DIY Headboard

If you live in New York City, it's likely that you're renting your space. Because of small apartments and rules stipulated in leases, it's difficult to make a space your own. I was able to paint my bedroom in my Murray Hill apartment and decided to paint it shortly after moving in. I painted two opposing walls a deep, charcoal gray to add a little warmth and depth to the room. Leaving the two remaining walls white allowed the darker color to not overpower.

Still, even after painting, there was a definite missing piece behind the bed. I needed a headboard. Sure, I could go out and purchase a headboard, but with limited funds, that wasn't really an option. Also, I always have to consider the fact that I might move again. Would I be able to move a headboard and would I be able to find another space large enough for it? My last apartment certainly wasn't!

So, I came up with an idea. I decided that I would make the "illusion" of a headboard by painting directly on the wall behind the bed.

The project itself cost me 5 whole dollars. Home Depot makes "tester" size paints, you can choose whatever color of whatever brand of paint you want and they give you a small jar of it so you can paint a patch and see if you like a color. And, at $2.95, you can't beat the price! For this, I decided to paint two lines (one white, one light blue) using painters tape to give clean lines.

With the bed in its usual space, I marked the wall to determine where I wanted the edge of the "headboard" to be. From there, I measured, making marks of where I wanted each point to be. Then, I simply connected the dots. After taping, I went over each piece with a level to make sure the lines were straight and even.

Then I got to painting. I painted the interior, smaller, line blue and the larger outer line white. I think the differing colors adds some definition to the effect.

So here's the finished product. I don't normally have yellow sheets on my bed (usually I have a set of gray ones on there - they match the walls) but I changed them to something more cheerful during the snow storms.



Personally, I love it. I think it adds something to the wall and makes the bed more of a focal point than it was before. It was a super easy project that anyone could do. And, you could easily paint frames around hanging pictures, windows, or anything!