Upholstering An IKEA MALM Bed Headboard

A stuffed pink unicorn toy sits on a white shelf above a rectangular cushion decorated with a deer pattern, adding charm to this Small Bedroom. A small gold object rests on the flat surface next to the toy.
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Are you looking at how to Upholstering An IKEA MALM Bed Headboard? If so take a look at what we did in my daughter’s new bedroom to create a soft headboard from the IKEA MALM bed frame. It is quite easy to upholster an IKEA MALM headboard and completely change the look of the bed to suit your style. 

Video Tutorial For Upholstering An IKEA MALM Bed Headboard

Over lockdown, I’ve really enjoyed trying out a few new things I’ve not done before, one of them being upholstering. I wanted to create a cushioned headboard for my daughter’s new small bedroom but didn’t want to purchase a new bed or headboard. 

We were building her built-in made to measure storage behind her bed, so having the headboard integrated into this was perfect. However, as it was an IKEA MALM single bed, it had a hard headboard attached.

A small corner of a bedroom with an IKEA MALM bed pushed against pale walls. There is a narrow white shelf behind the headboard and next to a wooden door. The bed is made with a crisp white sheet.

The Yorkshire Fabric Shop asked if I wanted to work with them on a fabric collaboration, so I thought this was the perfect project for it. 

They have such a large selection of fabrics to choose from, but with an easy filter tool, I was able to find one that was just perfect. 

Freedom Printed Velvet Stag Upholstery Fabric – £17.99 per metre 

Fabric featuring a repeated pattern of realistic brown deer with antlers on a light background, next to a beige textured surface. Perfect to upholster an IKEA Jules chair, the fabric is partially unrolled.

It was a lot more white than the photo in real life, but you can purchase samples of fabric. So if you’re keen on getting a certain colour than order a sample first. But I was really happy with my fabric, it came on a large roll ready to start working with. The softness of the velvet fabric was perfect for a headboard. 

Upholstering An IKEA MALM Bed Headboard

Make sure you mark which side is the side you want to be the front before you remove it from the bed. 

A large white rectangular board, possibly an IKEA MALM bed headboard, lies on a beige carpet. The board has two tick marks drawn on it and several metal pins and wooden pegs inserted along one edge.

I used an electric staple gun to attach the fabric and wadding to the headboard. 

A blue electric staple gun with a yellow trigger is lying on a white surface, ideal for upholstering projects like creating a custom headboard for an IKEA MALM bed. Its black power lead extends to the right, near two black tick marks.

Place out your wadding over the headboard, but make sure you leave enough hanging over the sides to wrap around the edges, this will give you a cushioned edge too. 

A large piece of white wadding is spread out on a tan carpeted floor, with tools like a green power drill and screws nearby—likely for upholstering a bed headboard, perhaps for an IKEA MALM bed DIY project. A piece of fluffy white wadding or fibre filling lies partially folded on a beige carpeted floor, with part of it hanging over the edge of an IKEA MALM bed headboard, ready for upholstering.

I added some small little bits of fabric to where I was stapling, just to give it something else to grab hold of 

A piece of white polyester wadding lies on a beige carpet, ready for upholstering. A small white fabric label is attached to one corner, and a wooden dowel peeks out from under the wadding—perfect for a DIY headboard or refreshing an IKEA MALM bed.

Pull the wadding around the back and staple around. As we’re putting it into a storage area, we’re covering this side over. But if you’re keeping it exposed, make sure you take the wadding and fabric all the way around and staple near the edges where it’s less visible. 

A large rectangular board, possibly an IKEA MALM bed headboard, is laid flat on a carpeted floor, partially covered with white padding that is stapled along the edges. A wooden table and loose fabric are visible in the background, suggesting upholstering work. A large rectangular board, possibly from an IKEA MALM bed headboard, lies on a beige carpeted floor, covered with white wadding as if being prepared for upholstering headboard DIY. Metal bolts and wooden supports can be seen at the edges.

Lay your fabric across the headboard and make sure it’s hanging over enough for you to wrap around. Also, make sure it’s straight and don’t let it slip when you flip it over! 

A large piece of fabric with a repeating pattern of illustrated deer, laid out on a flat surface with furniture and tools visible around it, ready for upholstering the headboard of an IKEA MALM bed.

You can see here we have a box behind the headboard, so it hides any rough edges around the back. 

Finished! 

It fits in so well in her new room, with a cushioned headboard she can now sit up in bed nicely and read. It pulls in the woodland theme and looks really nice. She loves it! 

Adding the little gold handle means she can open and close the box but it matches nicely with the deers. 

I also upholstered an IKEA Jules desk chair to make it comfortable as well as matching her new headboard. 

Shop The Items For Upholstering An IKEA MALM Bed Headboard

  • Deer Fabric £17.99 per metre – Yorkshire Fabric Shop 
  • Electric Staple Gun – Amazon 
  • Wadding For Cushioning – Amazon  
  • IKEA Malm Bed £149 – IKEA 

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How To Upholster An IKEA Malm Bed

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18 Comments

  1. Wendy Reply

    Wow, what a great job! This looks amazing! I do find lots of Ikea stuff quite boring so this is a great way to jazz it up a bit!

  2. Jenni Reply

    Great idea! We used to have a Malm bed and I hated the headboard. Never thought to upholster it.

  3. Beth Reply

    I love your how-to posts – they’re always accompanied by not only detailed instructions but brilliant photos too.

    This one is great, the kids have this bed so it’ll be great to put this instruction to good use.

    Thank you so much! 🙂

  4. Sarah L Stockley Reply

    I really need a staple gun! Our sofa (which is also our bed) got chewed up by our dog one afternoon whilst we were out. He ripped the fabric and the foam. I am hoping to get some dacron and some sort of velvet fabric. I will look at their website. The head board looks fab!

  5. Sabina Green Reply

    That fabric is gorgeous! I am hoping to start a few projects indoors but have yet to find fabric I like – I will have to have a browse of their page.

  7. Claire Reply

    I love this idea! It looks so good. I’ve missed seeing your house updates while bloggersUK has not been running threads.

    I think I’ll head back through and check out some of your other posts. Hope you’ve all been ok x

  9. Jon Reply

    What a fantastic job! I wish I was even a little bit as talented with home/craft stuff as you to do things like this!

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