Wednesday, January 12, 2011

Building Our Master Bed: FAQs

Thank you so much for all of the wonderful comments about our bedroom and bed. I am still absolutely loving it, and if you are considering building a bed- go for it! It’s worth it! Here are a few FAQ’s that I’ve received about the bed and building process. If you have more, please don’t hesitate to ask! I’d love to help in anyway possible. You can also email me with questions too! [davidandcarolineparker AT gmail DOT com]

Did you sand/stain/varnish before or after you built?
-We finished the piece after we completely built it, but before we assembled it.

I’ve seen that desk/table somewhere -is it from pier 1?
-Yes, it is! We bought it on sale at Pier 1 about three years ago.

Where in the world did you get the energy to do ALL of this??????
-I had a lot of help! I didn’t do any of the painting (I just don’t have the energy, and I’ve been having a lot of back pain.) And the husband did most of the heaving lifting, and building. I helped where I could: designing, modifying the plans, measuring, and some drilling and sanding. I’m no super-woman: I spent a lot of time on the heating pad!

Where did you get the stencil!?
-www.sunnyspaints.com  (I absolutely love this site! I highly recommend them!)

Do you have any under bed storage? Can you fit standard tupperwear containers under it?
-We have not gotten any under the bed storage yet, however, this is one of the things that we considered when building the bed. There is PLENTY of room for storage under there, and we know in the future it will be very helpful! {There is a good chance that we will have to downsize when we leave Athens, so we try to take this into consideration when building/buying furniture...}

How does the mattress not slide around?
-Although the mattress sits on a platform, there is a “lip” on the bed frame. There is no sliding around; and trust me, we like to jump on the bed too! Since Dmitri sleeps in our bed, safety and security was a big priority!

Did you have a table that you put stuff on before cutting it?
-I wish we did! That would have made it easier. But no, we were able to set the saw up on the floor, or when necessary, we stacked up scrap wood to lift the piece we were cutting off of the floor.

Do you mind saying how much it cost all included? And whether you had to buy a jig rig thingamabob?
-The total cost, including buying a jig saw was $200. (So, the wood was about $170 and the saw about $30)

Did you rent those tools or did you buy them?
-We originally planned to rent a jig saw, but we found one for $30 and decided to buy it! It might  not be the nicest one, but it got the job done! We already owned a miter saw, which has definitely been worth the investment.

Did you use the plans for Anna White Exactly?
-No. We followed the directions pretty closely, however, we modified a lot of the measurements so that we could build a King size. Her plans are for a Queen size.

Will you be posting the measurements?
Yes! The measurements are posted HERE!

To see our most recent photos of our bedroom, click here!
For details on how we modified the bed from a Queen to a King, and other building details, click here!
For Ana White's original plans, click here!

Happy building!

4 comments:

Lise Marie said...

You did such an amazing job! I appreciate all this extra info. Spouse and I have been thinking for a while that we want to do this and I am pretty sure I am ready now. Great job.

princessbetht said...

I love you...er, I mean...your bed. Thank you for 1) making the bed I like, 2) having a king-sized mattress that you needed to fit, 3) blogging about it, and 4) SHARING YOUR PLANS!!

I wanted to make this bed in a king, but with the 12-week-old (and two biggers) my brain felt very resistant to the "figuring out the measurements conversion" part of making. I'll have to double check some stuff and do some tweaking for the box springs, but YAY!!

I might have questions to ask later. For now, thank you, thank you, thank you!!!

Meghan said...

Wow!! What an amazing bed - GORGEOUS! So inspirational. Thanks for the fantastic tutorial!

Meghan @ When I Grow Up
www.meghanmarymorrow.blogspot.com

Full House said...

I am so inspired. I have been wanting that Gustavian bed forever and now believe I could make it. My husband is signed up for this weekend! Trouble is, the link to the Ana White website no longer works. Any chance you know how to find the original plans for a queen?

Thanks!