After using our favorite method to make a simple headboard for our son’s room last week, we found we had enough leftover materials to try a new trick in our daughter’s room — and it produced a completely free headboard for her. Three cheers for $0 projects. She helped choose the design and helped make it, so not only is it cozy to lean against, it’s also something she’s excited about because she had a hand in it.
Before I jump into the how-to, here’s a quick update on how her room has come together since we moved in. When we first saw the house it looked very different, so this is a little tour of the current layout and the choices that shaped it.
Like we did in our son’s room, we discovered we could vault the ceilings to make the space feel larger — there was only empty attic above and the roof already sloped that way, so no structural changes were required. We also replaced popcorn ceilings with a plank-and-beam look. The contractor completed that while we were still living out of state, and we collected progress photos as the work went on.
Now, about two months into living here, the room is almost entirely filled with items we already owned. You might recognize the woven rug from our previous kids’ art room, and the nightstands came from the pink house. The dresser and bedside lamps moved over from her old bedroom. Reusing pieces saved money and helped the room feel familiar to her.
We did buy a pendant light, window coverings, and a new bed frame. The bed frame was the only new furniture piece and we chose it because it offers three sides of under-bed storage — eight full cubbies that hold bins for games, Legos, toys and lots of books. The storage has made a big difference in keeping the room tidy and organized.
When we bought the house we were initially unsure about having an exterior door in a child’s room — would it encourage sneaking out later? We installed a secure deadbolt and a loud alarm system, which made us feel comfortable keeping the door. An unexpected advantage is safety in an emergency: both kids can step outside quickly if needed. We may convert it to a window someday for more furniture flexibility, but for now it works well.
Okay — back to the headboard. Floating her bed under the window made the most sense spatially, but it didn’t leave much room for a typical store-bought headboard. We’ve put headboards in front of windows before, but this arrangement felt like a better opportunity to make something custom.
After completing our son’s headboard project, we had a lot of scrap fabric but not any single piece large enough for a full headboard. We realized we could piece the scraps together and create a channel-tufted look — a style with parallel padded channels that run horizontally or vertically. Our daughter selected a horizontal layout with three visible panels above the mattress. That decision made sense visually, but we decided to construct four panels in total so the headboard would extend below the mattress to the top of the bed frame and prevent gaps.
We cut four identical strips from scrap plywood using a circular saw; each piece measured 39″ wide by 7″ tall. Expect batting and fabric to add about 1/2″ thickness to each panel. This project works well as a DIY upholstered headboard because the steps are straightforward: cut, wrap with batting, cover with fabric, and secure.
Start by cutting and stapling two layers of batting around each plywood strip. If your child is old enough and comfortable using a stapler, they can help with simple wrapping tasks. Next, cover each panel with fabric, folding and stapling the edges neatly. Pay attention to fabric pattern alignment if using patterned fabric so the channels flow consistently across panels.
After upholstering, you’ll have four finished channel pieces. To attach them into a single headboard, we used two narrower scraps of plywood across the back as connectors. Nail and then screw those connector pieces into the back of the four panels, taking care to use fasteners short enough that they don’t penetrate through the front-facing plywood. That avoids the unpleasant surprise of screws showing through the batting and fabric.
To ensure a tight fit with no gaps, press the panels firmly together against the wall while you fasten the connector boards. This helps keep the channels aligned and eliminates small seams between pieces. Once assembled, hang the headboard using your preferred method — D-rings, a French cleat, or a custom cleat cut with a saw. A cleat gives a secure, flush mount and makes it easy to remove the headboard if needed.
We intentionally made a fourth panel so the headboard runs from above the mattress down past the mattress to the bed frame top. If a headboard stops right at the mattress, it can create awkward gaps when the mattress shifts. Adding that extra lower panel makes the finish feel deliberate and polished.
Here’s the headboard with the mattress slightly moved to show how the panels extend below it. When the mattress is pushed back, the seam disappears and the result looks integrated and purposeful.
There’s more of this room we’ll share soon, including a DIY frame we made for large canvas artwork and a colorful painted wall treatment behind the dresser. For now, here’s a final look at the transformation — vaulting the ceiling was one of the best changes we made. In person the room feels much bigger and airier.
…and now!
It’s funny how a horizontal photo now captures only a portion of the room, where a vertical shot shows the whole vaulted space.
Ah — that’s better.
More DIY Headboard Tutorials
Want more DIY headboard ideas and inspiration for upholstered headboards, channel-tufted styles, or budget-friendly kids’ bedroom updates? Here are a few related projects using similar techniques:
- Adding an upholstered headboard to an existing bed’s headboard
- Creating a multisided upholstered headboard for a daybed
- Making a lightweight fabric headboard
P.S. We’re sharing updates on our Florida house renovation as we go, including every change we make to this room and others.