I Made Our Double Bed - The Economy Of Making Your Own

Lay in bed I could literally count the springs sticking into my back. 

I'd wake up feeling worse than when I'd gone to sleep. The mattress had to go and the crappy bed with it. 

The Mattress in question was 10 years old and the first bed that we purchased after having a few second hand ones from family. 

Our new bed!!!

It was from Ikea along with the bed frame. I broke the bed frame the first night by pushing one bit with my foot and it's not got any better, slats fall out frequently and I had to make some modifications the first few weeks of having it. By the end I'm fairly sure it's just my collection of books that's keeping it up!


It was time for something better, time to treat ourselves. So with mum babysitting the kids on a Sunday we went bed shopping. We found a mattress that we liked and was in budget (exdisplay model so half price!).

But I was far too fussy on the bed frames. None that I saw I liked or thought they were very well made and I didn't want a repeat of the first one. I managed to convince my wife that we'd be better off making one, there would be no fussy details and it could be nice and strong, built how we liked.

So instead of spending £400 or £500 or more on a bed frame I went to the timber yard and spent £100 on some joinery quality softwood (pine).

I love seeing a pile of timber like this and knowing it's going to look very different in a few days.

I've always wanted to build my own bed so this project felt a little self indulgent, especially when I have so much else that I need to be getting on with.

But then I thought about the economy of buying the bed. The money we'd need to buy a ready made one would take me two or three days to earn and in that time I could easily make the bed from scratch. 

By making our own we save on tax, I get to make it at home in my own workshop and we get it just the way we want it. I opted to make it really simple and chunky. The corners are all 4x4 posts and the headboard is seriously strong, corners are all slightly taken off with a chamfer, keeping the crisp look.

I've got some great fixings alongside mortise and tenons so it can be taken apart if needed.

I'll do a post later in the week on my carpentry blog about how I built it and what methods I used.

I'm really pleased with this and in a weird way I'm excited to go to bed tonight!

For the last three weeks we've just had a mattress on the floor like a bedsit or a squat. The kids have had great fun though and spent ages jumping about on top of us when they run in for their morning cuddle.

As for a better nights sleep - the new mattress, even on the floor, has made me feel amazing. I've gone from having a constant dull ache in my back to waking up feeling refreshed! Just wish we'd changed years ago.


What do you think to my justification of making it myself?

What would you most like to make for your own house?