When we moved into the new house, one of the first things we needed to purchase was a new bed. We needed an additional double for the spare room so my parents could stay. So before we even moved, I'd earmarked this copper bed frame from Made.com for our room, and ordered it as soon as we got the keys.
As the bed was quite a big spend, I decided to order a relatively cheap mattress and bedding - bad move! I should have taken my own advice and not scrimped on the things that need to do a good job. The mattress was really hard and too thin, and the bedding was too light and flimsy. The hubby wasn't happy and I was kicking myself for my less than satisfactory purchases. But luckily, that was when two fabulous companies stepped in to sort things out.
Firstly, Sleepbear introduced me to their British-made, latex-topped mattress. A new family run business, Sleepbear have developed a 'one mattress suits all' design, which they believe is the ultimate in comfort, support and a good night's sleep. It seems the pure latex they use within the mattress is key to everything - it contours to your body and it's elasticity allows the mattress to bounce back. Not only that, latex is naturally hypoallergenic, so fends off dust mites, mould and bacteria, and due the materials open cell structure it is super breathable, keeping you cool in the summer and warm in the winter.
When our mattress arrived and we lay on it, we both literally went 'OH YES!' It was SO different to what we had been sleeping on. You can see in the pic above how substantial it is (and it's lovely design!), and it has 100% kept it's shape since we started sleeping on it. It has a firmness to it, but still feels like you kind of sink into it each night.
So with our mattress upgrade, it would have been ludicrous to then top it with the flimsy duvet and misshapen pillows we'd been using, so thankfully the lovely folk at Soak and Sleep were able to guide us on making our bed a truly luxurious place. On their website, you can tailor your choice of bedding to what kind of sleeper you are... side, back or front sleeper, cold or hot, allergy sufferer etc. We were advised to go with a pure wool duvet, which, as a natural material is great for temperature regulation - I often go to bed cold, but wake up in the night too hot, so it was perfect. As for pillows, it seems latex is winning out again! Same as the mattress, the latex pillows keep their shape amazingly well, and are hypoallergenic, (as is the wool duvet) which is useful for my asthma.
Last but not least, the bed sheets. Again, I've always been a bit of a cheapskate when it comes to this, but NO MORE! 100% French Linen is the only way to go! I can't believe I've cheated myself out of sleeping between anything less. It feels amazing, it is breathable, again helping with temp control, and there is no need to iron it! added bonus! I'm totally in love with this Blush Pink set I went for, I can't stop looking at it! :)
Doing this bed upgrade has honestly opened my eyes to how important a good mattress and bedding is. Maybe I'm just getting old, but it feels like a real priority to have a super comfy bed to retreat to after a long, stressful day!
The entire bedroom has had a bit of a makeover, although it is not complete yet. We are still working out storage options and additional furniture etc. But we did strip off the lining paper that was painted a deep purple and repainted in white, We then got rid of the dark blue carpet and replaced it with this white laminate flooring. As it's a loft conversion, there were no nice floorboards under the carpet, hence the laminate, but I've honestly surprised myself with how pleased I am with it! It has completely transformed the space. I will probably repaint the pink sloping wall, and we need things like a new light fitting, a new door and window coverings, but for now, just making those small changes has made it a completely different room to what it was. Of course I forgot to take any decent 'before' pics (again!) although below is a terrible phone pic from when we viewed the property, and a few 'in progress' ones when I was stripping the walls!
What a difference a lick of paint and a new floor can make right?! The only furniture I've added to the room so far are the little side tables which I got from Nordic House.
Things are slowly taking shape round here! There's still lots to do, but at least we now have a lovely, comfy place to retire to after days of decorating! Thank you so much to Soak and Sleep and Sleepbear for their help with upgrading our bed - I know I will continue to opt for better quality when it comes to bedding from now on!
oh, and if you fancy upgrading too, Sleepbear have a £50 off discount code until January 31st, see their website for the code, and Soak and Sleep are in the final week of their sale so take a peek for some bargains!