Restoration Hardware Headboard Knockoff... On a major budget!!!

Okay, so I have been busy working with a client finishing up some rooms and I can't even wait to show you the final results!! For now, you get a sneak peek while I do a headboard tutorial.

You guys.  This is my favorite headboard I have made to date.  And once it was done I was reeeealllly wanting to make myself one.  But I will have to wait until we move again.

Anyways. Here goes.

Now that is VERY Restoration Hardware if you ask me!

Start with your board.  Lumber can be pricey so I get the plumbing underlayment from Home Depot.  It comes in a giant sheet... like 4'x8' (1" thick) and ranges b/t $10-$20.  While I am there, I have them cut it down to the dimensions I need on their giant saw (so far I have never been charged, but usually the first 2-3 cuts are free)  You will want your headboard 5' wide (the width of a queen bed) and this one I only did 3' tall. Because that is what would fit inside my car haha.  But you can make it as tall as you want really.

Then I got 2 furring boards. They are 1"x3" and 8' long.  Have them cut them down into 3 pieces: 1 5'6", and 2 that are the height of your headboard. If your headboard is 3' high, you will get 2 pieces that are 3' long.

Sand and stain your furring boards (these will be the boarder of the bed) I used Minwax Classic Gray. 

I always lay my headboard on a folding table, it is just easier to work with.

I got my fabric on sale (always look for the upholstery fabrics to go on sale). It was 50% off, regularly $20 a yard.  And for a queen size bed you need 2 yards which is 6 feet.  Make sure your fabric is at least a yard wide.  Mine was 48" which was plenty.  I went with a neutral beige linen because I was going for the RH look.

First you will cover your board with batting.  I got this on sale also.  If you buy in the bag, it is usually twice as much as if you buy it by the yard.  Just a little tip :)

Pull it around and staple it to the back.  I got my stapler at WalMart for like $20 and I have used it SO much.  It works great.  It is Stanley brand and not a plug in or anything.  You just need a little muscle :)

Next, add your fabric.  Make sure and pull the fabric really tight and fold the corners so that they lay smooth. With the wood boarder, they don't have to be perfectly beautiful.

Below: Look at that coloring!!! I am in love with this stain color.  I use a foam craft brush to brush on and then wipe off with a paper towel.

Next you will build your boarder.   So find the sides that you think are most beautiful and put them face down on the floor.  You will make a 'u' shape with your 5'6" one at the top.  I bought these little metal corners at Home Depot and they were SUPER strong.  Use a triangle to make sure your corners are perfectly 90', mark where your screws will go with a pen because as you screw it will move a little and as long as your screws are in the right places, it will be a perfect angle.

Okay, getting this to fit was a bit more tricky than I thought.  It was a tight squeeze which was great because my measurements were exact. You will probably have to mess with it a bit and use some muscles to make it fit.  Then use more of those metal plates (but they're just straight like this) to screw into the back.  I did 2 spaced out on each side and 2 on the top.  That thing is not going anywhere.

Then you will start with your nailhead trim. (spoiler- I found this at WalMart for a fraction of the price you would pay at a hardware store!! They worked really great! I got 3 boxes and didn't use them all.)  I just eyeballed it and spaced them about an inch and a half apart.  Tip: when you're getting to a corner, put one in the corner and then move back towards the nailhead.  This will make sure you get it placed perfectly in the corner and you can fudge a little on the spacing between the other ones. Does that make sense?

Okay. I'm dumb. I didn't take any pics of the rest. But it's easy.  This is held up by 2x4's and once the bed is pushed up against it, it will stay! Promise!  Measure your bed from the floor to the top of the mattress and subtract an inch.  This will be where you mark your 2x4 and where your headboard will sit off the ground.  Mine happened to be 28" tall.  Make sure your 2x4's are perfectly even and screw them into the back of the headboard.  I always draw a line on the back of the headboard where I want the 2x4's to hit.  Screw in and you're done!

Okay okay.  That's it for the sneak peaks.  But look at that headboard!!! Swoon. I want one now.

Price breakdown:

Plywood board: $20

Wood boarder: $3

Batting: $9

Fabric: $20

Nailhead: $3

Mending Plates: $5

2x4: $2

Grand Total: $62.00

You heard me.

And I think this took 2-3 hours.

So basically, why are you not on your way to Home Depot to get started right now??

