Making an Upholstered Headboard

Some of my friends and relatives have requested to see what my headboard looks like. I think it looks pretty nice even though we haven't taken the time to install it yet. I'm even going to do one better though! I will walk you through the process of making it. It was really very easy as well as inexpensive.

Materials needed:
1. A piece of wood that is at least as wide as your bed. I used some scraps we had laying around from building our shed last year.
2. Spray adhesive.
3. Padding to line to wood the with. This gives it a nice luxurious feel. I used the foam pad that son had on his twin sized bed before we replaced his mattress.
4. Batting used for quilting. This helps anchor the foam in place as well as softening up the exterior lines of the headboard.
5. Durable fabric of your choice. I used a heavier linen type fabric I had sitting in my fabric stash which I feel compliments our bedding without being matchy-matchy.
6. Staple gun and staples.

May people may like a curved headboard, but I went for simple, straight lines. It's a rectangle the same width as the bed. Also made less cutting for me to do!

Spray the wood with spray adhesive. If you only spray one surface, the foam can be repositioned. Once I got the foam in place, I sprayed the foam too. Spraying both surfaces is supposed to create a more permanent bond.

Next comes the batting. Mine was queen sized, folded in half to make it extra soft. I sprayed both halves to help keep them in place and then sprayed the foam as well as the back of the batting. I pulled it and made sure it was even before gluing it in place. Maybe I went a little crazy with the glue but I didn't want it to fall apart on me.

I wrapped the batting around the wood and secured it in place on the back of the wood with plenty of staples.

The final step is putting the fabric in place. Pull securely and wrap the edges carefully and check how it looks from the front before securing in place. I used glue on the front to keep it tight and then stapled it on the back.


I had planned on making this for Cheesehead for his birthday, but I didn't have time earlier this year. Now we just need to install it!

Thank you for stopping by to chat with me. Please leave me a message, I'd love to hear your thoughts!

Cindy