Thrift store plank bed (plus a giveaway from HomeRight)

This month, HomeRight® challenged its brand ambassadors (that’s me) to do a makeover on a $20 thrift store find, showing how it’s possible to create beautiful decor on a shoestring budget. So right up my alley, right? 😉 I had the absolute perfect project to tackle for this challenge.

I’m currently smack dab in the middle of our “big-boy room” transformation and one of the most important furniture pieces I needed to find for the space was an inexpensive bed.

I scored this wooden headboard for $20 and the set of bed rails for $30 at my local thrift store, with the vision of transforming it into a modern-looking piece with stained wood planks.

See what I turned it into in the brief video below (or scroll through to read the project steps).

I started the project by removing the trim from the center of the headboard.

Next I coated the headboard with paint stripper, scraped off the finish as much as possible, then used a sander, sandpaper and steel wool to remove the remainder of the old varnish.

The headboard was then ready for new stain. I used my handy HomeRight Finish Max and HomeRight Spray Shelter to apply a coat of stain to the entire headboard. (Stick around for an awesome giveaway at the end of this post!) 

I chose Varathane® stain (Kona color) for its one-coat coverage and soap-and-water cleanup.

While the stain dried, I went to work on the wooden planks for the center of the headboard. I chose lattice trim boards, cutting them out on my miter saw, then arranging them randomly in the headboard.

The pattern I used is very similar to what I used when installing our hardwood flooring.

After I cut and arranged all the boards, I took them out, laid them on a dropcloth and applied stain to each piece, creating a random patchwork pattern using just about every stain color I have in my basement.

When the pieces dried, I permanently adhered them to the headboard using Liquid Nails.

Then I applied a coat of matte polyurethane to seal the planks and fill in any cracks.

Finally, I attached the “new” headboard to the rails.

Done! We’ve now got a brand new, big-boy bed.

What do you think of my thrift store transformation?

Are you feeling inspired to tackle your own transformation project? You need the HomeRight Finish Max and Spray Shelter to help you get the job done quickly and beautifully. HomeRight is giving away a Finish Max and Spray Shelter to one of you luckies! Enter below to win.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

*Affiliate links provided in this post for your convenience. 

Disclaimer: I’m thrilled to be a brand ambassador for HomeRight and, as always, all thoughts, opinions and projects are my own.