Easy, Cheap, DIY Upholstered Headboard

Oops, didn't realize the pillows weren't centered.

My husband and I have been eyeing upholstered headboards for quite some time, and have been searching for something in a reasonable price range.  Unfortunately we haven't found anything worth spending our hard earned money on....

So where does that lead us?

We decided to make our own.

Once we decided to make one, I started keeping an eye out on Pinterest (follow me) and searching online for the best DIY version.  I found a few I liked bits and pieces of, but more so just decided to make it my own way.  

Here's the how to......

Since we have a queen size bed, we decided to get a piece of plywood that's 60"x32", which is the same width as the bed and gave us the height that we wanted.

Once I sanded off the rough edges (so we didn't get splinters why we did our project), we covered the front with a layer of foam --- now, let me tell you my SECRET.... I used a twin size foam mattress pad.  Oh yes.. It was $10 compared to a whopping $40!!  I about had a heart attack when the craft store priced theirs at $17.99/yard.

We used some tacky glue (the only kind of glue we had other than hot glue that didn't stick) and then pressed the foam down on the board.  Hense, the hilarious picture of us pressing it :) 

After the foam, we covered it with a double layer of batting.  We secured this to the back with a staple gun, being sure to secure it tightly all the way around, then trimmed the edges up since there was a lot of spillover.

Next, we secured the fabric.  We decided we wanted a linen/tweed type fabric, which is super popular right now and easy to find at Hobby Lobby or Joann Fabrics (don't forget your 40% off coupon with that!).  We secured the fabric with the staple gun as well.  Since the linen/tweed fabric is so thin, we wanted to be sure the staples didn't pull right out, so we folded the edges over.  Plus, this gave it a much smoother look.

Lastly, we folded all the corners nicely and trimmed excess fabric to make it look much nicer on the backside.

Once we had the actual headboard built, we decided to add some nail head trim.  Love, love, love the lock of this!!
After we completed the entire headboard, we built the stand out of leftover plywood.  Just made an upsidedown double "T," so it secures to the metal frame and attaches to the back of the headboard.  

I'm sure you're wondering how much all this cost.....

Here's the breakdown:
-Plywood (purchased 4'8' and cut at Home Depot for FREE) $25
-Foam $10
-Batting from Joann's with a 40% off coupon $15
-2 yd fabric from Joann's on sale for $2.99/yard
    -Nail head trim from Joann's with 40% off coupon    
      $12

                         Total Spent: only $68.

Compare that to the $1000+ Pottery Barn style or the $200 Target one (which is the cheapest I could find online)