Thanks for reading!

xoxo Bre

DIY Upholstered Headboard

Okay guys, I'm going to take it back a few months to the headboard I made for my mom for mother's day (yes, clear back in May)

I finally got a second this last weekend to snap a few pictures... I took them on my iPhone and didn't take the time to open the blinds because Tom was rushing me out the door. So forgive me for the bad quality. But hopefully you can get the idea!

I started with a sheet of underlayment from Home Depot.  This is the cheapest piece of wood I could find for as large as it is. (they can range from $11-$20)  It is 4ft x 8ft and I cut it down to be the size of a king bed which is 76 inches wide... I think I cut it at about 78 inches so it would be 6.5 feet. (this also ensures that the headboard isn't smaller than the bed.)

Next, I measured 6 inches in on the top and sides of the headboard. 

I bought a large foam camping pad from a local grocery store called Smiths Marketplace. Early in the summer they sell camping pads that are about 3' wide by 7' long.  I cut down the pad to 5.5' so that it would fit inside the board with a 6" board. (because of the dimensions of the board and the camping pad, I left a foot of boarder on the bottom of the headboard)  I measured to the middle of the headboard and marked and the middle of the foam and marked to make sure it was perfectly centered.

This stuff is like magic.  Lay your foam down and spray this stuff underneath and it will hold it in place.

Next, use batting to wrap the boarder of your board.  Use the stick spray to hold it in place.

When it comes to headboards, fabric is usually the big cost because you need so much of it.  I ended up finding a really pretty quality upholstery fabric on sale for 50% off and used a coupon on top of it.  I ended up going with an ivory linen.  It's beautiful up close because you can really see the wefts of the fabric.

Next, place your fabric down on your board, centered.

Pull your fabric tight over your board and use a staple gun to staple around on back. 

Staples seen here.  Add as many as you need to keep your edges smooth and really hold your fabric in place.

I found a really pretty bronze nailhead trim at Home Depot.

Hammer your nailhead in at a good spacing of your choice.  The nice thing about pulling it tight and then adding the nailhead that pulls it even tighter, is that you don't have to iron your fabric.  Mine was SUPER wrinkly and pulling it tight just straightened and smoothed it all out perfectly.

I just eyed it and made sure the nailhead was about 2 inches apart and 6 inches from the edge of the board. (this also shows how beautiful and textured the fabric is)  Hammer the nails in with a few gentle taps- If you are concerned about marking up your nailhead, they do sell rubber mallets specifically for nailhead, but I thought it turned out just fine and didn't effect the finish too bad!

Continue all the way around your foam until it is complete. 

This shows how the bottom boarder is wider than the top and sides.  I wish I had a picture of the back.  I used 2 2x4's just screwed in to the back.  I measured the bed and made sure that the headboard sat with 6 inches of the bottom boarder below the top of the bed (if that makes any sense) This way the boarder looks even all the way around.

Next, lean the headboard against the wall and push your bed up against it.  The bed will hold it up (promise! Mine has been holding strong for 2 years now)

It really just completes the room!  Now that you have the step-by-step, you can adjust the measurements to fit your own bed. You could even make it shorter if tall headboards aren't your thing.  I wish you could tell how tall it is... but just know that it is super tall and just gorgeous in person.

Overall, I think the total of this was $80. 

Getting the camping pad really cuts down costs because they are only about $20. Which gets you a lot of foam for a very little price.  Watch for a good coupon for your fabric which will also be another big cost.  If you plan ahead of time, you can order nail head off amazon for cheap too.  Once you have all of your supplies, this only took me about 3 hours total. Not bad at all!

If you make a headboard, send us some pictures or post it to instagram with the hashtag #stellalaneheadboard.

Good luck!

Thanks for reading!!

xoxo, Bre

Seriously Simple Chalkboard tutorial!

Ok guys I have a new obsession.  I have been doing so much lettering lately and the more I do, the better I get, and the more I wanna do.  It's a downward spiral really.

Chalkboards are the easiest way to practice lettering/calligraphy because, duh, you can erase way easy.

I showed you a few chalkboards in my last couple posts.  Here is my super simple tutorial:

When thrifting, look for anything flat that can be spray painted.

Examples:

Any board, picture frame... seriously anything.  All of these were less than $2.00.

