Girls Butterfly Bedroom Makeover

Bedtime will be lots of fun for your little girl when she sleeps in this cute, full-sized bed, featuring a beautiful butterfly motif.

’Just living is not enough’, said the butterfly, ‘one must have sunshine, freedom and a little flower’

- Hans Christian Andersen

This charming bed fits a standard single mattress with a little extra room so you can make the bed without skinning your knuckles. The bed is made of painted MDF for the panels and the mattress supports are pine. It’s easy to build, so no nightmares for you as you make it. And if you ever need to move the bed to another room or to another house, it separates into ends and rails for easy transportation. For night-time fun, the butterfly motif is backlit with a coloured perspex panel so, at the flick of a switch, it comes to life with a colourful glow.

1. The little girl in your life will love this pretty butterfly bed. It’s so simple to make, you’ll have it completed in a weekend.

2. The backlit butterfly motif creates a lovely warm glow throughout the bedroom, providing a cosy and restful space.

Gather your supplies
A Bedhead face 940 x 1100 x 18mm MDF
B Bedhead top 940 x 100 x 18mm MDF
C Bedhead sides (2)1082 x 100 x 18mm MDF
D Bedhead rail 904 x 100 x 18mm MDF
E Bedhead back 400 x 940 x 18mm MDF
F Bed-end top 940 x 100 x 18mm MDF
G Bed-end sides (2) 482 x 100 x 18mm MDF
H Bed-end front/back (2) 940 x 500 x 18mm MDF
I Bed rails (2) 2212 x 200 x 18mm MDF
J Slat supports (2) 90 x 35 x 1940mm pine
K Head and end rails (2) 90 x 35 x 870mm pine
L Slats (12) 90 x 19 x 938mm pine
M Translucent panel 900 x 675 x 3mm Perspex Frost

You’ll also need
2 temporary timber spacers (90 x 35 x 200mm); four 200 x 150mm steel brackets; silicone or construction adhesive, such as Liquid Nails; small fluorescent light fitting (clip on)

Step 1 If your MDF has not been cut to size by the supplier, use a power saw along a straight edge to cut the required sizes. Draw a 100 x 100mm grid, centred at the top of the bedhead face (A). Transfer the butterfly pattern (right) to the grid with a pencil and refine the curves.

Step 2 Use a series of spade bits (from the top, 35, 32, 28 and 25mm or 1³⁄8”, 1¼”, 1¹⁄8” and 1”) to bore through the MDF for the holes at the ends of the wings, as well as the big end of the curved cut-outs. To control break-out at the back, only drill far enough for the point to come through the back in each of the holes, then turn over and bore from the back. Use the 25 and 35mm bits to bore holes in abdomen. Use a 10mm bit at the small end of the cut-outs and antenna ends, and where other odd shapes need to be cut out.

Step 3 Fit a scroll saw blade to your jigsaw to cut out the shapes of the butterfly. When all cuts are made, sand surfaces of cuts and edges to remove burring of MDF.

Step 4 Draw a line 9mm in from the edge of all sheets to be screwed together. Predrill with a pilot bit to give both a clearance and countersink hole ready for screwing. Glue and screw bedhead top (B) to the 2 sides (C). Before driving in the screw, predrill to about 80% of the screw’s diameter into edge of MDF so the screw will not split or cause the MDF to bulge. Then add rail (D), located with its top edge 400mm up from the base.

Step 5 Screw bedhead back (E) to sides and rail; turn over. Apply glue and screw face to assembly, ensuring butterfly pattern is at top.

Step 6 Repeat above steps to screw bed-end top (F) to 2 sides (G), then add front and back (H).

Step 7 Fill all screw holes with a 2-part filler such as PlastiBond. Just fill the holes then, when set, sand smooth. Paint bedhead and bed-end assemblies as well as bed rails (I) with an all-purpose undercoat. When dry, give all surfaces 2 coats of low-sheen acrylic. We chose Dulux Bunny Pink.

Step 8 Glue and screw the 2 slat supports (J) to the bed rails with the bottoms flush and centred between ends (the overhangs should be 136mm).
Step 9 Cut a pair of 200mm spacers to act as supports for the head and end rails (K). Centre the rails, then glue and screw them to the head and end assemblies.

Step 10 Still using the spacers, locate the bed rails with the slat support between the inner faces and the rail to the outside. At each joint, measure out 4 screw holes so they are neatly spaced in a 60 x 120mm rectangle, spaced 40mm in from the ends. Screw the rails to the bedhead and end assemblies. Do not glue this joint or fill over the screw holes, as it allows you to dismantle the bed should you ever want to move it. Reinforce the joints on the inside with a metal bracket at each corner. Lay the timber slats (L) across the slat supports. They can be screwed to the supports or you can simply sit them in place.

Step 11 Redraw the outline of the butterfly on the bedhead and paint it to complement the main colour. We chose Dulux Noble Robe.

Step 12 Use a photocopier to make the stencils for the smaller butterflies (see template opposite page). They need to be between 50 and 80mm in width. Use a handy roller to randomly add a few more colourful butterfly motifs. The colours we used were Dulux Hot Lips, Sunshine Surprise and Cactus Spike.

Step 13 Install a sheet of frosted, coloured acrylic (M), such as Perspex Frost, inside the bedhead to create a warm glow. The easiest way to glue it in place is with silicone or construction adhesive, or you could use beads to secure it.

Step 14 Install a small fluorescent light under the top of the bedhead to illuminate the butterfly from the back. The light will also shine back onto the wall, putting the bedhead into silhouette. To stop this, tape a sheet of cardboard over the light-fitting enclosure. Then add a mattress, make the bed, and it’s sweet dreams for one special little girl.