Want to build a bed and make it look like its floating in the air? You can by building this bed yourself and adding a string of LED rope lights to the bottom. The wood for this project will cost around $300 dollars depending on where you purchase it from. The time it will take you to build this will be from 2 to 4 days. This woodworking project can be for a twin, full, queen, or king bed. The dimensions of this bed will vary depending on your mattress size. The top frame portion of the bed will be the dimensions of your mattress. The bottom frame portion will be 1ft shorter on the sides and front to hide the bottom frame from view and give the look of a “floating” bed. See below for the step by step pictures.
MATERIALS USED FOR THE FLOATING LED BED:
Bottom Bed Frame Constructed From: 2×8 Wood
Top Bed Frame Constructed From: 2×4 Wood / Plywood Sheets / 1×6 Wood
Headboard Constructed From: 1×6 and 2×6 Wood
LED Rope Lighting: 1 = 24′ LED Light Rope
Wood Stain: 1 Can of Cherry Wood Stain
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LED Bedroom Light Kit: Designed For Your Bed & Headboard.
Here are the top and bottom bed frames stacked on top of each other to show placement.
Holes were drilled and the LED rope lighting was snaked through the top bed frame for the floating effect.
The plywood and 1×6 wood were then attached on the top bed frame for the mattress to sit on.
Once the plywood and outer frame pieces of wood were attached, the lighting was tested.
The headboard was assembled and then attached to the rest of the bed.
(Closeup of the headboard)
After the bed was fully assembled, it was sanded and prepped for wood stain.
The bed frame and headboard were stained with a cherry colored wood stain and given time to dry.
(Closeup of the bed frame after staining)
In a dark room the floating lights were tested again to assure everything was in place and working properly.
The bed was moved into the bedroom with mattress on top to see the final product.
As you can see in the pictures the bed really does look like it is floating in the air.
Lights off in the room and bottom floating LED lights on. Looks Great.
Instead of purchasing a string of LED rope lights, you can purchase an LED Light Kit For Your Bedroom.
Written by Keith Schneerer
Certified Appliance Tech · Founder, RemoveAndReplace.com
Keith has spent 30+ years repairing machines, starting as a military mechanic and later maintaining food processing equipment before moving into appliance repair. He founded RemoveAndReplace.com to share field-tested repair advice.
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What about using 4×4 legs attached to top frame about 12 inches in from front and back corners instead of making a base to support it? Seems like it would reduce materials and work.
Jim,
Yes anchoring the 2 together would be a good idea. Anchor one in the front portion and one in the back and the bed cannot slip. The traction tape is a good idea as you have glossy floors. If you use high quality heavy wood most of your concerns will be solved.
-RR
I am not any sort of construction person, by no means at all…and I am fixing to make this project and had a question. Is there a chance of the top frame sliding or slipping across the bottom frame? If so, would it be best to just anchor the two together somehow? And mine will be on glossy tile, so I am going to place some sort of traction tape on the bottom frame so it does not slip on the floor. Any suggestions?
I just finished this bed and I love it, looks awesome and alot cheaper than buying a nice solid wood bed at the store. Altogether I have about $300 into it not including the mattess and I worked on it a little every night for 2 weeks after I got off work. Fun project and will be making some floating night stands to go with it. Went with a 2×10 bottom and a 2×6 top for extra height and it worked well. Bought the lights at wall mart for about 30 bucks. And went with fir 2×6 and 2×10, and cedar 1×6 for everything else since oak was $6 a foot. But looks nice and am happy with the outcome.
Not sure some folks should attempt this project after seeing their questions, but seriously, good luck to everyone. The IMPORTANT question is, how well does the mattress stay on the bed? if you were to get even just sleep restlessly as I do, is there a chance it will slide around? or does it seem secure? I have a regular bed but planning on something like this… on my current I have one of the anti slip mats you would use under a rug between the box springs and mattress, I guess that would help here to if needed??
Important: make sure you buy wood that’s specially made so as *not* to give off toxic gases like formaldehyde, *especially* when using it in a bedroom. I think in the U.S. you want “furniture grade”.