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A bed is the largest piece of furniture in the room, and the one most often bought badly: a frame chosen from a warehouse in a size dictated by a mattress manufacturer, for a room whose ceiling, door and stair turn were never considered.
We make beds one at a time, in solid timber, to the mattress you own or intend to buy. The frame is jointed rather than bolted through thin panel, and it comes apart for delivery and goes back together in the room.
That structure is guaranteed for as long as you own the bed — the frame, the carcase and the joints — with ten years on fitting, ironmongery and finish. Our guarantee sets out the position in full.
Three forms cover most of what we are asked for: the four poster, the half tester and the panelled bed.
The forms we make
Four poster beds — four corner posts carrying a full tester frame overhead. The carved four poster #961, with carving to posts, headboard and tester rails, and a plainer version where the posts are turned or square-cut. Drapes are optional and most clients now leave them off.
Half tester beds — a canopy over the head end only, carried on two posts or corbelled off the headboard. The architecture of a four poster at the head of the bed and nothing over your feet.
Panelled beds — headboard and footboard built as framed and panelled joinery. Panelled bed #928 is the pattern most often specified. Variations include a turned and panelled bed, a turned footboard, a small panel bed for a lower ceiling, sleigh beds and Gothic beds with pointed-arch tracery.
The Gothic beds belong to the wider Gothic collection, which also runs to wardrobes, dressing tables and bedside cabinets, so a whole room can be made in one language. We also make bedside chests and cabinets, with and without cross banding, shown with the chests of drawers.
Sizes we commonly make
These are the sizes we build most often, taken from our own price list, and stated as mattress sizes because that is the measurement that matters.
| Mattress width | Mattress length | Commonly called |
|---|---|---|
| 4ft 6in | 6ft 3in | Double |
| 5ft | 6ft 6in | King |
| 6ft | 6ft 6in | Super king |
Any size is possible, because the bed is made from scratch. Send us the mattress width, length and depth, and we will give you the finished external size in writing before anything is cut.
Ceilings, doors and stairs
Beds are made in parts and assembled in the bedroom, so what has to get up the stairs is the longest single component rather than the finished frame. Tell us the ceiling height under any beam or sloping section, the width of the tightest doorway and the geometry of the stair turn, and we will confirm what fits before anything is cut.
Timbers
Oak, cherry, mahogany and walnut are the standard four, and every bed is made in all of them. Oak is the usual choice for panelled and four poster work; cherry is often specified for Gothic pieces, where the finer grain suits the tracery.
Specials, quoted on application: character oak, knots and movement left in; pippy oak in light, medium and heavy grades, for panels; oak selected for medullary ray, the silver figure across quarter-sawn oak, within or without the timber; and clean timber with no knots at all.
Finishes: polished, painted, limed, sand-blasted, rub-through paint, natural, or colour matched to a sample. We can match furniture that is 100 years old to new reproduction purchases made the year before.
Order free timber and finish samples and look at them in the bedroom, in the light you actually sleep in.
Made to your size
Every dimension is open. The changes clients ask for most often are a lower tester to clear a ceiling, a headboard raised to read above a deep mattress, a footboard removed entirely, posts made lighter or heavier, and carving added or taken away.
The base is specified with the frame. You can have a timber slatted base, a sprung base, or your own divan base set inside the frame — tell us which at the drawing stage, because the rail height and the internal dimensions are set around it.
If you want a bed that does not exist yet, that is a one-off commission and our designers draw it first. See bespoke and commissioning.
For the rest of the room, see wardrobes, dressing tables and mirrors and chests of drawers. Built-in hanging or a panelled wall behind the bed is fitted furniture.
Prices
Guide price on request. Beds are quoted individually by pattern, size, timber, finish and the amount of carving. Special timbers, colour matching and natural finishes are priced on application. Standard lead time is typically ten to twelve weeks, and a one-off bespoke piece typically four weeks longer.
Frequently asked questions
What size beds do you make?
We make 4ft 6in wide with a 6ft 3in mattress length, 5ft wide with a 6ft 6in length, and 6ft wide with a 6ft 6in length. Those are the sizes we build most often. Any other size is possible, because every bed is made from scratch to your dimensions.
Will the bed fit up my stairs?
The bed is delivered in parts and assembled in the bedroom, so what has to fit is the longest single component rather than the finished frame. Send us the stair width, the turn and the tightest doorway and we will confirm before you commit.
Can you make a bed to match furniture I already own?
Usually, yes. Send photographs, dimensions and, if possible, a sample of the finish. Matching existing pieces is long-standing work for this workshop. See matching antique furniture.
Which bed suits a low ceiling?
A panelled bed, or the small panel bed, since neither has anything above mattress height at the corners. A half tester is the next option, as the canopy sits over the head end only.
