DIY Round Mattress — Love Deluxe

If you're like me, and like lavish things, but aren't always so willing to fork over the money, have creative tendencies, and some free time- here's a DIY project for you.

WARNING: Not for the faint of heart. Requires approximately 15-20 total man hours to complete, some muscle, and should really never be done alone. Find a partner. I thought I could do it myself and found I was sorely mistaken as I got to the sewing-an-entire-mattress-by-hand bit. Don't do it to yourself. Please.

Things you'll need:

A king size foam mattress (if for children or pets' beds, smaller size can be used)
Large utility blade
Measuring tape
Thin rope
Sharpie or other marker
Pencil
Strong scissors (preferably fabric scissors)
Large quilting needles (at least two, so you and your partner can work at the same time)
2 spools quilting thread (nylon and thick)

MAJOR TIPS:

Make sure to keep a beverage (something with a lid- spills!), and all your tools, near. If you are able to, play music or any TV show that you don't mind half paying attention to. It makes it go by so much more easily. Start the project on a full stomach. Once you get up you'll struggle to get back to your beast of a project.

So, you'll start with a king sized mattress. The finished product is 76in. in diameter and sleeps up to 3 people comfortably. I chose a 14in. deep foam mattress for added comfort. The thinner the mattress, however, the easier your project will be.

Using your utility knife, you'll have to slice all the thread from the seams throughout the mattress. Yes. Don't give up already! This seemed like a gargantuan task, but once I built up practice, I was slicing through those babies with ease. Imagine… — Using your utility knife, you'll have to slice all the thread from the seams throughout the mattress. Yes. Don't give up already! This seemed like a gargantuan task, but once I built up practice, I was slicing through those babies with ease. Imagine ripping the tag of of clothing. Same concept. Cut through a few of the threads, starting at any corner, and once they seem loosened up, pull the separate parts of fabric in opposite directions, ripping the seams. Once it gets difficult again, start using the utility knife, and repeat. Repeat, repeat. This whole process took me about an hour.

You'll notice this little bugger here. I chose to not deal with it and rip it off as I removed the seams. My partner wanted to keep it on for esthetics. That's okay, but keep in mind that you will need to re-sow that thing on at the end of your proj… — You'll notice this little bugger here. I chose to not deal with it and rip it off as I removed the seams. My partner wanted to keep it on for esthetics. That's okay, but keep in mind that you will need to re-sow that thing on at the end of your project. Not fun.

Now. Once you've separated the top and bottom layers from the sides, you'll notice this little layer and staples that keep the foam layers in place. You'll have to remove each staple by hand. They'll pop/slide out if you just wiggle them at an angle… — Now. Once you've separated the top and bottom layers from the sides, you'll notice this little layer and staples that keep the foam layers in place. You'll have to remove each staple by hand. They'll pop/slide out if you just wiggle them at an angle. Feel free to gather them all and throw them away (recycle, preferably). They hurt like hell if you step on them, and won't be needed again.

Now that you've unstapled the top layer from the rest of the foam layers, you can go ahead and lift and remove it. I rolled it like a carpet and just put it in the corner. We'll return to it later.

Here comes the fun part. We're making our own compass! Take your measuring tape and measure the height of your mattress (the shorter side that we lay vertical to when sleeping). Mark a point in the middle with your Sharpie. Then, measure the length … — Here comes the fun part. We're making our own compass! Take your measuring tape and measure the height of your mattress (the shorter side that we lay vertical to when sleeping). Mark a point in the middle with your Sharpie. Then, measure the length of your mattress, and mark the center as well. Where those lines would. intersect, stab your sharpened pencil through the foam layers, deep enough that it won't move around. Then, grab your thin rope and tie it to the pencil. Pull the rope towards the end of the height of your mattress (for those who remember their geometry, this will be your circle's radius). Snip the rope exactly where it reaches what would be the bottom edge of the mattress (where your feet would go). And please excuse me, I do not have a picture of this process, but you'll basically turn around your mattress holding the end of the rope, while marking with your Sharpie with your other hand. I made dots that I then connected, but you do as you'd like.

