My son needed more room in his bedroom...and to be rid of the very girly furniture he inherited when he moved into his "big boy-ish" bedroom. At 10 yrs old, it was high time he got a bed that wasn't pink-tinged, white washed pine with 4 posters and enough curlicues to choke a forest. He also needed a desk which I couldn't really fit in his room with the armoire and chest of drawers that came with the Queen sized bed.
So off to Ikea we went and I saw a black loft bed for $300, but it was really, really high which meant I would have to cut it down and it was not sturdy at all. I looked at PB and saw the $1800 bed. Um, no - that wasn't happening. So, off to Ana-White I went and I'm so happy I did!
I built the full sized version of these plans and, to keep costs down, used wood I had on hand. This meant I had to work a bit at the cuts, but it all worked out.
Mods:
1) I modified the railings to have the ladder at the end of the bed to keep away from the ceiling fan.
2) Because I put the ladder at the end of the bed, I got very nervous about having a soon-to-be teen climbing on to a ladder secured to a 1x10 that was only connected to the side railings with glue and screws. So I sandwiched extra 1x3s over the bottom rails and attached them to the top railing.
3) I was very nervous about making sure that the bed was adequately supported so I put a 2x4 down the center instead of the 1x2.
4) I went a wee-bit overboard screwing things together to the point where it's a bit embarrassing and now I have to paint over the screw heads.
5) I made the ladder treads with 2x4's, modifying the inside spacer board cut lengths.
Because I had quite a bit of lumber on hand, the bed only ended up costing me about $90.
For the bookcase, I did end up buying the 1x12s and the adjustable shelf railings. I made the book shelf the entire width of of the bed and split the two sections based on width of the 1x24 board I bought for the desk. I only put the backer board up half way so that the daylight could get underneath the bed and make it not so cave-like.
The book case cost me about $70.
The desk was the easiest...but most costly item. A 1x6x24, 4 table legs and the table leg mounts ran me about $80. The plexiglass top that I had cut for the top cost me about $80.
Time wise, this would have taken me a lot less time than the 4 months it took - but I worked on it as I could and when I could, by myself. I got some friends to help me bring it upstairs and put it back together, but it was mostly done when I could fit in some time.
My son LOVES this and it really does give him so much room!!! Thanks Ana - I really appreciate it!
Comments
Ana White Admin
Thu, 03/25/2021 - 10:28
Great space!
Love the look of this, thanks for sharing!
nifof17547
Sat, 11/25/2023 - 09:15
Great!
Great!
nifof17547
Mon, 05/20/2024 - 08:23
Wow, this is such an…
Wow, this is such an inspiring project! I can relate to loving Ana White's site for DIY ideas and tutorials. It's amazing how you've combined her plans with your designs using SketchUp. Adding plant-lantern brackets to prevent books from falling is a brilliant touch. I remember how I wrote a story about how I did something similar. I used https://essays.edubirdie.com/personal-statement-writing because I wanted to write a motivating story. And there I was able to get help from professionals. I understand the frustration with wood costs right now; it’s great that you still went ahead with the project despite the expense. The effort and time you invested, especially with the multiple coats of stain, really show your dedication. Thanks for sharing this – it's motivating me to start my DIY project soon!