How to make a headboard from bi-fold doors

So as you know from my March 25th post I made a headboard out of bi-fold doors that I found on the roadside...yes...I dug those things right out of a pile of junk, threw them in my car and went about my happy, merry way determined to make my long awaited headboard! Well, here are the instructions on how I did it!

MY BORING BEDROOM WALL (AND BEDROOM) WAS TRANSFORMED FROM THIS...

 

TO THIS!! WOOT WOOT!!! HOW ROMANTIC!!!

HERE'S HOW!

First get you some good ole' fashioned bi-fold doors. They sell them at any major hardware store for cheap but if you're like me you wanna just find some on the roadside (smile). That is a lot more fun ;-)

You're gonna need some room for this because these things are HUGE so put them in your garage or take 'em in the back yard. I just set them up in the garage. See how tall they are??

Now check out your hardware situation and get the right tools to get all those hinges, knobs and other hardware you won't be needing removed.

Now turn on some music and get ready to sand your little heart out!!! 

Really...be prepared because there's ALOT of sanding. 

I pulled out the electric sander, the block hand sander and...

For more help...and entertainment...I got my 12 year old son in there too :-)

SAND KENNEDY!! SAND!!! PUT YOUR BACK IN TO IT KID!!!

Once you get her sanded like you want, its time to slap on the stain...or paint or whatever finish you choose. Because I can be lazy and impatient, I chose to use one quart of the Polyshades stain and poly combo because I didn't want to have to go back over everything with a clear coat.  I put this project off for a year...I was not about to push it off for one more hour - smile

You maaaay want to get some gloves too! It may get messy and who wants to ruin 

their fresh, new manicure LOL.

I used a sponge brush to apply the stain instead of a rag because I wanted to give the effect of streaks in the stain. And...because, like I said, I am lazy and impatient (smile). The brush was easier.

hmmm....lookin' good...let's do a few more coats :-)

I let the four panels dry over night and then brought them inside and laid them on the bed so I could reattach the panels.  I used nine 3.5" Mending Braces  that I purchased from Lowes to do this.   

I placed them so that the screws could be attached right in to each door as you can see in the picture below. Sorry for the dark photo. To compensate (LOL) I am attaching a clearer image of what you should be looking for  when you head to the hardware store.

Next I attached the 18" picture hanging system that I also got at Lowes. I was concerned about how strong it would hold so I purchased two of them. The packaging said it would hold up to 200 pounds but I was still "scurred" - LOL They were $10 per set and well worth every bit of the $20 I spent of my comfort level.  It would have been cool for that thing to fall down on us in bed...

NOT COOL AT ALL!!!

Here's a better shot of the part of the system that I hung on the actual headboard. It comes in two pieces and one part hangs on your wall and the other hangs on the item you want to hang. Make sure they are spaced the same on the wall as they are on the headboard. So if you have a 2" space between the brackets on the awl then do the same not he back of the headboard.

Here are some shots of the part that hangs on the wall.  I spaced them out instead of putting them right next to one another because I made the assumption that would evenly distribute the weight.  The system even comes with this little mini level that sits in the middle of the pat that you hang on the wall to make you you get it level. It kept falling out so I just used my 24" level.

You can see in this pic that the top piece kinda sits out a bit. Well, the piece that is attached to the headboard sticks out to and sits right over this one to form a strong hold. Get ready to hang it!!! And you WILL need two people to do this. 

Much love and thanks to my super strong hubby who helped me.

The almost final product :-) 

The ACTUAL final product...

after I pulled together my other great finds and getting these cool lamps off

Craigslist for only $20 for both! 

I did have to finish painting the room too but I won't count that cost :-)

TOTAL HEADBOARD PROJECT- I LOVE THIS THING!!!

Headboard - FREE

Stain -  $5

Brushes  - free (I already had them)

Gloves - free ( I already had them)

Braces - $10

Hanging System - $20

TOTAL = $35!!! 

OH YEAH!!! THAT'S THRIFTY :-)