Twin House Bed Frame + Trundle Bed Woodworking Plan

Build your own house bed frame with this beginner-friendly twin bed plan! The printable woodworking plan includes one-sheet plywood DIY trundle bed, too.  

You’ll also love this crib size house bed playhouse frame reading nook, and if you prefer to buy instead of DIY, check out our favorite pre-made house beds here. 

Hi it’s Amy from Hertoolbelt back again with another build project and woodworking plan. We spied this adorable house bed frame in an Australian magazine, Home Life, and couldn’t wait to design plans!

By popular demand, we’ve also updated the plans (Jan 2021) with instruction to build a DIY low-profile trundle bed to slide under the main bed!

We’re big fans of house shaped bed frames and other woodworking projects. Justin and Cassity’s first big viral project was this Bunk Bed Playhouse based on an IKEA bunk bed.

Since then, we’ve also designed a

• playhouse frame reading nook
• house headboard
• house shaped garden arbor
• playhouse room divider
• house shaped bookshelves
• and a dollhouse (with printable furniture and decor!)

How to Build a Twin House Bed Frame + Trundle Bed

Get the printable house bed plans HEREThe 17-page printable woodworking plan includes the full tutorial, detailed diagrams, and step-by-step assembly instructions. 

This house bed frame is designed to fit a twin mattress and box spring 39″ x 75″, with a no box spring option that uses 1×4 bed slats instead for a lower mattress height.

You can also build the optional trundle bed to have an extra bed for another child or for guests or sleepovers.

Here are the overall dimensions of the bed. The size is the same whether you add the trundle bed or not; the bed rail height is the only thing that needs changed to accommodate the trundle.

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Twin House Bed Frame Materials Needed

• printable woodworking plan
• 9 – 2″ x 4″ x 8′ boards (actual 1 1/2″ x 3 1/2″)
• 3 – 2″ x 2″ x 8′ boards (actual 1 1/2″ x 1 1/2″)
• *5 – 1″ x 4″ x 8′ boards (actual 3/4″ x 3 1/2″)
• *1 1/2″ wood screws
• 2 1/2″ pocket screws (self tapping)
• 2″ brad nails
• Kreg Jig pocket hole jig

* No box spring option (recommended for trundle bed version)

Yes — you can build a twin bed frame from just 2x4s and 2x2s! This bed is easy to make in a weekend for all skills levels.

The optional 1×4 bed slats are a great option for a Montessori bed or low bed frame for young children, or to pair with the new trundle bed option.

Building this homemade bed frame requires only a miter saw and a pocket hole jig (plus drill and hammer or brad nailer).

The trundle bed is built using one sheet of plywood and some 2″ casters, so you’ll also want a table saw (or circular saw with edge guide) to cut down the plywood.

How to assemble a house-shaped twin bed frame

After making the cuts following the cut list and diagram in the printable woodworking plan, you’ll use pocket holes and screws to assemble the bed as detailed in the step-by-step plans.

Can I disassemble the house bed to move it?

Yes! If you apply wood glue to *only* the joints for the headboard and footboard sections, you’ll be able to remove the screws connecting the bed rails and roof beam to the headboard and footboard and move the bed in sections.

If you anticipate disassembling and moving this bed multiple times, you might consider adjusting the plans to use metal surface-mounted bed rail brackets instead. Connecting the bed slats using webbing to make your attached bed slats will also take up less space than using a box spring, while making disassembly and re-assembly easier than installing the bed slats with screws, as suggested in the building plan.

Finishing the DIY House Bed Frame

Once you finished building the twin house bed frame, remove any excess glue, apply wood filler to nail holes, cracks and blemishes and allow to dry.  Sand the wood filler and house frame until smooth, finishing with 120-150 grit sand paper.  Stain or paint and prime as you like.

It looks like the bed in the inspiration picture was whitewashed.  For tutorials on whitewashing see Whitewash Planked Ceiling and White Wash vs Dry Brush.

For a colorful pop, use our colorwashing stain technique to stain the bed ANY color you like!

If you want a more traditional or rustic stained finish, you can mix up your own homemade stains using our recipes, or use pre-stain wood conditioner with an off-the-shelf stain.

The little details are what make any project.  I love the little pendant light hanging from the roof.  IKEA carries light cords for $5 that plug into an outlet.  They also carry cords with fun colors for $8.  Add a pendant cover/shade that fits your decor or hang a strand of string lights and you have the cutest House Frame Bed on the block!

Get the printable twin house bed plans HERE

Reader-Built Kids’ House Beds

We love seeing photos of what you’ve built using Remodelaholic plans! Send photos to [email protected] or tag #imaremodelaholic on Instagram to show off your work.

This darling little girls’ rainbow room is courtesy of @home_kimprovements! And that rainbow shiplap wall (details here), I am in LOVE!

The very talented By Brittany Goldwyn built the twin house bed and added safety rails to make it a toddler bed for her growing daughter. See her modifications here. 

Leigh Anne from Houseologie built this house bed following our plans and it turned out so amazing! See some of her tips and more pictures of the beautiful finished room here.

Feb 2018: Reader Alisha submitted this bed that she built and it is perfectly adorable!

“We followed the plans to a T and everything turned out perfect! Made all of the cuts first, then assembled and it came together very easily. Once built, I finished it with a thin coat OF white chalk paint and some light, lanterns and lace overhead. It is gorgeous and cute and we get tons of compliments on it!”

November 2019: Make It Laura shared her process of building the bed following these plans as a beginning DIYer! Read the blog post here and check out her Instagram highlight here for more info. Doesn’t the yellow look so cute with the polka dot wall decals!

April 2020: Ashley built the bed for her daughter’s room. Look at the super cute tassles! Thank you for sharing, Ashley!

May 2020: Reader Anna built our house bed frame with chimney for her little one who is a Frozen fan!

March 2021: Danielle built this sunny yellow floor bed for her daughter’s rainbow room!

“Almost everything in her new room is diy! I made the quilt from the “postcard from Sweden” pattern with Kona fabric. The raindrops are diy from felt and the cloud light is a paper lantern (of course with an LED light that doesn’t get hot) low wattage nightlight bulb with batting glued on.”

Click here to purchase and download the House Frame Twin Bed printable woodworking plan.

More fun DIY kids’ bed ideas:

• Camping Tent Bed Canopy
• Hanging Loft Bed
• DIY Daybed Cornice and Canopy
• Built-In Bed Nook with Storage
• Bunk Bed Cottage Playhouse

First published 18 Oct 2014 // Last updated 28 Jan 2021