So, it’s spring cleaning time in our household right now!  I have a love/hate relationship with spring cleaning.  I love getting organized and redecorating but I loathe that you have to create endless messes in the house before the final product!
One project I am starting this spring is my 7-year-olds room.  His room has always been pretty hodge-podge because he likes to express himself with crayons and stickers on his furniture.  I have been bribing him the last year that if he could start taking care of what he has then we would redecorate his room.  So, here we are!  We are starting with a big boy bed which is quite an exciting change from his twin/twin, hand-me-down bunk:)
I’m sure you all remember the Twin Storage Bed that Whit shared with you all!  I have always loved the storage beds that I see in certain “high-end” magazines so this was the bed that I went with.  I  
followed the plans for the Full Storage Bed that from Ana’s site! 
No more quick trips to Home Depot;)  I love my little shopping buddy and she looks so excited to be shopping with me;)
After building the pieces to the bed I stained it with Minwax Dark Walnut.  It took two coats and it was super easy! 
I let it dry and followed up with a coat of Minwax Polycrylic Clear Gloss.  This was just the look I wanted with the clear gloss!
So far so good!  I absolutely love it now that it is put together.  Anyone can do this and I suggest it because it is so rewarding (and addicting)!  Not to mention that it only cost me $120 compared to $700!
Advice/Pointers:
~ If you mess up, nothing is unfixable!  Wood putty works wonders and I used a TON;)
~ Use Gorilla Glue Wood Glue!  This is what actually joins the pieces together.  The screws/nails are just to hold in place while the glue dries.  This bed is so sturdy that I can jump on it!
~ Make sure you wipe all the glue drips off, especially if you are going to stain the wood.  If you do not, the stain will not penetrate leaving lighter spots (yes, I learned the hard way but fortunately it is not obvious).
 ~ Check all of your boards to make sure they are straight!  If you get home with bowed boards it will make construction a nightmare!  This is very simple.  Just pick one end up to eye level and look all the way down the board to make sure it is pretty level.  Flip over to check all of the sides.
~ You can have Home Depot cut your boards for you.  I cut my own with my miter saw but I have had them cut boards for me before.  (Make sure you bring a tape measure with you so you do not leave with mistakes).
So that’s it for now!  I am going to add the Farmhouse Headboard to his bed next.  I love the look of it and I think it will complement the storage bed nicely:)  I am also working on the storage crates for the cubbies.  I am constructing them without plans so I will share the tutorial on those as soon as they are done!
Don’t forget to scroll down to our “I Made it Without My Hubby” party to check-out all of the great entries!  It’s not too late to enter;)
~Ashley
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14 Comments

  1. ????⭐?
    ⭐ I built my own using the plans at www. WoodworkPlans.info – highly recommended you check those out too. They are detailed and super easy to read and understand unlike several others I found online. The amount of plans there is mind-boggling… there’s like 16,000 plans or something like that for tons of different projects. Definitely enough to keep me busy with projects for many more years to come haha

    Head on over to www. WoodworkPlans.info if you want to learn more – click the pink link above for some more plans! Best of luck on your building adventures!
    ⭐?⭐?⭐

  2. Awesome! I love it! I think I have to do the same one for my younger sister. Thanks for such a lovely tutorial!

  3. I like the concept however, my mother had a bed where you just lay the mattress on the top and her bed slid a lot and would hang over on one side or the other. Do you have that problem now? If not what do you think helps? Also, do you think it would be possible to add a border around the top of the whole frame to go up about 1/4th of the mattress to hold it in place?

  4. i love the storage here, which is why i totally want it for our master bedroom. we have serious lack of closet space in our little cape, so i need all the found storage i can get!

  5. Totally had to laugh at the cart with the baby seat and the board. I remember doing the same thing. It usually resulted in stress…LOL! I am thankful that mine are old enough now where they can push another cart and help out…

    Great post…

    Take care,
    Lisa

  6. Awesome!! (as always) How in the heck do you find the time!!!???

    My husband and I built my daughter's toddler bed and it turned out great. I have been looking for ideas for her next bed (when shes grown out of her toddler bed) and this one is at the top of my list! I love the storage space!!