We Need A New Bed

I’m a busy woman. My day often starts at 4am, long before the children are awake and I can sometimes be found still tapping away at the computer as late as 11pm when I have one of “those” deadlines approaching. Roy is much the same, regularly pulling in 13hr shifts. We don’t mind working hard, mainly because we love what we do and we juggle it around fabulous family time. What we do insist on is a quality sleep when we do fall into bed and at the moment that just isn’t working out as well as we’d like.

Mattress Woes

A couple of years ago I bought a memory foam mattress. Oh my days, what a revelation. No more bothersome springs, no more lumps and bumps or anything else which would disturb our sleep. Unfortunately the wonder that was our fancy pants (quite cheap) mattress is now a bone of contention as it feels thin and unsupportive. Clearly a new mattress is on the cards however we also need to be looking at a new bedstead.

A Bedstead That Will Work for Both of Us

As far as I’m concerned at a dinky 5ft 2″ you could pop me in a small single bed and I’d still have plenty of room. My 6ft 5″ husband however needs some extra leg room. Up until now we’ve had to rely on a bed with no end so that he doesn’t continually crack his toes on the end or end up sleeping diagonally.
Clearly a new bed is on the cards and we’ve been looking at websites including Bedstar to see if they meet our list of requirements:

  • It must fit in with our white wood theme so white, brown etc
  • It must be a double, we don’t need a king size really
  • It must either have no end or be long enough for that not to matter
  • A decent headboard is a must. We both read and write in bed and the top of our steel framed bed at the moment sports a headboard made of black metal bars. Not exactly supportive or comfortable if you want to sit up in bed without 30,000 cushions.
  • We either need built in storage or for the new bed to be a true bedstead so that I may store items underneath and hide them with a valance.
  • We don’t want to have to sell any both parts in order to afford said new bed
  • A built in sound system, gaming system and TV is NOT a requirement, regardless of what Roy might believe!

bedstar, new bed

 

My question for you is this: What do you look for when choosing a new bed and mattress? Obviously I need something that suits us both and which lasts however I don’t want to pay over the odds.

We are very good when it comes to winding down, sleeping in a properly dark room, not using gadgets before bed etc. We do all the right things in order to catch some quality Z’s however it’s our bedroom hardware that’s letting us down. What I could do with is a masters guide to bed buying so if you have any nuggets of wisdom when it comes to bed and mattress buying recommendations and the like please leave a comment and let us know.

 

Hotel Luxury Wherever You Are

I am a Mum. I have two fabulously cute boys who love mud pies, arts and crafts, Minecraft and water guns. One goes to school, the other to pre-school for two days and a child-minder for another two days. We have after school clubs and classes etc.

I am a full-time working self-employed copywriter and deputy editor. By full time I mean that I work 40-50 hours a week however I work these hours around the two mud-covered, giggling children.

I have a house. It is a beautiful house with a large lounge and dining room, a brilliant kitchen (with a Belfast sink no less), a large utility room (with magical washing baskets that refill as soon as you empty them), three big bedrooms, a bathroom to die for…. and it all needs cleaning and tidying regularly.

I also like to cook. In fact I love to cook and this means spending hours making everything from scratch, prepping foods, cooking and not forgetting the shopping!

I also insist on spending proper family time with the boys and my fabulous husband.

With only twenty four hours in the day you can see how I’ve become something of a juggling expert over the past few years. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely adore my life and how busy I am but sometimes, just sometimes I start to get that slightly frayed around the edges, a feeling so many parents and workers feel when they aren’t getting enough proper sleep.

In an ideal world I would pack my bags every six months, kiss the kids and the husband goodbye and book myself into a hotel for a couple of nights.

To sleep!

If you’ve ever stayed in a really nice hotel you’ll know that there is something quite special about hotel bed linen. It is clean and crisp and yet it feels special. Perhaps it is the fact that you haven’t had to wash and iron it yourself however I fancy that it has more to do with the quality and luxury of it.
SimplePolycottonPhoto credit: http://www.mitrelinen.com/products/bedrooms/bed-linen/

Sad I know but when I used to travel for work sometimes, for training, meetings or when I used to run accreditation reviews on services (a lifetime ago before the children and before I started running my own business) I actually used to get excited about opening the door to my hotel room and finding a beautifully made up bed complete with hotel bed runners and cushions.

Sevilla AutumnPhoto credit: http://www.mitrelinen.com/products/soft-furnishings/runners-and-cushions/ 

As grabbing a bag and running off for some R&R isn’t an option (and besides, I’d miss Roy and the boys too much) I am working to create my own hotel room at home. I’m not talking about dodgy wallpaper and a minibar (although….!); I’m talking about a room that is calm and quiet and oozing with luxury. Roy and I work damn hard at work and at looking after the home and the kids so when it comes to bed time we deserve a special place where we can relax and enjoy a proper rejuvenating sleep.

Thankfully it is now possible to enjoy quality hotel bed grade linens at home too and so all I need to get hold of is a Do Not Disturb sign for the door and I’ll be all set!