Hey walkin -- I'm *far* from an expert on this--people here helped me on the one I've done. I bought a kit of the precut wood and MDF parts, complete with screws and such, truth be told, just because I didn't want to have to do all the measuring and cutting--sometimes I hit "tilt" and have to take the easy way out. The kit was from eBay. We did buy better foam, however, than the kit came with. And we also wrapped it. Probably way overdoing it. It wasn't hard at all, in fact rather enjoyable in an instant-gratification kind of way (esp. since I didn't have to do the cutting :))--we did do two rows of staples, alternating spaces kind of like sewing stitches, because the fabric seemed to pull between the stitches so I wanted it anchored completely. We didn't edge it with wood, but we could--we just did a simple rectangle which extends 24" above the surface of the mattress (we have a high mattress--if you were to purchase the same set and not have as high a mattress setup, it would be taller unless you cut it down). We love the simple lines. It would be easy to put wood around this if we chose to, or to make a slipcover for it down the line.

Hi Gray, yes, for example I had a set of upholstered armed dining chairs with a print that had some color in it I did not like. So, I just painted over that color. It's monotonous work! However, six armchairs with front and back upper and lower upholstery would have cost me a bundle if I wanted to have them re-done. If you do it right and use good textile paint no one can tell. With the Jacquard brand you can use it on natural or synthetics. You are meant to run over it with a warm iron on the reverse side if you are using for clothing for a "set". I never used an iron but never used it on clothing. I think they just have that on the label to cover the Permanent*Washable/Drycleaning*Nonfading/Lightfast claims. If omitting a color with textile paint you can't rush it. You need some good quality paint brushes. I prefer oil brushes or a semi medium stiff real bristle brush. The size would depend on your project. A small 2.5 oz container covers a lot of ground as I like to water it down a bit, paint a light layer, dry and another light layer. That whole headboard took slightly over one 2.5 oz bottle, maybe just under a container and a half. You can put as many layers on as you like. By doing it that way it still feels like fabric when done, not painted fabric. You will also need a plate to swish your brush across after loading with paint to get the paint around equally within the brush as well as to remove excess and will also need a rag or paper towel if you need to blot. Or, a stencil if you are adding a pattern! I soft brush it all out when dry but some do it while still wet.

HIW, it was solid, but I guess you could do it with spindles. I'm just wondering about comfort when you lean against the spindles. I also made a headboard for my DD's room with plywood and 2x4's. It was super easy (but this was much easier). Thanks everyone, especially for the feedback on the fabric. I did buy it for this room originally, but never got around to doing anything with it. I do have a vision of updating the room with a more up to date fabric (maybe a trellis or chevron). Any thoughts on where to move the floral pics? Maybe I'll start a new thread.

It is the EXACT same room. Just a tiny fraction of what was dealt with in an entire home re do and representative of the state of every space within it. It is an ONGOING battle. : )And I will let you guess who got serious. Yours truly, and you can bet there was some major league screaming and shouting along the way. It's a clients MONEY. I am not going to spend it, lie that anyone can take you where you want to go, if "those" shall be your habits. It's my habit to hound you until I leave it the way I would like to find it. You want to trash what we accomplished? Welllllllllllllllll that is up to you.