After drawing my marks, I used my utility blade to cut through the top layer of foam. It cut like butter. It was actually really fun! As you see here, it's relatively thin. I realized it's easier to go layer by layer, rather than tackle the whole th… — After drawing my marks, I used my utility blade to cut through the top layer of foam. It cut like butter. It was actually really fun! As you see here, it's relatively thin. I realized it's easier to go layer by layer, rather than tackle the whole thickness of the mattress at once. Once I was done I peeled the cut part off like a sticker. Now you have a nice line to follow, too. My circle isn't perfect, but the finished product is still nice. I got through all of this alone, too. So there's that.

Continue to chisel away at the rest of the foam layers, following your line. You can also just slice repeatedly over the same spot, over and over. Once you're halfway inside your mattress, your elbow might start to feel stuck and limit your movement… — Continue to chisel away at the rest of the foam layers, following your line. You can also just slice repeatedly over the same spot, over and over. Once you're halfway inside your mattress, your elbow might start to feel stuck and limit your movement, so I started pulling back what I had cut to allow me some room.

Just keep peeling those layers back and chisel.

At this point I sat back and had a drink. For real. Totally rewarding. This was 4 hours in, so I called it a day.

Remember that topper foam piece we set aside and rolled up? Now we put it back on. I centered it as best I could onto the rest of the mattress, and using my sturdy fabric scissors, I cut it all the way around to match what I had already cut. The cot… — Remember that topper foam piece we set aside and rolled up? Now we put it back on. I centered it as best I could onto the rest of the mattress, and using my sturdy fabric scissors, I cut it all the way around to match what I had already cut. The cotton inside gets exposed, but we'll be stitching that up in a moment.

For this part, you're going to need your ginormous sewing needle, thick-ass thread (yup, that's the technical term), and some scissors. Any will do for this part.

We all know our education system is flawed, but let's hope someone at some point taught you how to hand stitch. If you have no clue what I'm talking about, just Google a regular hand stitch and you'll be a'ight. At this point, definitely grab a part… — We all know our education system is flawed, but let's hope someone at some point taught you how to hand stitch. If you have no clue what I'm talking about, just Google a regular hand stitch and you'll be a'ight. At this point, definitely grab a partner and have them assist you. You'll be sewing for awhile. I do recommend calling it quits after finishing this portion. Your fingers WILL be sore.

Once you're done sewing the perimeter of that mattress topper layer, were going to sew these flaps back on. Same concept. Just hand stitch the edges together. You can spread your stitches apart a little bit more to save time, since there won't be an… — Once you're done sewing the perimeter of that mattress topper layer, were going to sew these flaps back on. Same concept. Just hand stitch the edges together. You can spread your stitches apart a little bit more to save time, since there won't be any cotton poking out of here.

I call this stitch the "Perfectly Imperfect" (AKA my fingers hurt and I'm lazy). Hey, good enough for me. I will cheer you on and say that I'm sure you can do better!

Once that's done you'll just pull down the thin layer that used to be stapled to the foam. It would be ideal to have those, but I accidentally Ieft my industrial strength mattress stapler in my other purse (lol).

After a full day's rest, I felt up to adding a cute embellishment. I used a little faux black leather type fabric I had laying around, (don't you?) and cut a heart to stitch onto the side of my mattress. This part is of course optional. After this, … — After a full day's rest, I felt up to adding a cute embellishment. I used a little faux black leather type fabric I had laying around, (don't you?) and cut a heart to stitch onto the side of my mattress. This part is of course optional. After this, we (my beautiful partner Caroline and my Abuela were a major help here) flipped the mattress over and sewed the bottom layer onto what we already had. This layer was just a single piece of fabric, so it was easier than the rest to sew.

And voila´! There you have it. A pain in the ass, but man, every night I lay in it, I think to myself, "soooo worth it". Super rewarding, and you'll feel really proud of yourself.You can now cross that one off the bucket list. You have a round bed, … — And voila´! There you have it. A pain in the ass, but man, every night I lay in it, I think to myself, "soooo worth it". Super rewarding, and you'll feel really proud of yourself.
You can now cross that one off the bucket list. You have a round bed, man! Bask in your glory.