Our 2 upstairs bedrooms each have a large window box that my father built. Over the last few weeks Ethan has taken to sleeping in them. Heather came up with the idea of building these into a larger bed and this weekend we put the plan into action. The end results was a very quick and easy platform bed. After taking measurements we realized the window boxes were wider than a twin mattress so the plan was to get a piece of MDF and attach one end on the window box and build legs to support the other end. This would create a nice little play area underneath half the bed.

Ethan and I went to Lowes and had a piece of 3/4″ MDF ($24) cut to the correct dimensions (a FREE service that makes your project that much easier). After looking around we found a display of table legs ($9 each) that have a screw on one end and we alongside was the corresponding bracket ($2 each) it screws into. All I needed to do was round the corners of one end of the MDF with my jigsaw, attach the brackets, cut the legs to the right height, and put it all together. Voila! A platform bed in under 1 hour.

That night, however, we realized a problem with the plan. Ben would not leave Ethan alone because he loved the bed too. So Sunday afternoon I headed back to Lowes and picked up the same things along with some 2x4s ($3 each). Our 1 concern with Ethan’s bed was the strength of the MDF. It should be fine for the kids, but I didn’t trust it to support an adult. Assembling Ben’s bed took longer, but the end result is like a table with one long end that rests on the window box. I made a square with the 2x4s screwed and glued together and then cut triangles which I screwed into the corners of the boxes. The leg brackets were screwed into these triangles and the whole thing screwed onto the MDF.

I’m really starting to love these quick and simple projects. They’re not pretty, but they are cheap, useful, easy, and much sturdier than anything you could buy for the same price. When we don’t need the beds anymore I can take it apart and use the wood for another project.

For my next project I’d like to try making a simple trophy shelf for the boys. I bought a single piece of crown molding ($12) that I’m going to try using with my scrap MDF to make a shelf. I’ve seen this done on numerous DIY shows and I think its a great project. I’ll make sure to take pictures and post the whole project.

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