Tenting The Loft Bed!

My mom and I have been working hard at getting Emory’s new loft bed all set up.
Like I mentioned before, we bought the MYDAL bunk bed from Ikea for $159.00.
It is designed to be set up as a bunk bed, but we made the following adjustments:
1. Removed the bottom rail
2. Cut a new piece for the bottom of the ladder
It was super easy and the bed is still very sturdy.
The height is the best part too, it isn’t crazy high like the other loft beds Ikea sells.
Yesterday, we spent a couple hours sewing some panels for the sides of the bed.
We bought some pink satin fabric from a local discount fabric store for $7.00/yard.
We needed 6 yards, totaling $42.00. 
We simply hemmed the sides and sewed a rod pocket.
We hung the panels on the front and two ends.
We used inexpensive tension rods to hang the panels, they worked amazing!
And we made sure they could close creating a little “play house” too.
Emory’s new little vintage play kitchen fits perfectly underneath.
There is about 44″ of head room under the bed, which allows her to comfortably stand.
It is so nice to have some extra play room in our small condo!

This picture of my mom gives you a good idea of the scale of the bed, it’s definitely not too tall (which helps me sleep at night!).
I also picked up the rug from Urban Outfitters today for $20.00.
I am still haven’t decided if I am going to keep it or not, what do you think?
Do you like it?

Now it’s time to get our paint on! 
I plan on painting the bed a crisp white, I am exhausted just thinking about it.
I also need to paint over the black and white stripes, eeek!
So what do you think? Do you like it so far?
UPDATE: Head on over here to see the finished loft bed. It is white and oh-so-pretty.

Comments

  1. says

    I felt like an imaginative little girl again just reading this – what a wonderful, magical place! I vote for the rug…it’s perfect for the space and I can’t believe it was only $20. Thank you for sharing your progress!

  2. says

    I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE that rug! I’m trying to think how I can make it fit into my daughter’s room! I love the loft bed too. Great job! Thanks for your blog, I read it everyday 🙂

  3. says

    I LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE LOVE that rug! I’m trying to think how I can make it fit into my daughter’s room! I love the loft bed too. Great job! Thanks for your blog, I read it everyday 🙂

  4. Tanya says

    Love the rug and the bed, though I will miss the stripes. Emory is a very lucky girl. Your mum is rocking those jeans – she looks great!

  5. says

    So cute! It is all coming together perfectly. You and your mom make a fantastic team! I love the rug…I think it is a keeper!

  6. says

    First of all, your Mom’s a stunner. Second, I love the pale pink tent! It’s so perfect for a little girl! Last, I think you should keep the rug – I like the way the greens and browns warm up the space. Looking good!

  7. says

    Adorable! The bed is going to look so good painted white, I’m glad it’s not too tall so your little girl is safe :). And I love that rug, too cute. You have to keep it!

  8. says

    Keep the stripes! They look great with the new scheme. (Unless you have something else up your sleeve, of course.) And I like the contrast of bold stripes to floral rug. Usually I don’t like round rugs, but super cute with the plates.

    Fun progress!

  9. says

    I guess I should have read this post before asking my conversion question. Now I know how you did it. I love what you did. I’m going to create a boy’s version for my son who loves castles. I see that there are slats under the mattress. Do those move at all? We have an Ikea bed with slats that then tend to fall off occasionally. That could be dangerous on a bunk bed.

  10. says

    OMG, that is one ROCKIN’ little room!! Emory will be the envy of all her friends!! I would have LOVED that space when I was little – great job and yes, I think the rug works – looking forward to seeing the paint job! ;-))

  11. says

    I love the whole idea of it, especially the curtain on the bottom half. I would totally keep the rug too!
    As for the painting of the bed, I honestly like the wooden look (I would usually say to paint it, but I think it adds a beautiful, rustic, textured element to the room). Maybe give it a few days and you’ll like it…and you won’t have to paint it! Either way, her room is adorable! Love your work! –caleyparkdesigns.blogspot.com

  12. says

    You are one seriously cool and clever girl!! and excuse me, but how cute is your mom in her skinny jeans?!? The bed is awesome and will be amazing. I’ll be sad to see the black stripes go…they don’t jive with the new room direction?

  13. says

    Oh. My. GOODNESS!!! To die for. I am so coveting this room!!! After I first read your post, I went straight for my 4-year-old’s room to see if we could swing something like this (she has a pink kitchen set very similar to Emory’s white one). She’s got funky-sized walls in her room, so I’m trying to figure out where we can make this work. The price is so right on the bed,and we are itching to get rid of her toddler bed…Sigh.

  14. says

    Hi, there! Just came across your blog after looking for ideas on how to combine a loft bed with a play area. We currently live in a 3 bedroom home. Our 2 girls share a room and we have the third room set up as a playroom. The set up is perfect as is, except we just found out we are expecting #3! So I am trying to plan ahead if in case this one is a boy. If so we will have to combine the girls room and the playroom. That is where your wonderful idea comes in. They currently have a small play kitchen that I would like to fit under the bed like you did yours but I am worried that the height of the kitchen won’t clear the height of the bed. Are you able to give me the measurements of the space underneath the bed? Height and width? The nearest IKEA to us is 2 hrs away so I would love to be sure this will work prior to making the road trip to purchase. I am so glad I found your blog, you have definitely acquired a new follower. Love your style!

  15. says

    Hi Esme,

    The height under the bed is 44 1/2″ and the depth is 42″. It works out perfectly for my 4 year old, but I must admit, at times it makes me nervous to sleep up there! Definitely something to consider. Also, we had to make some changes to the ladder since we were not adding the bottom bunk.

    Hope this helps!

    Danielle

  16. says

    Just came across your post as I was looking around at other curtains under loft beds… Just got one for my three year old….. My question is, With just a tension rod holdign it up… Does it sag or get yanked on and fall?? Did you get one long rod an go across the whole span of the bed or break it up?

    Thanks!! And this room is totally adorable!
    Tara

    • says

      Yes, it is just one tension rod. It did start to sag after my daughter pulled on it a few too many times, so we simply wrapped some string around the rod and attached to the top bunk rails. I haven’t had a problem with it since.

  17. says

    Hi there- I love your IKEA hack, it’s great! How did you ensure that it maintained stability when you removed the bottom rail? Did you add something to stabilize it?

  18. says

    I am checking into getting a loft bed for my 7 year old. I’ve seen pretty ways on the IKEA hack sites for the KURA bed (the reversible weird one that has a blue tent over it.). However, even though she is on the skinny side (43lbs), I want to get something that will last– and one that will accommodate a decent mattress with her princess-and-the-pea issues with the thinner ones. With that said, what do you estimate for the duration of this bed? Is this something that will last for years to come? I’m really nervous, because I see that KURA for $199, and then this bed for just $159. (And it scares me, because of the alteration needing to be done– and I am a total novice!) Thank you for your advice!!!

  19. says

    Love this!! Did you use a regular twin mattress on here or did you have to buy a special mattress from Ikea? I know some of their mattresses are thinner than a standard mattress and I’m wondering if I use a standard mattress would there still be enough railing to keep my daughter from rolling off? Thanks!!

  20. says

    I want to do this for my 3 year old daughter. But I’m worried that I won’t be able to fit her standard twin size mattress on the top bunk. Does a standard twin size mattress for on the top bunk? Also, how did you stabilize the ladder? It doesn’t reach the floor and its not attached to the bottom.

  21. says

    We just bought this bed for our daughter. I really loved your idea and we are going to put a similar spin on it. Where did you get the mattress. I was looking at the mattress that ikea site suggested but it looks really thin and uncomfortable. Thanks for sharing!

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