How to Make a Canopy Bed for Cheap

Every little girl dreams of one, and every couple imagines the romantic touch that a canopy bed could add to their room. But what little no one dreams about is the price of actually purchasing a canopy bed.

To offset the cost but still capture the effect, we've come up with a completely affordable way for you to create a canopy bed.

Instructions

1. Check your ceiling. The only con about making this type of canopy for your bed is that you need a sturdy ceiling, as that's where the canopy for your bed will be attached to. Screw in a hook to your ceiling that is at least 1 inch long, and try giving it a gentle tug. If the hook stays firmly in the ceiling, you've got the go ahead to make this kind of canopy bed. If the hook comes out easily however, it might be wiser if you look into some other DIY canopy bed ideas.

2. Get hooked. Go out to your local hardware store and buy some sturdy hooks. Buy a pack of at least 40 hooks to make sure you have enough to complete the canopy over your bed.

3. String along. While you're at the hardware store, also purchase some heavy duty twine or string: it should be strong enough to hold at least 40 pounds. If you're not sure how much weight the string or twine you want to buy can hold, look on the package or ask a store associate for assistance.

4. Curtains. After you've purchased your hooks and string/twine, consider what kind of curtains you want over your bed. If you don't want to have to pay the price for premade curtains, go to your local fabric store or your local Wal-Mart (they often have fabric for $1 per yard) and see if you can find some fabric that you'd like to use for the canopy over your bed. You can also check out your local Goodwill or Salvation Army for second hand curtains (or even sheets or old tablecloths) that you can make your canopy out of.

5. Measure it out. After you've gotten all of the materials together, measure the dimensions of your bed and then pencil in (very lightly) those dimensions on the ceiling above your bed after adding at least 2 inches to each side.

6. Add the hooks. Following the lines that you just penciled in, add hooks along those lines. There should be a hook at least every 12 inches, so that your canopy doesn't sag. You can also add more hooks closer together if you are making your canopy out of a heavier fabric.

7. Thread the curtains. After you've put all the hooks into the area above your bed, it's time to add the curtains for your canopy. This is the trickiest part, so we suggest that you have another person help you complete this step.
   Tie the string/twine firmly to one of the hooks (preferably one that's toward the back of the bed). Thread the sting/twine through the first hook, and the thread the string/twine through a portion of the curtain. (If you have curtains that don't have any openings, you will need to cut small slits where you can pull the string out between hooks). After you've threaded the string/twine through about 10 or so inches of the curtains, thread the string/twine through another hook. Repeat this until the curtains are surrounding your bed.

8. Create and opening. If your curtains didn't leave an opening where you wanted, simply cut through your curtains and add one. While this might seem a bit messy, you can always take down your curtains and hem where you cut the opening.

9. Hide the hooks. If the hooks in your ceiling are still visible after you've added your canopy, simply tie bows around them. Not only will this disguise the hooks, it also adds a personal touch to your canopy.

10. Enjoy. While your canopy might not look like something out of Better Homes and Gardens, you can take pride in knowing that you did it yourself and that you can change your canopy around any time you want.