Next:

You can also buy chalkboard paint in a can, or there are multiple tutorials out there to make your own.  The spray paint form has been the easiest way I have found.  Obviously if you're painting a wall, you would want to opt for the kind you roll on.

I threaded some burlap ribbon through the small hole at the top to hang it.

For this board, I wanted a gold boarder. So first, I sprayed the edges with gold spray paint.

Next, I taped off the part I wanted gold and sprayed it with the chalkboard paint.

Here it is ready to draw on!  Make sure and season your chalkboard before writing on it.  Smear the whole board with chalk and wipe off with a damp cloth.

This chalkboard is for my friend's wedding, (one of many I've been able to do)

I free-handed this with a white colored pencil, after I practiced on paper of course.

And then I got chalk markers.  This just shows how much brighter it makes it!

The finished product.  Cute, huh?!

This one used to be a picture.  I just sprayed directly on the glass, and it worked really well!

Another one for Brooke's wedding.

I hope these have inspired you to go out and make your own chalkboard(s)!  I am seriously obsessed.

Thanks for reading!

XOXO Bre

Shabby Chic Room Reveal Part 2 (Details)

Yesterday I showed you my Shabby Chic boutique.  Today you get to see all of the details!  Let's just get started, shall we?

Frame: Thrifted  Platter: already had  Straw Balls: Ikea

Vase: Thrifted Peony Flower: Walmart (I know!)

I spent a little more on these things since they were going to be on the coffee table. She already had this tray, everything on it (except the willow tree figurine) is from Hobby Lobby.

Flowers in vase are also from Walmart.

This chalkboard sign used to be a really ugly wood picture. I will do a chalkboard tutorial tomorrow.

Pillow from TJ Maxx

She wanted a display of ribbons that brides could use to show what colors they want.  So this was what I came up with.  I think it's pretty cute!  I tied the ribbons to clear shower rings.  This way they are easily removed and she can add more ribbons as she likes.

She already had this mirror, I just strung the ribbons across it.

I spent about $30-$50 on old books at the thrift store.  I just took a piece of sandpaper to them to rough them up a bit and make them look even older than they are.

I found this clock thrifting.  Since I'm really smart, I didn't take a before picture.  But it used to be dark cherry wood.  I painted it with cream toll paint and then distressed it with sandpaper. 

This used to be a picture.  I will do a tutorial for it tomorrow too.

For the gallery wall, I thrifted all of the frames (typically 75 cents to $1.50) And I spray painted them.  The cream ones I distressed with sandpaper.

For the layout, I tried to alternate cream and gold, and also the orientation of frames.

Here are some good detail shots of the chair that I didn't get before my last tutorial.

This shows how the stain looks over the white spray paint.

I just hot glued this tubing on so there weren't any staples showing.

Pictures are thrifted and all frames were thrifted.

This glass vase I spray painted and added a little twine tied around it.  Also, more flowers from Walmart.

She already had this tray and all of the candles/figurines.

This wreath was pretty easy.  I found it at the thrift store and just added some burlap  bunched and hotglued onto it.  The other two frames she already had.

I found this old pot thrifting.  I was so in love with it and really wanted to keep it haha.

Also found this silver bowl thrifting.

The detailing on it is so cute and it would be so great for a catchall on a dresser (or a ring dish on a nightstand)

I will do a tutorial for this.  I painted this and thought it turned out pretty cute.

Plant and pot from Ikea.  I will do a quick tutorial on it tomorrow as well.

Another chalkboard. Tutorial to come.

More books.

I tried to group the books with like colors to keep it from looking busy.  When you are shopping for your books, make sure you have a few in each color and not just one random red one you can't pair with any others.

She already had this pair of antique lamps.

I used a mix of mirrors and pictures for the gallery wall.

Each picture was taken professionally of their floral arrangements. I thought it helped tie in the bridal theme along with showing how great their floral work is.

I chose pictures that had details of the flowers.

Vase and books are thrifted.  I was absolutely in love with this vase.

I bought this lamp thrifting.  It was only $15!!!! I was shocked and so excited when I found it.

Fort he shade, I found a random neutral lamp shade and just hot glued some burlap around it.

Vases thrifted.  She already had these frames.

This used to be on just a stand, I framed it in an extra frame I spray painted.

I found this metal bucket thrifting and added these flowers from (you guessed it... Walmart) 

Come back again tomorrow and I'll give you some good tutorials for chalkboards and signs!!