How To Make A DIY Twin Bed

Come learn how to make an inexpensive DIY Twin bed with this step-by-step tutorial, instructions and video! Download the Free DIY Twin Bed Plans!

How to make a DIY Twin Bed How-To Video!

This year brought a lot of change for my family, including moving to a different home. One of the tasks I had moving was getting each of the kids a bedroom set up at my new house. Today I am sharing the twin bed we built for one of my boys, and I will be sharing the platform bed frames in the next week or so. This bed is designed for a twin mattress, but is very easily customized to other sizes. You can download and print the free plans with dimensions and instructions at the bottom of this post.

Kreg Jig

One question we get asked consistently is… “What is a Kreg Jig?” A Kreg Jig is a pocket hole jig that helps create pocket holes, allowing you to build with super strong joints. It makes joining two boards faster and gives you stronger and cleaner joints than countersinking a wood screw. We discovered them shortly after we started building furniture and it was a HUGE game changer for our furniture building! We were so impressed with how user-friendly they are and the strong joints it gave our builds! For this coffee table, I used my Kreg Jig 720 PRO and I LOVE IT! You guys will love it too… definitely worth the upgrade for those of you that already own a different model. You can fine the Kreg 720 Pro on Amazon! You can also check out our How to Use a Kreg Jig Video on how to use it!

Ripping the boards

Before adding any pocket holes, I ripped my 2×4 boards down to 3″ wide each. I like to make my cross cuts first with my miter saw, and then rip those smaller cuts with the table saw. We use our table saw to rip the round edges off of the framing boards we build with. This is an optional step but we like to do it to make the pieces of furniture look more expensive and not built with framing lumber. It really helps on a build like this table. Ripping them down gives the stacked boards a solid clean look, like it’s one piece. You can watch How We Rip Our Framing Boards Video to see how we rip our boards!

Step 1 – Building the Twin Headboard Frame

The first step in building this headboard is to create the frame. The frame is built using 2 x 4 boards that we ripped to 3” wide each.  I like to make my cross cuts on my miter saw first, and then rip those shorter pieces on the table saw.  Add 1.5” pocket holes along one side of one of the shorter boards and also on both ends of the shorter boards. Attach the shorter board with more pocket holes at the top using wood glue and 2.5” pocket hole wood screws. Make sure your pocket holes are facing up because this is how you will attach the header in the next step. Your bottom board will sit 3” from the bottom of the side pieces. Attach that board as well using 2.5” pocket hole screws and wood glue.

STEP 2 – Attaching the Header

The next step is attaching the header of the headboard. This is a 2 x 4 board ripped to 2” wide. Attach the header evenly along the top of the headboard using 2.5” pocket hole screws and wood glue. 

STEP 3 – Adding the Trim

Now it’s time to add the trim pieces. These are 1 x 2 boards cut to size. Add 3/4” pocket holes on each end of all five trim boards. Attach them evenly to the top and bottom frame pieces using wood glue and 1.25” pocket hole screws. The front of the trim pieces will be flush with the front of the headboard frame.

You will want to adjust the depth collar on your Kreg Jig drill bit before making the pocket holes on these smaller boards.

STEP 4 – Attaching the Planks to the Headboard

The next step is attaching the back panel boards on the back of the headboard. These are edge glued panels. They are typically found by the plywood at the hardware store. These are 3/4” thick. Two of the panels are cut to 9 1/8” and the other two panels are cut to 8 3/8” wide. Attach these panels as shown to the back of the trim pieces using wood glue and 1” brad nails through the panels and into the trim pieces.

Platform Bed Base

Make sure to check out the matching free plans for the DIY Twin Bed Platform Base! I love the way it turned out!

The finish

At this point you are ready to sand and finish the bed. Before staining the bed, I used my sander to lightly sand the entire headboard. I like to start with 120 grit sandpaper and then move to 220 grit to get a smooth finish.

I used three different Varathane stain colors to create this. I started with an empty tub from the hardware store. These are super inexpensive. You can also use any empty container you have at home! I mixed two parts of Natural stain, one part of Golden Oak, and a splash of Weathered Gray. This gave me the perfect finish that I was looking for. You just put all of that into the bucket and stir it up just a bit and you’re ready to go!

Make sure to sand all the surfaces with medium and fine sandpaper to get an even, beautiful finish. I like to use my Ryobi Corner Cat for this! An orbital sander also works great!

I often get asked what protective coat I like to use on top. This is my favorite polyurethane!

Free Plans