Headboard for the girls

Heard there was a "Painted Wood is Pretty" linky party - thought we show off a bit! Life in Grace first shows off her stinkin' adorable retro inspired kitchen re-do and I adore it. Check it out!

If you know me, I am constantly re-doing my daughter's room, currently 5 & 7 years old. Not because I am a design and decor schizo but more out of necessity. My friends think I am nuts. My 2 oldest share a room. We have tried it all. (Skip to end if you want to read my sad tale of beds and bunks and trundles...) I decided that since they almost always got in bed together, then sharing a bed was where it's at!!

Off to Craigslist I went in search of a full size bed/headboard/mattress set - whatever I could find and make work. I found this lovely 70's specimen and knew I could work with it.

A full/queen headboard - turned posts are wood. The middle part...not so much. A crummy veneer.

We sanded to knock down the shiny surface. We kind of goofed on the veneer and the sandpaper was too abrasive and scratched a bit too much. But it all worked out.

First, we sprayed with an appropriate primer. I think primer is usually a good idea, especially on a slick fake wood veneer surface!

Then lots of sanding. Spray. Sand. Repeat. I think I ended up with 4 coats of paint, sanding between each spray.

Here is the final project in their bedroom, dressed down.

Here is the bed all made up. Still working out the side table (currently a shelf from my laundry room), a makeover of the lamp shade, maybe one more pillow on the bed, and I am, gulp, painting a piece to go over the bed. The walls are pretty bare right now. Check out the cute white slipper chair to the side of the bed - inherited from my great great Aunt Irintha. I have been waiting to use this in a girl's room! We may slip-cover it, may not. It needs a killer pillow though.

I think it worked out perfect for what we needed and wanted. It will go the distance for us. Almost every night they fall asleep snuggled together. Love it!! And, whichever girls in our family are sharing a bed, (we have these two and a 1 year old baby girl) they will use this. My middle daughter wants to always share a room. My oldest would like her own. Baby currently shares a sewing room/nursery with me. We are good roomies but she may move in with a big sister some day.

Keeping it real...their bedroom from another angle. This is pretty tame! Note the crafty girls in training - they turned a box, next to the chair, into a two level dog house for their stuffed doggies.

Someone once asked me about the window seat - it is two over the fridge kitchen cabinets from Ikea. A lot of mis-matched throw pillows that don't exactly go together but the girls like it.

My sharing a room and bed woes...continued from top of post...

They have been back and forth between two bedrooms. They started sharing a room with a twin bed and crib. Then two twins - I made adorable white slip-covered headboards with embroidered initial a la PBKids. (Took up too much space in small room that also is a play space.) They are stored in the garage. sigh. We decided bunk beds were the way to go. Couldn't spend a lot at the time so I found a new set on Ebay and was reasonably happy. Well, I got what I paid for when a side rail split. (Plus I hated making the beds and the kids never made them either...) So, we decided to use the top half of the bunk as the top part of a bed/trundle combo and we built a trundle drawer. I really liked how it worked out but the girls usually ended up in bed together. Well, deja vous - a side rail split again and I threw in the towel. That was the end of it for me. I then decided they would share!