First Bed
After making the farmhouse table and bench I was excited to try a bed for my next build. I wanted something simple for my 5 year old son that wouldn't necessarily be outgrown in a year or two. I truly like the simplicity of this bed and the price point for making it was even more attractive. His entire bedroom is white furniture but I did not want to completely cover the grain of the wood. At the same time, I wanted to ensure this bed was going to match with the rest of his room. I decided to do a white wash finish and then a clear coat. It turned out perfect; matches his other furniture and still displays the wood grain. The bed was beyond simple to construct. I had two worries prior to starting the bed: the curve on the headboard/footboard and how sturdy the bed would be given how the rails attached to the headboard/footboard. For the curve on the footboard and headboard, I used a scrap piece of cardboard to trace a curve for half of the piece. Once I was happy with the curve I cut out the cardboard and transferred the curve to the headboard and footboard. I did half of the curve so I could guarantee each side would be identical and made it easy to have matching headboard and footboard. I intended on buying some hardware to make the bed more sturdy based solely on the plans. However, once I had the entire thing put together and I (6 foot, 200 pounds) got on the bed and moved around rather violently without any movement. since this bed is for my 5 year old, I have no worries about the structural integrity. For the whitewash finish, I simply mixed a couple ounces of spare white paint I had with water (1:1 ratio). I used a rag to rub the whitewash into the wood and ensure even coating. I completed the project with a satin polyurethane.
