I Truly Can’t Get Over This Brilliant Headboard Hack (So Easy and So Cute!)

When I moved into my current college house, one of the decor items I opted not to buy for my bedroom was a headboard. They can be so expensive! It didn’t seem worth it to me when I knew I’d be graduating and moving out within the year (now T-minus 1.5 months!). 

I did think about DIYing my own unique headboard, but all of the how-to ideas I found online seemed too involved and daunting. 

That wouldn’t have been the case, though, if at the time I had come across this ingenious dorm headboard idea from DIYer and influencer Emily Shaw (@emilyrayna on TikTok and Instagram), who was an Apartment Therapy Design Changemaker in 2023. Shaw’s DIY headboard idea is not only cute and creative, but also totally doable! Honestly, it’s a game changer. 

Let’s break it down: The only materials you need are a rug that fits the width of your bed, a piece of cardboard that’s the same size, scissors or a box cutter for the cardboard, a strong glue, and Command strips to hang the headboard. 

In Shaw’s video, she shows herself picking out a boho-chic rug (I think it’s this 2-foot-by-3-foot jute cutie!) at Walmart for $20. Then, she fits it to a trifold piece of cardboard and glues the two together using both E6000 and hot glue. Shaw mounts her headboard to the wall using Command strips (noting that she adds extra adhesive to the Command strips to make them stick better to the cardboard). 

“This is perfect for dorm rooms and twin-size beds, especially because it is so inexpensive,” Shaw says in the video. I couldn’t agree more. 

Her followers feel the same. Her video received more than 5,000 likes on Instagram and more than 7,000 likes on TikTok, and the comments are full of positive feedback. One Instagrammer commented, “Love this idea! Thanks for sharing!”

Another Instagrammer even came up with a second great use for the hack: “This is so cute!!!! This would also be an adorable corkboard I think 😻.” 

I love how accessible this DIY hack is, and I wish I had come across it earlier! Now I know what my next craft-night inspo will be. 

This post was a collaboration between Dorm Therapy and Apartment Therapy and originally appeared on Apartment Therapy. See it there: I Truly Can’t Get Over This Brilliant Headboard Hack (So Easy and So Cute!)