The Girls' Shared Bunk Bed Room - Katie Perri Design

It seems like I just finished this room makeover for Emma, only to turn around and make it into a shared room for both of the girls. They have been begging for bunk beds for years, and with the newest family addition coming in September, it was the perfect excuse to make it happen for them! I decided to use Evvie’s old room for the nursery because I still wanted to keep them all on the first floor– so shared room it is!

Personally, I was so sad to take down Emma’s “big girl bed”, simply because it was my absolute favorite feature of the room. I was so proud of the finished makeover, but knowing that she was excited to get the bed she REALLY wanted was good enough for me.

Planning The Bunks

We tossed around the idea of doing two separate twin beds in front of each book case, but that left such little space in the middle. Shared rooms make it a little difficult to have personal space, so I opted to just do the bunks. However, I had a few challenges going into this build:

Non-permanent built in, in case we move in the near future. It needs to be able to be easily removed in the future.
Little wall space to work with.
Not damaging the bottom trim I just put up.
Keeping the bookcases as untouched as possible (no screw or nail holes).
Make it look as “built-in” as possible with the book cases.

That’s a lot of obstacles, I know… but seeing that the far right wall was really the only space to make this happen, I had to get creative. The number one priority (after making sure it would be safe and sturdy, of course) was making sure that the built in bookcases would go unscathed. They measure 36″ wide, which put me at my next dilemma– standard twin mattresses are wider than 36″. Luckily, I discovered that Narrow Twin Mattresses existed! Amazon, once again, saved the day.

Building The Bunks

Once I got the new mattress dimensions, the platform assembly was underway. The bottom bunk platform was secured below the wall trim into the studs, while the top platform was attached right above the top horizontal trim. (Cheers to no trim being damaged!) To make it look as built in as possible, I cut 3/4″ plywood pieces to act as headboards, giving the appearance of custom niches. I love this detail and now each bunk has a shelf to decorate with their favorite things.

I painted the bunks Sherwin Williams – Hushed Auburn to match the rest of the room and it looks SO GOOD!!! We absolutely love how this room turned out. I keep finding myself ending up in this room. There is still a cozy and warm feeling when you enter the room and most importantly — The girls love it!