Shopping for a headboard? Try this idea.
A framed felt textile design serves as a floating headboard in a New York guest bedroom. Design: Time & Place Interiors
At a recent in-home design consultation session, my client asked my opinion on beds with headboards. My honest answer was that there are few retail options out there with decent construction or elegance in design.
Unless you’re ordering custom upholstery for your bed (which I recommend for a truly luxurious, finished look), you might be better off using a creative alternative headboard above a simple platform bed than buying a mass-produced bed + headboard that’s lackluster in style.
One way I love to do this is by hanging a handmade artisan textile or a vintage tapestry above the bed, as an art piece. It could be a textile brought back from travels or found through an antiques gallery. Perhaps it’s a Navajo weaving, an Uzbek suzani, or a vintage Flemish silk tapestry… it’s a creative way of using artisan textiles in your home decor. A textile hung as a headboard brings sophisticated global style to your space. It also honors traditional craftsmanship passed down over generations of artisans.
To fire up your creative juices, I’m sharing examples of intriguing artisan and vintage textiles used as headboards in bedroom designs. Ranging from mounted installations to the casually draped, these fabric headboard alternatives show how introducing handmade global decor will make your house into a home.
For more bedroom design inspiration, see our posts on nightstands and bed dressing:
Bedside Manner: Creative nightstand ideas you haven't thought of (yet)
In this Riverdale bedroom design, a traditional Peruvian frazada is pinned to the wall, completing an eclectic ensemble of textures complemented but not matched by the throw pillows:
Design: Livia Cetti / Photo: Kate Mathis
A vintage textile also makes a great headboard option, offering an interesting opportunity to mix eclectic design styles. I love how this tapestry ties together the disparate elements of this bedroom’s design — both traditional and modern:
Design: Casa Josephine Studio / Photo: Ricard Labougle
The drama of a large antique fabric can make a design statement. This 19th Century Japanese textile gives structure and interest to a bedroom in Upstate New York.
Design: Inside Studios / Photo: Ari Kellerman
Stiff texture for an untraditional headboard idea works too. Here’s one created out of a rustic rush mat that’s crafted by artisans in Spain:
Design: Serge Castella Interiors / Photo: Manolo Yllera
The hanging leather headboard idea has been adopted by mainstream retailers. But it would be done best with an authentic vintage leather gym mat like this example in a Parisian hotel, showing off a rich, unapologetic patina:
Design: Vanessa Scoffier / Photo c/o Hotel Henriette
If you love the idea of using a textile for a headboard, but want more structure, the cloth could be attached to a headboard. In this East Hampton bedroom, a vintage Dutch iron canopy bed has a Kuba cloth clamped to its back to create a headboard, adding interesting artisan texture:
Design: Sharone Einhorn / Photo: Stephen Kent Johnson
For a more casual approach, simply drape an interesting fabric over an upholstered headboard. Here’s an example from a New York City apartment bedroom design where an artisan textile lends subtle pattern to neutral bedding:
Design / Photo: Pidgin
Of course, the bigger - the grander. Here’s an unapologetically large vintage Suzani mounted above a custom platform bed.
Design: Studio Muka / Photo: William Jess Laird
Okay, this one is a footboard, but it still gives you the idea of draping fabric over a metal bed frame. Vintage damask curtains hung on an antique iron bed create unexpected drama in this historic Italian farmhouse:
Design: Annette Joseph / Photo: William Abranowicz
Another idea? No headboard at all, for an understated look. Not every bed necessarily needs one, especially if it's already draped in richly textured fabrics or if it’s flanked by interesting nightstands. For sitting up in bed, prop up large throw pillows or square euro shams:
Design: Scott Newkirk / Photo: Chris Edwards
Bringing global design to your home
Time & Place Interiors brings unique interior design from all corners of of the globe to our decorating projects. Use the link below to schedule a free 20-minute information call with founder Ksenya Malina. You’ll tell us about your design goals, and we’ll recommend a path that will make your home reflect what you love, with creativity and style.
