It has been gloomy and rainy here for what seems like the majority of the last month. I'm not sure when we moved to the pacific northwest but i'm not loving it. It always affects my mood negatively and this time is no exception. That, coupled with some other struggles, has robbed my joy as of late. I am not sure how others cope with down times but for me, I do projects. They lift me out of a funk fairly quickly as I see the progress unfold before my eyes and realize that there is a beginning, middle and end to all things...projects and life's challenges included. My perspective begins to change as I work with my hands and the sense of accomplishment serves as a healing salve to my soul. If I am focused on a task I am less likely to be focused on things I cannot change.
Yesterday I decided it was time....time to find something to focus on. Like so many of my projects (including entirely refinishing the cabinets in our kitchen) this one was very spur of the moment. I woke up with little motivation on yet another rainy day, sat on the end of our bed and as I cursed the squeak of the cheap metal bed frame we had been using for many years I announced "I am building a new bed frame today" My husband, who is very used to my projectitis, simply looked at me and said "I'll get my shoes on so we can head to home depot. Make a list and meet me in the van" Yep I LOVE that man :) I had a basic idea of what I wanted to do and had previously toyed with the idea. Off to Home Depot we went.
Like many parents we have spent our lives focused on providing nice things for our children and just don't think of ourselves much, so the folding metal bed frame that is free when you buy a mattress set was what we have been using for many years. It functioned, but barely.
My main focus in this project was to build a rock solid, heavy duty bed frame. While I was not focused on appearance (because it is to be covered completely by bedding) stained it would be quite lovely. I LOVE 2x4 furniture projects. They are inexpensive and incredibly sturdy. For most you need little more than a drill and a saw. This falls in that category. Here's what I started with.
10 - 2x4x8's
1 - 1x4x8
3 - 8 inch wide pieces of 3/4 inch finished plywood 8 ft long or 1x8x8's
1.5 sheets of 3/4 inch plywood
3 inch drywall screws
2.5 inch drywall screws
Tools used
Cordless drill with #2 philips head bit
Compound miter saw (though a simple circular saw would work)
pneumatic nail gun (finished nails and a hammer will work if you don't have a nail gun)
Palm sander (plain sand paper will work as well, sanding is quite minimal)
tape measure
speed square
This frame was built in our room for two reasons. First - it was raining and to build a king size frame we would have needed more space than was currently available in the garage. Second - I had NO desire to carry it up the stairs, bad boy is HEAVY ;)
So we started by clearing the space and cutting the following lengths of 2x4
6 - 2x4 @73 inches
2 - 2x4 @80 inches
The 2 80 inch lengths are your sides. Place a 73 inch piece on the inside of both the bottom and top to form your basic frame. 2x4's are laid tall not wide so the frame is 3 1/2 inches tall....ok a moment to talk about lumber measurements. 2x4's are not 2 inches by 4 inches. Once they are milled they are actually 1 1/2 inches x 3 1/2inches. Your 1x8's (if you went that route) will be 3/4 x 7 1/4. Here is a chart to help understand it a bit better for your own future wood projects :)
| 1 x 1 | 3/4 x 3/4 |
| 1 x 2 | 3/4 x 1 1/2 |
| 1 x 3 | 3/4 x 2 1/2 |
| 1 x 6 | 3/4 x 5 1/4 |
| 1 x 8 | 3/4 x 7 1/4 |
| 1 x 10 | 3/4 x 9 1/4 |
| 1 x 12 | 3/4 x 11 1/4 |
| 2 x 2 | 1 1/2 x 1 1/2 |
| 2 x 3 | 1 1/2 x 2 1/2 |
| 2 x 4 | 1 1/2 x 3 1/2 |
| 2 x 6 | 1 1/2 x 5 1/4 |
| 2 x 8 | 1 1/2 x 7 1/4 |
| 2 x 10 | 1 1/2 x 9 1/4 |
| 2 x 12 | 1 1/2 x 11 1/4 |
Before you screw the the pieces together lay a speed square in each corner to make sure you are truly squared up.
Once your rectangle is fastened mark each of the side pieces in 16 inch intervals. This will be where you attach the cross members. Be sure to line your pieces up on the center of the 2x4. Also make sure your woood is flush to one another. Carpet is not ideal as a work surface because the wood can sink so we had to be very careful not to push it down as we fastened it.
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I simply started from the top using two screws on each side (one on top of the other) and went down until I had all my cross members secured.
Now it was time to cut the legs. We were doing away with the box springs but wanted the same height we were used to so we cut the legs to 16 inches (12 of them).
Place two in each corner. You are effectively making a 4x4 leg. Also mark the first crossmember in from the top and bottom at 24 and 48 and center a leg on each of these marks. Lay a piece of scrap plywood under each leg so they stay flush with the top (which is facing down at this point) I placed the precut skirt pieces (your 8 inch wide pieces of ply or 1x8's, whichever you used) under each side for this purpose because it was available and easy. Secure the corner legs from each side making sure to secure them to one another from the inside as well ( in other words, two screws from the side of the corner, two from the end and two from the inside toward the side to secure them to one another). Secure the center legs with two screws a piece (I used 2 1/2 inch screws on the center legs). Gently sand off any splinters of wood left on the legs from cutting.
Now you have to flip it right side up. This is most definitely a two person job. It is heavy and you don't want to put undo stress on the legs "rolling" it over.
The next step is to place the plywood base on. It takes 1.5 sheets worth for this. I buy a LOT of plywood because I use them for my cake bases so an extra half a sheet is great for me. It has so many uses I never mind having extra.
We took a full sheet and cut it to 80 inches in length. Secured it flush with one side which left need of a 28 inch wide by 80 inch long piece. We actually used two pieces for that because we had a usable sheet from which we could get the coverage, but you can certainly cut it from a full length.
Now it is time to put the "skirt" on. We used to live near a lumber supply company and could get 1x8x8 regularly for a low price. If you have access to inexpensive wood in that dimension scoop it up. For us Home Depot only sells it in high priced furniture grade wood (which is not necessary for many furniture projects, even those you stain, just sayin') and it is almost $12 a length O_o So I bought a full sheet of finished plywood, had them cut three 8 inch wide lengths out of it at the store (they will do this for free) and just decided to save the rest for cake boards or some further project. It made more sense and was a better deal.
Two length were cut at 80 inches and one was cut at 77 5/8. Mark one inch down on each end and draw a straight guideline using those measurements on all the pieces. Attach the side pieces first, making sure that line is flush with the top of your plywood. This gives a slight recess for the mattress to sit in so it won't shift. I attached mine with a nail gun but if you don't have one a hammer and some plain finish nails will do the job.
I then secured two pieces of 1x4 cut to 8 inches long on each corner and a piece of 1x4 cut to 12 inches long to cover the "seam" of the two 2x4's on the legs (4). Honestly, if I were to do it again I would likely leave off the corner pieces because it is covered anyway. And if it were going to show I would likely use a thinner piece of trim, something like a lattice strip size (yes you can buy replacement lattice strip pieces and they stain beautifully :)
All that was left to do was put the bedskirt and mattress on, replace the linens and clean up. I got in bed last night for the first time in many years and not a squeak was heard :) Even better, I was refreshed mentally. A little focus on something you can see coming together goes a long long way:)
I will likely paint the frame another day, when it isn't rainy and I need another project, but for now this will do quite nicely. It sits between the night stands I built several months ago and in front of the headboard I made last year....nope, I don't typically sit much ;)
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