An upholstered headboard made by an upholsterer fits your bed exactly, in the fabric and height you want, and often costs less than you expect. Workshops make new headboards on a plywood or MDF backing with foam and fabric, plain, piped, deep-buttoned, float-buttoned or in channels, and recover old ones that have marked or faded. Tell us the bed size, the style and whether it mounts on the wall or bolts to the base, and we pass your request to independent upholsterers near you, who quote you directly. It is free, with no obligation.
Headboard upholstery styles
- Plain panel: a smooth padded board, often with piping around the edge
- Deep-buttoned: buttons pulled into the foam in a diamond pattern
- Float-buttoned: buttons that sit on the surface, softer and simpler
- Channel or panel: vertical or horizontal stitched channels
- Shaped tops: curved, arched or winged
A matching ottoman or bench at the foot of the bed can come from the same fabric.
Sizes, fabric and fitting
Headboards are made to the bed: single, three-quarter, double, queen or king, usually a little wider than the base. Leave room for bedside tables. A double or queen headboard takes about 2 to 3 metres of plain 140 cm fabric, a king a little more, and deep buttoning uses extra because the fabric folds into each pleat. Velvet and faux suede suit buttoning; a leather headboard or faux leather wipes clean. Decide on wall-mounted (on a cleat or brackets) or on legs bolted to the base, and check the bolt holes on your base before you order.
Recovering an old headboard
Recovering an existing headboard is cheaper than making a new one if the board is sound. The upholsterer strips the old fabric, replaces flattened foam, adds wrap and fits the new cover. Common mistakes: choosing a pale fabric where hair oil marks the top edge, measuring the mattress instead of the base, and forgetting the height of a thick mattress topper, which can swallow a low headboard. Keep a headboard out of direct sun if it faces a window, since velvet fades quickly.
What affects the price and what to ask
Size, height, style and fabric set the price. Deep buttoning and channels take the most labour; a plain panel the least. Shaped tops, piping, legs and wall brackets add a little. Ask:
- What backing board and foam thickness do you use?
- Is the fitting kit for the wall or the base included?
- Can you make a matching ottoman or cushion covers?
What to include in your request
- Bed size and base width
- Height above the mattress
- Style: plain, buttoned or channel
- Wall-mounted or bolted to the base
- New headboard or a recover
Upholstered Headboards for homes, cars and businesses
- Homeowners and tenants: a new queen or king headboard for the main bedroom, or a child's single recovered
- Restaurants, hotels, guesthouses and lodges: matching headboards for guesthouse, lodge and hotel rooms, made or recovered in batches
- Offices and businesses: padded acoustic wall panels for a boardroom or a quiet room, made like a headboard
- Car, bakkie and taxi owners: a padded bed head in a truck sleeper cab or a camper conversion
- Boats, caravans and 4x4s: headboards for caravan beds, yacht cabins and bush camp chalets in easy-clean fabric
- Clinics, salons, spas and gyms: headboards for retirement home and frail care rooms in wipeable faux leather
- Churches, schools and halls: headboards for school boarding houses and church retreat centre rooms
- Upholsterers, makers, designers and DIYers: interior designers and show house stagers ordering headboards to a fabric and size
Frequently asked questions
How much fabric does a queen headboard need?
Can an old headboard be recovered?
Is a leather headboard a good idea?
How long does it take to make an upholstered headboard?
Upholstered Headboards by province and city
- Johannesburg
- Pretoria
- Centurion
- Midrand
- Sandton
- Randburg
- Roodepoort
- Krugersdorp
- Randfontein
- Germiston
- Boksburg
- Benoni
- Kempton Park
- Alberton
- Vanderbijlpark
- Vereeniging
- Durban
- Pinetown
- Pietermaritzburg
- Richards Bay
- Newcastle
- Ladysmith
- Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth)
- East London
- Kariega (Uitenhage)
- Mthatha
- Cape Town
- Bellville
- Paarl
- Stellenbosch
- George
- Worcester
- eMalahleni (Witbank)
- Middelburg
- Secunda
- Mbombela (Nelspruit)
- Rustenburg
- Brits
- Klerksdorp
- Potchefstroom
- Mahikeng
- Polokwane
- Tzaneen
- Kimberley
- Upington
- Bloemfontein
- Welkom
- Sasolburg