Revisiting an Old Idea...

My girls would LOVE to have their own rooms, but it ain't happening in this house. A thought of this great idea a few days ago to build a platform to put her bed and bookshelf on... so I sighed a great sigh and then I drew her up the plan that's been in my head for two years, to make HER bed into a loft-style, and stick M's bed underneath. Of course, the girls love the idea. I absolutely adore the beds they have now, though, and don't have the $1000++ it would take to buy a new loft bed contraption brand new. (Contraption? Sheesh. How old am I?) SO- - I want to take what we have and re-build it into what we want.

This is what we have. I have two identical head & footboards thanks to my MARVELOUS dad. See the distressed paint and cute routed detail on the headboard and footboard? See the awesome turning on all the legs? SIGH. What I need is THIS (above) style, that we already have, in THIS (below) type of functionality, at just the right height so A won't get decapitated by the ceiling fan. Here's the type of 4x4 ugliness to be found online:

Any ideas? Any assistants willing to sign up to help me with this project? I'm thinking I want to use the same headboard, but I just need new POSTS on all four corners, but bigger, sturdier - and TURNED like the ones we have, with finials on top - - - fence posts perhaps?? and then duplicate the footboard 3 more times, and stack those into a "ladder" on the end. Of course I'd need to brace the back like they have in this bottom picture too...