You are either in your bed or in your shoes, so it pays to invest in both. We uncovered this quote, attributed to a sage by the name of John Wildsmith (not sure who he is/was, sorry), and we couldn’t agree more. A third of our lives are spent sleeping – or trying to – so why not invest in the making it a luxurious experience?
You’re surely aware that a sound night’s sleep is the latest luxury status symbol amongst the global elites, and we’ve set out to investigate how the uber-rich are trying to achieve it.
Our Dandelion Chandelier 5-part series on luxury sleep starts here: with the foundation of all sleep, the bed.
The highest-end furniture – like the most expensive haute couture and footwear – is a lot about fantasy and not so much about function. You can get a perfectly serviceable bed at reasonably low prices – but once you make it big, your bed can be as fantastical, modern, or high-tech as you like.
For example, there’s the futuristic Magnetic Floating Bed, which is suspended in mid-air (be really careful not to roll the wrong way in the middle of the night). Or the Baldacchino Supreme bed, a canopy bed featuring gold lacquer and diamonds. The price tags for these one-of-a-kind or concept beds are north of $1 million and for all practical purposes, they’re intended as conversation pieces, not real life use.
Happily, though, the furniture designers and craftsmen of the world have created luxurious and stylish beds for real life that will allow you to live the dream even before you’re asleep. As long as your partner agrees.
The right bed for you primarily depends on how you define luxury. Are you trying to make a sophisticated design statement? Dreaming of sleeping in a romantic canopy bed fit for a royal palace? Or in search of a good night’s sleep empowered by the best gadgets that technology can offer? We found options for all of the above.
For those looking for more traditional, romantic, lush bedroom décor, there are lots of options:
–The UK’s Savoir Beds makes bespoke “bedding systems” that include both the bed frame, headboard and mattress; their slogan is “spend a third of your life in First Class.” While their advertisements showcase fairly traditional styles, their beds can be made up into any form of bedstead, including four-poster, bateau lit or contemporary design. Each bed is custom-made, and each mattress is crafted to suit the buyer’s height, weight, and sleeping style. Each takes several weeks to make, and their bespoke guarantee is simple: if you don’t like the result they will make you another. Because they can be created in any size and shape, if you have period furniture or need something oddly shaped, they can handle it. Lately the brand has been partnering with artists and design luminaries, including Madeline Weinrib, Robert Couturier, Nicky Haslam, and Jane Churchill. The company’s ornate limited-edition Royal Bed is its most luxurious offering, with a hand-made mattress of Mongolian cashmere, Latin American horse tail and silk. Buyers can also stitch their names or their families’ names on the mattress. The Royal Bed is $175,000; mattresses start at $12,850, and the original Savoy bed starts at $31,650.
–Nilson is a Dutch brand that has very limited availability in the US, but that is increasingly found in ultra-luxury hotels in the Netherlands and opulent homes worldwide. Prices vary because each piece is bespoke, but according to high-end retailer, “a good starting price point would be around $20,000 for a queen-size bed.”
–To literally sleep like royalty, consider a bed from Hypnos, a British family-run bed making company now being run by the fourth generation. Its handcrafted deep pocket spring beds are in use by the Royal Family and Royal Household, and can be found at Buckingham Palace, Windsor Castle, St. James Palace, Balmoral Castle, Sandringham House, and Kensington Palace. They also create bespoke beds specifically for visiting dignitaries, and you can find them in chic hotels like The Whitehall Hotel in Chicago. The queen-size mattress and box spring sets range in price from $4,199-$12,200; king sets are $4,999-$12,999.
–British company Beaudesert is the go-to for hand-built four-poster beds; the company maintains an extensive archive of photographs and drawings, and after a client consultation the company creates a watercolor of the final design for approval. Each bed is mad by hand, and delivery takes up to ten weeks. According to a company spokesman, bed frames start at about $10,300 (excluding VAT) for a simple turned mahogany four poster frame; the carved posts are more depending on the details, and there is an additional cost for the mattress, bed base and dressings.
Those with a minimalist aesthetic can look to brands and makers focused on architectural design elements and unusual materials:
–Scala Luxury, a Los Angeles-based studio, specializes in “creative couture furniture collections,” and crafts beds and other bedroom furnishings made of stainless steel, bronze, glass, gold leaf, horns, bones, brass, exotic wood essences, legal animal hides, and silver. You’ll find their products in luxury hotel rooms at the Four Seasons, MGM Resorts, Park Hyatt, St. Regis, and the Shangri La. Beds are priced at $16,000-$30,000.
–Greek company COCO-MAT’s beds are sustainably crafted with no metal; you can purchase a bed frame, or a complete system – the company’s Triton system has an ergonomic base, and layers of natural materials, including cactus fiber, which has unique humidity-regulating properties – the line ranges in price from $25-35,000.
–RIVA 1920 is an Italian, family-owned business that has been producing solid wood furniture in Northern Italy for more than three generations. The company’s products are finished using only oils, beeswax, and vinyl glues without formaldehyde, and it prides itself on working with new woods in ways that respect the environment. Their opening price point is $2,500.
–One of Britain’s most highly respected industrial designers, Matthew Hilton makes a limited number of sleek artisanal beds made primarily of American oak and walnut. Prices start at $2,800.
–From avant-garde designers neri&hu come beds based on a modern aesthetic rooted in cultural provocation; the designers’ intention is to question the potential in “Chinese design,” and to reinterpret the beauty in raw materials. Beds start at $5,600.
Aesthetics aside, if the best in high-tech is your definition of a luxurious night’s sleep, you’ve got a couple of high-end options (especially if you want a bed straight out of a James Bond film):
–On its website, Milan-based Hi-Interiors proclaims “we want to do with furniture what Tesla is doing with cars and Apple did with phones.” Designed by Italian designer Eduardo Carlino, the company’s futuristic Hi-Can (High Fidelity Canopy) bed has a personal health tracker, enclosing blinds, a state-of-the-art sound system, reading lights, a built-in Microsoft PC, multimedia capabilities for game and entertainment consoles, and a hi-def projector and retractable screen. All elements are adjustable via a remote, and the control can be linked to other home appliances. The bed comes in eight colors, and costs $62,500.
–Hollandia International, an Israeli mattress and sleep system company, has partnered with several cutting-edge designers to create a number of fantastical modern beds, including The Sphere, a canopy bed with a sleep monitor, 32” TV, built-in massager, and champagne holder for $50,000.
Of course lots of uber-wealthy people will opt for antique beds, which is an entirely different topic that we’ll cover at a later date.
Whichever direction you choose for a new bed – analog or digital – just don’t forget the rest of your brood. If you want to bestow the same level of luxury on your little princes or princesses, have a look at Circu, a Portuguese furniture company that sells whimsical children’s beds at prices ranging from $16,000-$43,000. Savoir makes luxurious dog beds priced at $3,850 and up.
By the way, if you’re serious about investing in a luxurious bed, the best way to test them – and also luxury mattresses, pillows and sheets– is to stay at some of the world’s best hotels, and inquire about what you’re sleeping on. Not surprisingly, Savior Beds offers test-drives at four hotels; if you buy a bed, the cost of the accommodation is refunded. Much easier to do it that way than to try to test something out in-store, no? Sweet dreams.
