Triple Bunk Bed

Okay, I know that I have been gone for a while, but  I promise that I have been productive. I have some stuff that I haven't yet finished, like a music video that I filmed about a week ago but still haven't edited. However, I have finished some things, one of the main ones being the triple bunk bed that my parents and I built!

First of all, we went out and bought all of the supplies. We used some wood that used to be part of my brother's bed (before we took the bed apart), but it wasn't enough to build the whole thing, so we made a trip to home depot (I think) and purchased about 35 boards that were 2x4x8 (if I am remembering correctly).

 The first part of the actual construction was the two ladders/ends for the bigger and sturdier of the two beds. We actually forgot a rung during this part and had to add it later on. These were a little wider than the mattress and as tall as the top of the bunk bed.

 After this, we stood them up and bolted them to some more boards to create the rails and boxes for the mattresses. You can't see it here, but we added small boards on the inside of the four lower boards show here (on the left and right sides of the bed) to help hold up the mattresses.

 Once the first bed was assembled completely, it was my job to sand the entire thing. I used a small orbital sander and quite a few pieces of 60 grit sand paper to get all of the corners rounded and the edges smooth so that none of us would injure ourselves climbing up and down. The whole thing took me about two days. In the meantime, my parents assembled the other part of the bed: a loft bed with a bookshelf on one end and an empty space underneath.

 Once I had sanded, I wiped the wood down with a wet cloth and then a tack cloth to make sure it was free of all dust, then began staining it. Since this was a rather light pine, we used a dark ebony stain. Surprisingly, we only had to use one coat, and it took just one day with my mom and myself both working on it.We did the same thing to the other bed. I got stain all over my hands and legs. I soon learned that paint thinner was a really good thing, and using little cotton pads (or cotton balls) soaked in paint thinner can help clean it off of your skin in a much easier manner.

Thanks to the smart thinking and fast work that my parents did, we moved the first bed into the house within about 30 minutes or less. The bolts allowed the bed to be more stable and be able to be taken apart and brought inside. Shortly after the second bed was done, we brought it inside also.

For three kids, I think it makes a pretty good bed. My bunk is the top left, John Thomas lives in the loft next to me, and James gets to spend his nights smelling both of our farts from the bottom bunk. If you see this picture floating around elsewhere, my mom posted it.

So, that is our triple bunk bed story. It was a pretty good idea that my mom had, plus she's great at drawing up plans.

Well, until next time, my dearies.

Love,
Elizabeth W.