faux bamboo headboard how-to

i thought i'd do a little post on my faux bamboo headboard on how i did it..

so here it is.

i started out by measuring the length of my bed, to see how long it should be, and i really just eye-balled the height, but you want to make sure it is high enough for your pillows to come up, and if you are doing something decorative like me, you want to be able to show a little of that off as well. after i measured and decided how thick i wanted the outline of the headboard to be (2.5 inches), i taped it off and drew lines with a watercolor pencil, then painted it...

after i did that, i painted the "bamboo" part of the lines in. i really just did them sort of simply, without measuring (when i do projects for myself, i measure as little as possible. i should probably measure a little more, but i just feel such a sense of relief in not having to be as precise since it's just for me that i usually don't measure as much as i would if i were on the job!)
i used a level to make sure my lines were balanced, and painted them in about 3 times. 
after the white dried, i went back in and did the lines of the bamboo with brown paint. these were just simple, quick lines painted in with a small brush. again - i wasn't precise since it was just my bedroom! :)
here is where i left it when i completed my bedroom makeover: it wasn't totally done, and it has been like this for about a week. today, i finished it.

i went back in and painted lines where the bamboo pieces are supposed to "criss cross" (where i'm pointing). you could be SUPER precise and measure exactly where each criss cross is supposed to go, but i just sort of did it at random, and tried to make sure i did some going each way. there are a few places where it's a little off, but it doesnt bother me TOOOOOO much (it does bother me a little though :))

here i went back in and painted the lines where they would be under the "frame"

pointing at it, so you can see (i look terrible - sorry, i'm sleepy :))

aaaand, it's done. it's still wet, so i haven't propped all my bed stuff up again, but its done. it looks better in person, and i could stand to be a little more precise. buuuut, it's pretty close, and that is good enough for me, for now!