked.
We involved the designer on this project—our ten-year-old—who preferred horizontal channels and wanted three panels visible above the mattress. To avoid gaps behind the bed, we made four panels total so the bottom one would extend below the mattress to the top of the bed frame.
We cut four identical strips from scrap plywood—leftovers from another project—using a circular saw. Each piece measured 39″ wide by 7″ tall, which we knew would gain about 1/2″ in depth with batting and fabric.
The upholstery process is the same as any DIY headboard, except we wrapped each plank individually before assembling them. Start by stapling two layers of batting around each wood panel. If your child is old enough and careful, they can help with cutting and stapling.
Next, cover each panel with fabric, stretching and stapling it smoothly. If your fabric has a pattern, plan its alignment across panels before cutting so the seams match. For our plain fabric this wasn’t an issue.
After upholstering each piece, you’ll have four soft, finished channels ready to join together.
We connected the panels by attaching two narrower scrap plywood strips across the back, nailing and then screwing them in place to act as connectors. Be careful to use nails and screws short enough that they won’t protrude through the front of the upholstered boards.
To keep the channels perfectly aligned while fastening, we pressed the pieces tightly together and temporarily pushed them against the wall. Tight joints prevent unsightly gaps between channels.
Mount the finished headboard however you prefer—D-rings, French cleats, or a custom cleat like we used. We cut a matching angled cleat with a circular saw (pre-made cleats are also available). See more on cleat mounting in our other posts if you want step-by-step guidance.
We intentionally made a fourth panel that sits below the mattress to the top of the bed frame. Pushing the mattress aside shows this design choice—without that extra strip you can end up with an awkward gap at the bottom of the headboard, so it’s worth planning for how the headboard meets the bed.
With the mattress back in place the headboard looks integrated and intentional. Adding that fourth channel avoided an awkward gap and gives the whole bed a finished appearance.
There’s more to reveal in this room—large canvas art we framed ourselves and a colorful painted wall treatment behind the dresser—but those projects deserve their own posts. We did crop a few walls from these photos to keep some surprises for later.
We’ll also share bathroom photos soon, but for now here’s the room’s transformation again. Vaulting the ceiling was one of the best decisions for this space; it makes the room feel much larger. Before…
…and now!
A horizontal photo doesn’t always capture the full effect, so here’s a wider view to show the space better.
Ah—that’s better.
More DIY Headboard Tutorials
Looking for more DIY headboard ideas? Here are a few projects using similar techniques:
- Adding an upholstered headboard to an existing bed
- Creating a multisided upholstered headboard for a daybed
- Making a lightweight fabric headboard
P.S. To follow every update from our renovation, see the full archive in our FL House category.
*This post contains affiliate links, so we may earn a small commission if you make a purchase through links on our site at no additional cost to you.