Headboard Turned Garden Bench with Rust-Oleum

Turn a damaged, dated and dirty headboard into a gorgeous garden bench with Rust-Oleum® Canada.

This project is limited only by your imagination – you can pick up any headboard and footboard (matching or otherwise), in any size from crib to king and paint it in any colour under the rainbow (or paint it like a rainbow if you like) to create a gorgeous upcycled headboard garden bench!

First up, scour your basement, your parents’ basement, garage sales and thrift stores to find an inexpensive headboard and footboard for your project.

I picked up this queen-sized set as part of a bedroom grouping – total cost for two dressers, a mirror and this headboard and footboard = $50. (I think you can see why)

I am NOT a believer in painting over paint. Often times you’ll find the old paint will bleed through the new and, as in this case, the piece needed a thorough sanding to remove nicks, chips and scratches – so stripping it down to bare wood (veneer) was necessary anyways.

I would have LOVED to have stained this piece to keep the detail of the veneer and inlay showing, unfortunately there were several – very visible – areas where the veneer had chipped off – and staining wood filler just isn’t pretty.

®After filling in the veneer-less areas and sanding smooth, I used Krud Kutter® to clean off any remaining dust and residue. This cleaner is unbelievably strong, and yet environmentally friendly – I use it for so many projects – inside and out!

ABOUT KRUD KUTTER® ORIGINAL CLEANER DEGREASER

KRUD KUTTER® No other single product removes really tough soils as quickly and effectively from so many different surfaces. Cuts grease, grime, oil & wax fast. Removes dried latex paint and is an excellent tile and grout cleaner.

Safely & Easily Removes:

Food & Drink Stains Shoe Polish Mildew Stains Soap Scum Chewing Gum Tar & Wax Sun Tan Oil Blood Stains Scuff Marks Lipstick Oxidation Fireplace Soot Brake Dust Tree Sap Pet Stains Marker & Crayon Grease & Oil Smoke Damage Bird Droppings Acid Rain Glue & Adhesive Tape Residue Paint Overspray Dried Latex Paint

Features:
Water-based; biodegradable
Concentrated, commercial strength formula
Cleaner, degreaser, and stain remover
Interior / exterior use

To create the frame for your headboard turned garden bench, you’ll want to create a rectangular frame using 2×4’s. Use the headboard itself as the back of the rectangle and attach your wood at 14 ½” up from the ground.

Standard benches are about 18″ deep and the seat is usually between 17″ and 19″ from the ground. In order to meet these (approximate) sizes, I cut my side 2×4’s to 14 ½” long and placed them between the front and back boards (60″ for queen-sized headboards).

Glue and screw into place using 2 ½ – 3″ wood screws.

Next you’ll want to cut your footboard in half to use as the arms for your bench.

In this case, I needed legs on the front of my bench to attach the footboard pieces to.

I used standard 2×4’s cut to 14 ½” and screwed them to the front of my rectangle. Once attached, measure the overall depth of the headboard plus bench sides before cutting your footboard to make sure the side is covered. Use wood screws to attach to your rectangle frame and fill the holes with wood filler where necessary.

Cut 1 x 6 cedar boards to length and attach them to your headboard turned garden bench frame with wood screws. Using cedar for the seating will prolong the life of your bench as this is where most water will accumulate. Leave a small gap between each seat board and sand smooth to prevent slivered butts.

Next step is to prime your headboard turned garden bench to block and bleed-through and to protect it from the elements.

Zinsser® Bulls Eye 1-2-3® latex primer is great for both indoor and outdoor use. The coverage is excellent – this is two coats of primer – and the stain-blocking is a must-have for almost any old wood. My favourite part though is the easy clean-up that you can’t find in other (non-latex) primers.

ABOUT BULLS EYE 1-2-3® WATER-BASE PRIMER

There’s a reason Zinsser® Bulls Eye 1-2-3® Water-Base Primer is our most popular primer. This premium, whole-house primer-sealer provides outstanding performance indoors and out, with low odour, great flow and leveling and a flexible, acrylic formula.

Water-base primer-sealer Interior & exterior use Sticks to all surfaces without sanding Seals stains, graffiti and tannin bleed Mould & mildew resistant film Rust inhibitive Fast 1-hour dry time

Once your primer is dry, you’ll want to give it a light sanding with 220 grit sandpaper to get a super-smooth finish.

I brought out my spray gun for this project and was able to put a first coat on the entire bench in less than 4 minutes. We’re talking front, back, bottom, top and sides. I haven’t used a paint gun much in the past for fear of wasting paint, but the speed and finish you get more than makes up for any overspray loss.

I taped off the one section of inlaid veneer to give the headboard turned garden bench a bit of detailing. After two coats of primer and three coats of Rust-Oleum® Painter’s Touch® Ultra Cover in semi-gloss black, this is the finished product!

ABOUT PAINTER’S TOUCH® MULTI-PURPOSE GLOSS BRUSH-ON PAINT

Painter’s Touch® Multi-Purpose Brush-On Paint provides a smooth, durable finish that lasts longer than ordinary paints. Apply to wood, metal, plaster, masonry or unglazed ceramic. Durable formula resists chipping and fading.

Indoor and outdoor durability

Fast dry time

Excellent coverage in one coat

I’m really pleased with how this upcycle turned out – you’d never guess it was the same headboard and footboard from the first photo would you?

It’s still a tad early for Spring flowers, but imagine this headboard turned garden bench surrounded by green foliage and early blooms – gorgeous!

Better still, imagine lounging on this repurposed beauty with a good book and a cup of tea soaking up the sunshine and breathing in the Spring breeze.

Make one of these to decorate a loved one’s garden as well – if you find a headboard with this kind of backing, you could easily attach a commemorative plaque or paint on a garden verse.