If you use some sort of mat or tile system for playing Dungeons & Dragons, pieces of furniture can really go a long way towards making your areas come alive. Beds can be super useful for this; humanoid baddies always need a place to sleep. This recipe is super forgiving of mistakes, about as cheap as it gets, and can be knocked out in an afternoon.
Here's what you'll need:
Large craft sticks (about 3/4" by 6", not the "popsicle" size)
White glue
Toilet paper
Scissors
A ruler
A pen/pencil
Water
An old paintbrush (optional)
Paint (optional)
Measure out four marks on the craft stick. The end sections need to each be 1" long, and then you need two sections from the middle that are each 1 1/2" long. Cut along these lines with the scissors.
You should have two 1" pieces with one round end each, two 1 1/2" pieces that are flat on both sides, and one small piece that we won't be using. If you happen to have a stronger wood glue, go ahead and use that.
Put a line of glue on each short end of one of the 1 1/2" pieces. This will form the frame of the bed.
Find something to rest the frame on (a pencil or a few leftover craft sticks can work) and then attach the two rounded pieces to the ends. They will be the bed's headboard and footboard. I recommend finding something to help prop the ends up so they don't fall over while the glue dries.
Cut a 1 1/2" square out of the toilet paper. I was lucky enough to have a brand with a design of about that size printed on to help guide.
Smear a thin layer of glue on both sides of your second 1 1/2" piece and then lay it on top of the toilet paper square.
Fold the edges over. You may need to trim the ends a bit to make sure it is even with the edge of the wood.
Flip it over. Use a wet paintbrush to smooth out some of the toilet paper texture and give it more of a wrinkled, blanket-like appearance. Be very gentle! A pencil or similar object can also be used, but you have to be even more careful not to tear the wet paper.
If you'd like to paint your bed, wait for everything to dry and then doing it now while the frame is separate from the blanket. Otherwise you can assemble everything.
To assemble, just glue the "blanket" on top of the frame and let it dry. Again, it's helpful to prop up the headboard/footboard so they don't fall off while drying.
A few finished beds! These were spray-painted before adding the blanket, but otherwise took less than an hour, not counting drying time. There are a lot of options you can try, such as not tucking in the sides of the blanket, or making a pillow for the end. I think that these are perfectly serviceable for a simple guard barracks, and easily mass produced.