Repurpose Headboard and Footboard to an Antique Baby Bed

 While touring the back of Glasgow Trading Post Antique and Gift Shop, Donnie, the owner, and I stumbled upon an ancient wooden headboard, footboard and railings to an old baby bed. They were filthy; covered in dirt from years of being stored in what used to be an old meat locker now serving as GTP's antique portion of the store.

Eager to get my own hands on them, I told Donnie he could repupose them into shelves but being a store owner makes Donnie a busy guy. After all, he has to find and purchase antiques to stock his store. I was more than happy to grab the stuff and take them home to begin the projects.

What you need:

Water

Scrub brush

Paint (colors of your choice)

Paint brush(es)

Pen or pencil

Wood plank appropriate for a shelf or

Bench

2 Steel L-brackets with wood screws

Drill and bits

Screwdriver

Cleaning: I sprayed down the antique bed parts with a hose, scrubbed them with a brush then let them dry for a couple of days.

Paint: Acrylic in any color you want. Since these items were being placed in the store for sale, I used off white and antiqued with burnt umber for the shelf. The bench back was painted with a combination of black and midnight on opposite corners of the brush. Both projects were painted prior to assembly.

Let dry.

Shelf assembly: The shelf wood was all ready at a perfect width. You may have to cut your shelf to match the width of your headboard or footboard.

I purchased two 2-inch steel L-brackets for each project. Lay one of the L-brackets on the back of the shelf wood and mark your holes with a pen or pencil. Do the same on the other end. 

Using a drill bit that is a tad smaller than the wood screw, I drilled two small pilot holes on each end of the shelf then screwed the brackets onto the wood using the wood screws that were provided with the L-brackets.

Lay the headboard or footboard on your work table then the shelf on top of that. Center and mark your holes then drill the pilot holes and screw the shelf into place.

Easy peasie!

Bench: Simply follow the instructions for the shelf to assemble the back to your bench. Make sure the V-shape of your L-brackets face downward otherwise the headboard or footboard will have a lot of movement in it and seem unstable.