Pirate Ship Bed

My daughter has the most active imagination of any child I've ever known.  When we moved to our new home, I wanted to give her a room for her imagination to flourish but also one that would grow with her as she gets older.  We found a great bunk bed and after my husband's hard work putting it together, I made a few small changes to give it the feel of a sea worthy vessel.  

Simple changes were: changing out the boring wooden drawer knobs for pretty turquoise ones, hanging three porthole mirrors, and putting up a simple white curtain underneath hung on a spring loaded rod.


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The only ambitious part of the makeover was creating the "sail."  For this, I used an old wooden valence that I purchased at Goodwill for $1.  This was all about re-purposed materials.

You see the ugly old valence?

Now you don't.

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​I didn't bother removing the old fabric.  I just wrapped the valence with a cotton shower curtain (another Goodwill find), removed the excess fabric and hot glued it to the back.

Before I moved on, I tied two pieces of rope to the valence equidistant from the outer edges of the valence, making sure the knots were hidden on the back side of the valence. ​

Next, I took two curtain rod holders and removed the piece with the U shape.  I use the straight section in the next step. 

To create a mast, I used a large wooden dowel and attached it to the wall with flexible pipe clamps. I purchased the clamps at Lowes for about $2.  I used the level to make sure the mast was perfectly vertical.  Then, using my level again, I marked and attached the pieces saved from the curtain rod holder to the wall, one on either side of the mast.  I used dry wall anchors to be sure the pieces were securely attached. 

The last step was to mount the valence on the wall. Learn from my mistake pictured above and make sure the rope is draping over the valence and not over it or else you will be removing the valence to get the rope the way you want it.

I set the valence on the curtain holders and fastened it by drilling screws into the wood of the valence from underneath through the slot in the curtain holder.

I tied the rope around the top of the mast, secured it, and the pirate ship was ready to set sail!  I didn't show it, but I also put glow in the dark stars on the ceiling to add a little magic.

For some finishing touches, I purchased two super cute mermaid duvet covers on clearance from Pottery Barn Teen and made Caitlin a set of these flamingo pillow cases.

I plan on making her a coordinating quilt for Christmas this year.  As all things in life, it is constantly a work in progress. 

I hope you enjoyed this post and feel inspired to get creative with found objects!

Before you spend money on a room makeover, try "shopping" around your own house.  I bet that you'll be surprised at all the materials at your disposal.