01
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DIY Murphy Bed for Small Spaces
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The DIY Village
Jacque and her husband Matt from The DIY Village website built a Murphy bed for their craft room so it could double as a guest room. Depending on your budget, you could use hardwood, plywood, or MDF to construct this Murphy bed design. Jacque and Matt picked PureBond hardwood plywood. They say that this professional-grade building material enhanced the strength and beauty of their finished project. PureBond products are also formaldehyde-free and are certified by the Forest Stewardship Council.
02
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Build a Murphy Bed for Less
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Lori Wall Beds
Technically, a true Murphy bed has a spring or piston lifting mechanism that helps swing the bed platform up and down. The hardware does take the effort out of opening and closing, but it can more than double the cost of making the bed. If you’re willing to sacrifice a little convenience to save money, consider the Lori Wall beds kit. It’s a mechanism-free solution that makes it possible to create a custom Murphy for much less money.
How does the Lori Wall Bed open and close? The design relies on good old fashion muscle power. To help counterbalance some of the weight, the bottom of the bed frame has rounded “rocker” edges that double as shelving when the bed is closed. Each Lori wall bed kit comes with building plans and assembly ■■■■■■■■ (more than 200 hinges, screws, connectors, and bolts). Customers can pick from two types of bed orientations—vertical or horizontal—and from three different bed sizes—twin, full, or queen.
03
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A DIY Murphy Bed for Mere Mortals
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Woodworking for Mere Mortals
We know you’re only human—and this makes this DIY Murphy bed by Steve at Woodworking for Mere Mortals the perfect choice. Steve specializes in designs for folks with limited budgets and zero building experience.
To kick things off, he purchased a DIY kit from Murphy Bed Hardware. Just like the kit we mentioned earlier, it comes with all the stuff to assemble a lifting mechanism plus building plans for constructing the cabinet and bed frame.
04
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A Modern Farmhouse Murphy Bed
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Addicted 2 DIY
This Murphy bed office combo by Katie at the Addicted 2 DIY website blew our minds. Katie created a one-of-a-kind furniture system that includes bookcases and desk. The frosting on the cake is the bed cabinet. When closed, it resembles a storage wall so those not in the know would never guess it conceals a mattress.
The mechanism kit for Katie’s queen-size Murphy came from Rockler. She also downloaded the company’s step-by-step instructions for building the cabinet and shelving units. Afterward, she modified the building plans to suit her space and needs.
05
of 12
IKEA Murphy Bed Hack
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Renovations and Old Houses
Paul from Renovations and Old Houses was inspired to build his DIY Murphy bed using pieces from IKEA’s PAX series after his wife saw an IKEA hack from Herbie’s World and another from Jerry’s Projects.
All three projects incorporated a floor-mounted bed frame with a spring mechanism from Murphy Bed Frame. When assembled and installed, it’s an all-in-one free-standing device that supports, lifts, and lowers a mattress. To conceal, just build a cabinet around it.
06
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Hack-a-PAX Murphy Bed
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Huskverna
Here’s another DIY Murphy bed that’s also a PAX IKEA hack. Norwegian blogger Calvin Gross from Huskverna says that if you’re making a unit for a full-sized mattress you’ll need several things, including two PAX wardrobe frames and a couple of LURÖY slatted bed bases.