The bedroom is a place of relaxation and undisturbed sleep, which requires the right handling of colours and a considered choice of furniture. The most important furnishing in the bedroom is undoubtedly the bed. Nowadays, one of the most popular double beds are those made of solid wood, but also upholstered beds. Which design to opt for?
Before deciding on a bed design, you should know what basic parameters are worth looking at when making your choice.
Choose the size of the bed not only according to the taller sleeper, but also according to the space. If you have a small bedroom, an unnecessarily large bed will take up all the space. The bedroom will feel cramped, there won’t be room for other furniture and you may not be able to move around in the bedroom. So the size of the bed should always be appropriate to the size of the space. If, on the other hand, you go for a bed that is too small, neither partner can sleep comfortably as there will be a ‘fight’ for sleeping space all night.
There should be sufficient space around the bed for comfortable walking. In addition, it is recommended that there is a bedside table on either side for putting away essentials. It is generally recommended to have at least 50 cm of clearance between the wall or wardrobe and the bed.
A standard double bed, whether upholstered or solid, has a width and length of 180 × 200 cm. However, if one of the partners is taller, you can have an extended length made. In this case, the bed will be 180 × 210-220 cm. Choose the length of the bed according to the taller of the two sleepers and don’t forget to add 25 cm extra. For the width, consider the dimensions of the sleeping area, not the width of the frame.
To find the optimum bed height, sit on the edge of the bed and lower your feet to the floor. There should be a 90° angle between the calf and thigh bones. For reasons of comfort and hygiene, it is recommended that the height of the sleeping surface should be 40-50 cm above the ground. If the sleeping surface is too low, you may be bothered by dust that sticks to the floor. The height of the sleeping surface can be influenced by the height of the mattress.
When choosing a bed, you will be faced with the question of whether to get an upholstered or wooden bed with or without storage space. If you’re struggling with every bit of space at home, reach for a bed with storage. This can be accessed by folding down the slats or by pulling out the drawer.
If you don’t need extra storage space, reach for a bed without storage space. All-upholstered continental beds with a boxspring core are the most ideal in this case, providing the most luxurious rest.
The biggest contributor to a comfortable and healthy sleep is a customised mattress. It is best to choose a mattress in person at the store. You can choose from a variety of mattress materials and firmnesses. Most often you will find mattresses made of:
Sandwich mattresses, which combine several materials, are also available. This allows you to choose the mattress that best suits your needs and requirements.
Remember that the length of the mattress should be 25 cm longer than your height. The height of the mattress should be 16 cm or more. The higher the mattress, the better the quality of your sleep. Choose the width of your mattress according to the size of your bed. The load capacity of the mattress should be about 5 kg more than your weight.
Together with the mattress, the bed mattress also affects the quality of sleep. The grid helps the mattress with the optimal distribution of the pressure exerted. It also ensures that the mattress is sufficiently ventilated.
You can choose a slatted grate, which does not flex, or a flexible slatted grate. It is also up to you whether you go for a fixed or adjustable grate. If you have a bed with storage space in the bed frame, add a tiltable grate. Bed grates can be manually or electrically adjustable.
Once you are familiar with the basic parameters, it comes down to the choice of the bed frame, which determines its design. Always choose a bed that best suits your chosen interior style. Nowadays, you can choose from frames:
Laminate frames are the domain of cheaper and lower quality beds. Metal beds are very specific and appear significantly less in bedrooms than upholstered and solid beds.
Upholstered beds are available with a mattress and mattress or as a frame only, for which you can choose the accessories according to your requirements. With the complete beds, you will not have to worry about choosing a mattress and a mattress. So it depends on what you prefer.
Since you spend about a third of your day sleeping, we recommend that you have a complete bed made to measure.
The biggest advantage of these beds is comfort. A bed with an upholstered headboard is the obvious choice for anyone who likes to read, talk or listen to audiobooks in bed. In fact, the soft upholstered headboard offers a comfortable recline without having to constantly adjust the pillow or having a bruised back.
