how to: upholster a headboard.

materials:

• -3/4 in. plywood. {64 in. x 42 in. -ish for a very large queen headboard.}
• -3 in. thick foam. {preferably the kind that you order from amazon.com from some sketch fabric store in california that charges you twice for shipping.}
• -spray adhesive.
• -polyester batting.
• -3 1/2 -ish yards of fabric.
• -drill, jig saw and staple gun. {fun, fun fun.}
• -button kit and at least 31 buttons.
• -upholstery needles.
• -upholstery twine.

instructions:

1. wait until 10 p.m. at night to start. also, make sure you're really sunburnt and just got back from a vacation. {unpacking...who does that?!}

2. trace the desired shape of the headboard onto the sheet of plywood. then, lay out your button pattern. i used masking tape to make a lovely little huge grid. this is the part of the project where i found out how horrible my mental math skills are.

{it started out looking so perfect.}

3. now for the fun part. drill small-ish holes through the plywood where each button will eventually live. contemplate purchasing a power drill. decide it's probably a safety hazard to yourself and anyone in the nearby vicinity.

{grown up bob the builder toys. way better than legos.}

{wayyyy too excited.}

4. now for the EVEN more fun part. enter the jig saw. have fun playing with power tools for a while. and don't forget your safety glasses. {still have all your limbs?}

{practically vintage jigsaw. just my style.}

5. lose your phone and forget to take pictures for the rest of the project.

6. cut your foam down to size with a bread knife. there's probably a better way to do this. don't ask me what it is. after your foam is the correct size, use the spray adhesive to attach it to the plywood. {don't forget to step in the adhesive residue and partially glue yourself to the garage floor.} 

7. cover the foam and plywood with batting and fabric and secure with your handy dandy staple gun. {technically not a power tool, but still a blast and a half.}

8. do some other steps. cover 31 buttons with fabric. blah blah blah. poke yourself with the upholstery needle more times than you can count. staple. staple. staple. tie some thread. more stapling.

*******************************************************

voila. so easy, right? for a more detailed tutorial, just type "diy tufted headboard" into your favorite search engine.

{blue velvet. oh baby.}