A Loft Bed with Bookshelf/Desk

Submitted by bobgaivin on Thu, 01/06/2011 - 09:50

My daughter (10) and I built the Loft Bed with the optional Desk/Bookshelf as my contribution to her 10th birthday bedroom makeover.

I added a cantilevered shelf to the top of the headboard to accommodate a reading lamp, alarm clock and books.

We swapped out the middle shelf for  a piece of white melamine to be a desktop and added a melamine iron-on banding for the edging.

To support a hanging rope chair, I swapped out the 2x2" center spine with a 2x4"

She and her cat love it!

Apparently board widths are different in Alaska, so double-check measurements and "dry fit" with scraps before cutting the middle piece of the 3 piece legs.

 

under construction, before the alarm clock shelf was added to the top rail. The desk is backwards for photo purposes.

under construction

finished project, sanded and painted with 2 coats of flat black paint.

finished

anawhite (not verified)

Fri, 01/07/2011 - 16:33

Just Fabulous!  Love your work, cute room!

selah

Tue, 01/11/2011 - 11:11

This is great! I am planning on building this for my 12 year old son's birthday. How long did it take you to build it?

 

Christine

bobgaivin

Tue, 01/11/2011 - 14:50

Christine,

It, probably, took about 24 hours of labor.

Its all straight 90 degree cuts.

I have a "chop" saw and a small table saw, so I had Big Blue Box cut the 1" x 8" x 10 footer for me because it was so awkward.

The wood for the bed cost ~$122 and the desk cost ~$62.

I already had some of that brown cardboardy stuff that goes on the back of a bookshelf. Its inexpensive.

I used every last drop of 2 quarts of flat black latex paint.

A rubber mallet and a block of scrap wood wrapped in a towel are handy to knock the long runners into their slot and take it apart again without  ruining the finish.

(I built it in the basement, painted it there and took it apart to bring up to the second floor. The bookcase is a little heavy and awkward.)

Definetly a great project, my daughter really loved it.

Bob Gaivin

sleeplessmom

Sun, 02/13/2011 - 12:14

What kind of wood did you use? Everyone that has commented about making this bed on facebook has spent around what you said. When I add up how much for me, it's over $200. Do prices go up in the winter if you live where it snows? lol Still going to build it, just wish it was a tad cheaper!

bobgaivin

Mon, 02/14/2011 - 02:43

Looks like my first reply didn't "stick".

 

I built the bead with the cheap pine / white board (depends on Lowes or Home Depot's description) that has knots , not the fancy pine that is free of knots.

The fancy pine is twice as expensive as the cheap stuff. Since I was painting it I didn't mind a few knots.

I started the project late last fall. I have heard that lumber prices go up at the beginning of summer for the construction boom and peter out later in the summer.