A while ago I talked about how to distress furniture with sandpaper (here). I used the makeover of our bed as one example of the look that can be achieved. I am so pleased with the transformation painting the bedposts made, that I though it deserves a special mention. So today is all about the makeover of our wood and cast iron bed.

The bed was in good order and I liked its overall shape, particularly the top of the bedposts. However, I wasn’t so keen on the black cast iron against the medium brown wood posts. It seemed dated and not at all the “look” I was going for. Unfortunately I don’t have a “before” picture, but I found a couple of similar looking beds below … you get the idea.

I was convinced we needed a new bed and Paul even humored me for a while. But no matter how many beds we looked at, we didn’t find anything we both liked (or could afford). To be honest, I’m not even sure I knew what I wanted. I like the “old fashion” white cast iron beds, but that was far too feminine for Paul. He liked the dark wood, but that was too heavy looking for me! Ahhhh…

Coming to the realisation that I wasn’t going to have a new bed anytime soon.  I decided to try a “makeover” on our existing one. I was really unsure what to do … it was the wooden bedposts I didn’t like, so painting them seemed the obvious answer. I searched high and low but couldn’t find anyone who had done a similar makeover.

My concern was … by painting the bed posts black would this make the bed too dark and “heavy” looking? Should I paint the whole thing white, including the cast iron?

My instinct said no to painting the bed white … perhaps it was the challenge of painting cast iron. Paul seemed confident black posts would look good … and a little confidence and belief was all I needed. So I “attacked” the bedposts, following the basic principles for painting and distressing I wrote about here (although I think I skipped the undercoat).

After two coats of paint, my worst fears were realised … the posts looked really dull. However, sanding and distressing them with a fine grade sandpaper lifted them. I sanded the ball on the bed post, the edges of the turnings … those parts of a piece that naturally get worn back by constant daily use and handling. Followed by two coats of polyethylene, lightly rubbed back with very fine steel wool … the posts look great!

The cast iron bed head and foot rest already had some knocks … so I helped along the ageing process with the trusty sandpaper, rubbing back the prominent or protruding parts. 

A simple but very effective makeover. I no longer walk into my bedroom and comment on how much I loathe the bed! I’m glad I painted the wooden posts to match the cast iron … this technique work well given my skill level and the style of the bed.  Sometimes less really is more…

Now I just need to work on styling the rest of the room … such as hiding the storage under the bed and finding art work.  Oh well … baby steps!

Any tips on bedroom styling you’d like to share … would love some help on hiding the storage under the bed?  Would you leave or paint the bedside tables?

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