Do you like really high headboards? Take a look at our range of full wall headboards.
The bed frame is usually made of solid wood, which is padded with soft foams and covered with pleasant fabrics. The bed is therefore heavier, but you can look forward to a long service life. In addition, the whole bed is wonderfully soft. There are no sharp edges or corners. This will be appreciated not only by adults, but also by parents of smaller children.
Because children “travel” around the bed at night and use it for play during the day, parents don’t have to worry about them getting hurt. That’s why a full upholstered bed is also suitable for a child’s room. At Materasso, we make upholstered beds to measure, so you can have a larger children’s single bed made up in 120 cm or 140 cm × 200 cm. The smaller upholstered double bed 160 × 200 cm is also ideal for smaller bedrooms. With upholstered beds, you don’t have to worry about splinters, which can be caused by damage to a wooden bed.
In terms of design , upholstered beds offer much more variation than solid beds. The bed can be upholstered with fabric in any colour. Choose one that will match the other colours in the bedroom. In addition to the colour, you can also choose the texture. Do you prefer velvet, eco leather, genuine leather or fabric? Thanks to the wide range, you can easily adapt the bed to any room furnishing. White or grey upholstery will be perfect for a Scandinavian bedroom. The lilac colour will go well with a French country-style bedroom.
The headboard itself is a design element. It can be minimalist, but also expressive. Quilting, button embellishments or geometric shapes are popular.
If you are decorating a room for an allergy sufferer, you may have read that an upholstered bed does not belong in such a bedroom. However, if you choose to upholster your bed in eco-leather or non-textile fabric, a person with a respiratory condition can sleep in it without worry. The bed frame is just as easy to maintain as a wooden frame. A duster will suffice.
Many people hesitate when choosing between solid wood and upholstery because of maintenance. But did you know that upholstery is also easy to maintain? If you go for leatherette, you’ll only need a duster. But with fabric upholstery, you need to take into account regular vacuuming. Unlike solid wood, however, you don’t have to treat your bed with oils or other nourishing substances that wood requires from time to time.
Solid wood beds are popular for their natural origin. They are timeless pieces that are also suitable for allergy sufferers. Although they get along with different interior designs, they are not a suitable choice for everyone. For example, they are not suitable for austere minimalism, modernism or futurism.
They cannot compete with upholstered beds in terms of comfort. Although wooden beds are also available with headboards, they are a hard material that you can’t stand to lean against for long. Hitting wood is painful, unlike upholstery.
For a solid bed to be truly high quality, you need to reach for durable wood. Beds made from spruce and pine do not have the same longevity as beds made from beech and oak, for example. Beech and oak beds tend to be more expensive. With wooden beds, care should be taken to ensure that the construction is of a good quality so that the furniture does not start to creak over time.
The care of a solid bed is more demanding than that of an upholstered bed with a lot of maintenance. While a bed upholstered in fabric just needs to be vacuumed during a major cleaning, a solid bed requires care in the form of oils or waxes from time to time. It depends on the finish.
Wood is sensitive to humidity. If the air is too humid, the wood can start to swell, while dry air causes the wood to dry out and shrink, which can lead to creaking problems. Over time, solid wood can change colour. You don’t have to worry about this with upholstered beds.
Just because a bedroom should have only the necessary furniture doesn’t mean that the bedroom will be impersonal and uninviting. You can bring comfort and style to your bedroom with upholstered furniture. You can also get a comfortable upholstered armchair to go with your bed. With an upholstered chair, you can create a cosy reading nook in your bedroom. If you like to stretch your legs while reading, get a comfortable footstool to go with the chair.
The sides of the upholstered bed must not be missing bedside tables, which should be rather subtle due to the “massiveness” of the bed. Go for a simple combination of solid wood and metal. If you have a larger bedroom, an elongated upholstered stool in the form of a chest or bench is a very practical addition.
If you want to enjoy a truly comfortable sleep and rest, reach for a soft upholstered bed to add style to your bedroom.
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