DIY IKEA Kura Bed Hack

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DIY IKEA Kura bed hack

DIY IKEA Kura bed hack

DIY IKEA Kura bed hack

When Henry turned two, he was ready to move from his crib to a big kid bed. But we needed his crib for Maggie, so we didn’t do the usual thing where you can turn the crib into a toddler bed. We went straight to a twin and just ripped off the bandaid. And he did great. For a kid who sometimes balks at change, I have to say, we couldn’t have hoped for any better transition. I think it’s partly because we got him a really fun bed from IKEA, and partly because we let him help us put it together. Since then, I’ve been meaning to add a little hack to it to make it even more custom, and we finally got around to it. So here it is! Our DIY IKEA Kura bed hack. I love it because it looks like a little house, and it gives you all kinds of opportunities for playing and decorating.

Materials

Make Time: 4 Hours

Step 1: If you like, sand, stain, and seal all wood portions of the bed. Henry’s room has dark wood in it so we sanded the wood to match.

Step 2: Build the bed according to the instructions on the packaging. Just a note about this bed: It’s actually reversible. For now, the mattress is on the lower section and the rails are on the top. But when the kid gets older you can flip it over so it’s a loft bed, with the mattress on the top and space underneath. We made our hack so that when the time comes, it’s completely removable.

Step 3: Cut the pieces for the “roof” of your house. Cut one piece of pine board to the length of the bed. This will be the peak. Set this aside. Cut another piece to the height that you’d like the roof. You won’t end up using this piece; it’s just for measuring. This is piece B in the diagram below.

Step 4: In the diagram below, A is the width of the bed. You can cut another scrap of wood to the same length if you’d like to lay it on the floor to measure out your other pieces. Otherwise, you can just set out a measuring tape that’s the same length as the width of the bed.  Place the height piece (B) perpendicular to it, in the exact center. Then lay an additional piece of board (C) under the two, creating a triangle. Trace two lines on this board, extending from piece A and piece B. This will be the angle that you’ll need to cut on either end with your miter saw. Do this with three more boards. You can just set the angle on your miter saw and cut four boards total. You should now have four piece C’s.

DIY IKEA Kura bed hack

Step 5: Drill pilot holes slightly smaller than the size of your screws through the diagonal pieces (all piece C’s) and into piece A where they will connect. Screw all pieces together.

DIY IKEA Kura bed hack

DIY IKEA Kura bed hack

Step 6: Optional! Stain and seal the roof of the bed.

Step 7: Attach the roof to the bed by screwing all pieces together using the drill.

That’s it! It’s so fun! Sometimes we toss a sheet over the top and read books underneath, or we balance all of his stuffed animals up there and see how long we can get them to stay. It’s also awesome for decorating because you can hang stuff off of it or drape things over it. I’d love to rig up some fun lights once Henry’s a little older. And finally, his big kid bed is done! xoxo

DIY IKEA Kura bed hack

DIY IKEA Kura bed hack

DIY IKEA Kura bed hack

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