~tHE mUrphY Bed aT worK~

After all the posts that I had done about the building of the murphy bed (here, here and here), I have finally taken an opportunity to get pictures of the craftsmanship at work!  

So far the two guests who have slept on the bed have appeared well rested (aside from the fact that they are next door to our one year old who does not sleep through the night yet ) and have commented that it was very comfy. I have to say that I am so glad to not have to apologize for the contraption we had available in the past - but we won't go there...

So here it is all closed up. (My photography skills are, uh, non-existent so you might have to use your imagination just a tad.) Kurt painted it a rather glossy black and attached it to the wall studs - that baby isn't going ANYWHERE!

 



I found some attractive bedding to match the room decor and, voila!, a charming resting place!

I am so proud of my hubby for taking on this project. He's a little unsure of his abilities around wood working (several years ago he cut the tip of his thumb off with a table saw - long story - shorter thumb...) but this gave him the inspiration to perhaps tackle a new Knock Off Wood project or two. So it's either this one or maybe this one! Let the sawdust FLY!

~~hE's tHE MaN!!~~

Yes, it's coming along. No thanks to me. I was out running some errands and came home to Kurt attacking the paint job. Wow.

I was on the hunt for bedding for the new bed that would match the room but I just don't have the funds to get something super fancy. I wound up at Walmart and settled for something that will do the job. Yeah, I know it's not something that I will see all the time but there is a little part of me that wants my guests to feel like they were *expected*. It always feels nice to be treated special doesn't it??

Kurt called it a night earlier than last night and this is the accomplishment. Whew! He's the man.

~~kICkeD tO tHe CUrb~~

Kurt worked late last night on the bed and this was what I found this morning. All primed and the door just needing some sanding and then ready for primer too.

And poor Ollie (that's what the boys call our Honda Odyssey minivan) has been left in the driveway for two nights now... poor thing...

~~mURphY BeD cONtinUEs~~

I don't know what day we're on with this whole murphy bed project that we got from Knock Off Wood. It's going remarkably well considering neither my husband nor I know what we're doing. I always feel fairly confident that if I have instructions I can do most anything. But I tend to like to be mentored along. I'm just a social kinda gal.

There was a little "adjusting" for a couple short cuts we made. (It was a typo on the cut list but Ana corrected it - so don't worry) We decided against some hinges that we got and replaced them with a standard piano hinge. There was just a little less confusion going that route.

Kurt got a chance to use his new nail gun and compressor. If he thought about it he would have done the Tim Taylor grunt but the giddy look on his face when he shot the first few nails??!?! PRICELESS.

This is the cabinet that will be attached to the wall that the mattress will be stored in. Yup, it's taking shape. And just in case you were wondering. I have been in the garage with him. Cheering him on, reading the instructions, brainstorming questions... and the monkeys encourage him too...

My mom and sister will be arriving on Wednesday so it would be ideal to get this thing done... now? Nothing like waiting to the last minute to complete a project, huh? Yeeash.

~~sAWdusT seTTleS~~

It looks innocent enough...

We have overnight guests fairly frequently and, well, I felt reeeeeeaaaaallllllly guilty making them sleep on our resident torture device, i.e., hide-a-bed. I thought that if I bought one *brand new* that it would be better. But no. There is little or no hope for this sleeping contraption. The only real solution is to put the thin mattress on the floor and fold the thing up and act like it never pulled out in the first place. I just wanted to have a guest bed but didn't want the space that it would require. So after about six months of looking at options, my husband and I decided to do this!!

Off to Lowes to buy our supplies. This could very well be the most expensive murphy bed if we don't use the new air compressor after this project. I digress...

Here's the wood. The guys at Lowes were looking at me funny as I snapped a picture with my phone. Yeah, leave it to a girl to document this part. Oh well. We took all the seats out of our mini van and the big ol' sheet of MDF slid in there like it was custom made for a wood haul. {sigh - love my Odyssey}

That night hubby made the first cut (of several... some not right... but, hey, this is our first major build!!)

Did I mention that we were new at this kind of thing?? Because we discovered why it was a good idea to keep the garage door open while cutting MDF after this failed attempt at a picture...

Yes, that's dust flying everywhere - not a dirty lens. Well, it's dirty NOW! 

And I'll end this post with a ...to be continued...