DIY Rug Headboard

Adding or upgrading a bed has a lot of costs so getting creative with the headboard is a great way to save money. Using a rug to create a headboard is definitely out of the box thinking, but it’s unique and affordable. Ready to see how to make a diy rug headboard?!

how to make a diy rug headboard

rattan headboard

The inspiration for this project came from pretty rattan headboards with pretty scallops and intricate details. Sadly, they are  not in my budget. Instead, I figured a round jute rug could give me the look for less!

My son Don’s room has a twin bed and we decided to upgrade him to a queen with this project. We rent our home out as an Air BNB so having a bed that sleeps two makes more sense for that. 

SUPPLIES

• plywood sheet
• jute round rug (5′ wide for a queen- it works because a queen mattress is 5′ wide)
• wood to metal screws
• heavy duty scissors
• jigsaw
• palm sander
• drill 
• drill bits
• bed base

Note, Zinus (the company where the bed base is from) sponsored some Instagram stories and a post. They didn’t pay for a blog post so this is not sponsored. I just like to have a blog post for my projects as a resource for my readers.

step 1- cut the wood headboard base

To create the headboard base, start by using a table saw to cut the plywood board down to 60″ wide and 58″ high.

The width is the same as the mattress. We figured the height by taking the height of our bed base and mattress plus 2.5′ (the height of half the rug). 

Lay the rug on the plywood. Where the little circle doilies sit next to each other, there’s a gap where I put the pencil to draw a dot. I connected the dots to make an arch. 

I didn’t want the wood base to show behind the scallops so I used a jig saw to cut the arch smaller than them.

Sand the edges smooth.

step 2- secure the rug on the plywood headboard 

Next, staple the rug onto the plywood arch. Use plenty of staples so the rug is secure on the wood.

For the excess rug, use heavy duty scissors to cut it do it’ll barely be lower than the mattress. I was a little tempted to leave it long, but I worried the extra pressure would slowly pull it off the headboard.

To deal with the potential of the rug unraveling (one of my big worries), We stapled the ends of each piece of rope to the wood base. I think hot glue would have also worked.

I did try singeing the end of the rope, but since jute is a natural rope, it just burned and didn’t bead up at the end. 

step 3 attach the headboard to the bed base

And now, please the headboard in the room where it’ll live. In the back of the wood, use a drill bit to pre drill where the screws will attach the headboard to the bed base. 

Build the bed base and mark where the headboard will connect to the base. To be honest, the base I choose is really not designed to be attached to a headboard, but we made it work.

Where the screw holes will be, I used scissors to cut little slits in the base cover.

Then we used the wood to metal screws to attach the headboard to the bed base.

after

Here’s the bed how it turned out- isn’t it so fun! I love the texture and boho fun it adds to the room!

sources- dinosaur wallpaper is discontinued / 8×10 rug / curtains / dinosaur shelves / dinosaur lamp / t rex art / white paint- Ultra Pure White

I think the DIY rug headboard really modernizes the room. Plus with the vintage nightstand is a nice mixture.

I was asked if the rug is itchy- and it is a little bit. But when we read in bed, we always put a pillow behind us. And you don’t really touch it at night when sleeping.

To clean the headboard, just use a vacuum hose.

Don is thrilled with the whole room! It’s so fun doing projects with and for him. 

I hope this affordable headboard is helpful and gives you ideas for how to make a bed on a budget.

This post contains some affiliate links for your convenience. Click here to read my full disclosure policy.

If you love it, pin it!