Nov
Picket Fence Headboard
I have a friend who collects things. She is always looking for a deal, and if it’s free then it’s hers.
I stopped by a few weeks back and she had various sections of picket fence in her driveway. “You want it?” she asked. “Heck yeah!” I answered. I took one long section of fence and one gate.
I had a vision of making a rustic, full-of-character headboard for my daughter’s bedroom. Here’s how I did it.
Step One: Grab your jigsaw and your protective eye wear Jr. Swim Goggles. (I couldn’t find the Big Person goggles, so I had to improvise)
Cut your fence to the length you desire. Make sure you get out any rusty nails. Little hands will be touching this at bedtime.
Then take your sander and sand the heck out of it. I used a coarse grade and saved the pads when they wore down and needed replacing. I’ll explain why later.
(No, I’m not on Black and Decker’s payroll.)
Ahh, look how smooth.
Then I took some flat spray paint and added more white to the fence. I ran out of the flat paint so I grabbed the high gloss white spray paint and used that as well. Have I told you that I’m impatient? I was NOT going to make yet another trip to Lowe’s.
Now, time to take that used sandpaper and distress the fence some more. Used sandpaper gives it a nice distressed look without destroying the paint. You could also use fine sandpaper. I also used a block sander to get some of the nooks and crannies.
That was it! I left it outside for a few more days to wait for the paint smell to fade and for my husband to carry it inside and up the stairs for me.
I love how it turned out!
My daughter loves it too!
Linking up to some partays!
Get your Funky Junk on! Saturday Night Special — check it out.
Thrifty Thursday at Tales from Bloggeritaville
Infarrantly Creative’s Roadkill Rescue. LOVE this party!
Check out Works For Me Wednesday over at We Are THAT Family. Sooo many great ideas!
I’m also linking up to Kimba’s DIY Day at A Soft Place To Land.
And The Shabby Nest
Tags: Black and Decker, DIY, headboard, spray paint, Thrifty Decor
16Nov 2009
That’s awesome, Jen! I love it!!
16Nov 2009
Oh I’m loving this! Such a great upcycle project…glad I’m not the only impatient decorator round the blogsphere
) Thanks for linking up to the party….
peace.
16Nov 2009
What a cute project! But I want to know what you saved the sanding pad things for.
16Nov 2009
Thanks for your question, Jane. I reused the used sandpaper for the distressing after I painted the fence. Since the sandpaper was no longer as “strong,” I guess, it created a more subtle distressing without taking too much paint off. Of course the best distressing was that it had sat outside in the elements for years.
16Nov 2009
Nice job, Jen!
16Nov 2009
Wow!! SO cool. I’ve been wanting a sander for a while..but don’t have one yet. What camera do you use? Love the pics.
16Nov 2009
Hi Elisa. I got the sander on a Clearance table at Lowe’s. It was about $22. That was still in the “splurge” range, but I couldn’t bear the thought of hand sanding.
My camera is not that great. It’s a Canon S2IS that I purchased about 4 years ago. I’ve been jonesing for a DSLR, but that is DEFinitely not in the budget. The way I get the focus with fuzzy background is to stand far away and then zoom, zoom, zoom in. I have a 15x digital zoom so my camera is great for zooming in on still objects.
16Nov 2009
Awesome, Jen! I love it!!
16Nov 2009
love it!
16Nov 2009
Looks AWESOME!!!!!!!!!!!
16Nov 2009
Love that! Would have never thought of using a fence for this. Looks amazing!
16Nov 2009
how sweet!
16Nov 2009
That is adorable! So sweet!
16Nov 2009
It turned out great!!! I have a bed made out of a picket fence too. My hubby made it for me years ago when I was still a single gal. It now resides outside on our covered patio. Our son uses it to sleep outside in the summer.
16Nov 2009
That looks perfect Jen!
16Nov 2009
I. Love. It. Man, I wish I had a girl!
16Nov 2009
I love it! You did a great job Jen!
16Nov 2009
I am looking for ideas for a headboard, and I LOVE yours!!! It came out fantastic and has that shabby chic look I love so much. YAY!!! Congratulations on a job well done, and thanks for sharing the “How To” info!
Enjoy your day,
Zuzu
16Nov 2009
I can understand why this makes your daughter smile such a big smile!
16Nov 2009
Great blog and I just signed up to subscribe–I hope you’ll come by and follow me a well.
Cheri
16Nov 2009
Thanks Cheri! I just added you to my feed as well. I’m loving the topics you are covering.
16Nov 2009
awwww… great job! love the tutorial! she’s a doll, and very lucky!
gail
16Nov 2009
I love the headboard! I have always wanted one of those for my girls but they wanted jungle stuff
16Nov 2009
Thanks for the tip on the used sandpaper. Very cute.
16Nov 2009
SO cute… I love it!! Your daughter has such a precious smile!
16Nov 2009
It looks fantastic! I love it when a plan comes together. I have that same sander and love it!
16Nov 2009
Wow that looks great. Nice job, gotta love friends who love free junk…that is probably how my friend’s feel about me. Thanks for linking up.
16Nov 2009
Very creative!
16Nov 2009
Fabulous job! It looks wonderful in your daughters room and the price was definitely right!!
Jane
16Nov 2009
Adorable!
16Nov 2009
What a super job. I love it. I always love the look of a picket fence where ever it is!!!
16Nov 2009
Great redo!!
16Nov 2009
LOVE IT!!! I can’t get enough of picket fencing. You have a fantabulous friend…
Thanks for sharing!
Living it up at Lakewood,
Cindy
16Nov 2009
Fabulous!! Perfect for a little girl’s room!
16Nov 2009
Just awesome girl…I can tell your daughter also thinks its awesome…hugs and smiles Gl♥ria
16Nov 2009
WOOO!HOOO! I love a woman who owns a jigsaw! Wish I did! That headboard is precious (as is the little girl who owns it!) Great job, thrifty and adorable! Thank you for linking up to Thrifty Thursday this week, my sweet friend! Great deals!
HUGS!
Leigh
Tales from Bloggeritaville
http://www.lbratina.blogspot.com
16Nov 2009
[...] Picket Fence Headboard @ Jentility (I need a picket fence headboard! Must. Have. Little. Girl.) [...]
16Nov 2009
What a great idea, very cute. What little girl wouldn’t love it.
16Nov 2009
I love this headboard but I have a stupid question…and yes, there are stupid questions. How did you attach it? Is it attached to the wall or the bedframe? See, I told you…stupid question. I’m a DIY beginner…can you tell?
16Nov 2009
Thanks for the question Liz, it’s not a stupid question at all!
It is just standing on the floor. She doesn’t have a bed frame. She inherited the queen box spring and mattress when we upgraded to a king, and we took the frame.
So the fence is just the right height to sit on the floor.
If the fence hadn’t been tall enough, or when she gets upgraded to a bed frame, I imagine we’ll do something like balance it on cinder blocks or milk crates or something similar at the head of the bed by putting them under the bed.
16Nov 2009
Great job! Thanks for linking!
16Nov 2009
Wow – I love this headboard. You did such a good job!
16Nov 2009
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