It can start off with a word from your partner after seeing a four poster bed on the TV, in a magazine, or on a website. It will then eat away at one or both of you for ages. You have a little financial boost, a windfall, or you have finished paying for something and times get easier, and then it will eat away at both of you. You take a good look at websites, and decide that a solid wood four poster bed is the one for you. You have always wanted one. The kids are growing up, and some of the pressure is easing. You have had a pay rise. You decide to buy the family an heirloom. Whatever the reason, you can justify the expense. You are hooked.
The internet is now the best way to study the products that you want. It is permanently open. You can drop in when you have a few spare minutes. You can browse without being hassled by store salespeople who have little or no idea but the product they are trying to sell. You can have a good look around, save a few images. You like the posts on this four poster, you like the panels on another, and the canopy is ideal on yet another. Sometimes on the same website, but often you will cover the whole web in the hunt for the bed of your dreams. This can take a considerable time, as there are only a handful of manufacturers or makers, and very few retailers of quality four poster beds. Remember, you only have to spend once if you buy quality, and it will be in the family for generations.
The next move could be after your first visit to a website, or it could be two years down the road, after saving hard. You send the first email, trying to find out if all your ideas can be put in the melting pot and pull out your dream bed. Then you make a phone call asking about a few more details. 'Will a four poster bed fit up the stairs, and go in the room?' If you can get a mattress into the room, then there will be no problem with the rest of the bed. An 84" square mattress will come in two zipped halves, due to the weight and size of getting them into the room and physically turning the mattress in the future. Many four poster canopy beds are 78" high, but they can be made higher to look more elegant in a high room, or lower to fit under a beam. Remember, if you are looking at an antique or reproduction bed, taller will tend to look more Victorian, Regency, Georgian, or William and Mary, while a lower bed will look as though its has come from an earlier era, say Tudor.
Another question occasionally asked is 'Whether our floor will take the weight of a four poster bed?' Usually there is no problem; often four posters are not much heavier than conventional wooden beds, although a large, chunky oak bed will be heavier than a tall slender Georgian bed. If this is a potential problem use a little common sense when choosing a bed.
'Can we mix and match twisted posts, with carved diamonds, linenfold panels, gothic arches, fluted posts, some fancy carving, or a classic Georgian style headboard?' Usually designs can be customised to make your ideas look good, studying plenty of examples often helps.
Some customers have decided what they want by the time they visit a shop, others know what they want, but have not seen it yet, and many are not quite sure. Yesterday a couple came into our showroom knowing exactly what they wanted, looked at all the alternatives, and settled on a completely different bed.
Mattress size is important, a double, a king size or a super king size, and these sizes vary from country to country, so measurements work best in inches or millimetres. Mattresses can be specially made for the taller customer, so that their feet are not hanging over the edge of the bed. Sketching ideas on paper and looking in antique books will help find what you are looking for. These days it is easy to scan and email a few sketches if it is too far to visit, high resolutions pictures and diagrams can be sent quickly with broadband.
Grains of wood can be studied, whether it is close grained American cherry, English sycamore or perhaps sustainable utile, replacing mahogany. You may prefer the hand planed finish that can be put on English oak or ash to fit in with your stone walls or old oak beams in the bedroom. You should make sure that the timber used is from local sustainable sources. (The English oak that we are using at the moment has travelled less than 20 miles, and comes from The Duchy of Cornwall Estate, owned by the Prince of Wales, while the ash comes from another estate even closer.)
When considering wood colour, ask for samples to match up your existing furniture or get the colour that you are happy with. Samples can be polished and sent worldwide. You can go from natural to extremely dark, but lately there seems to be an increase in natural and lighter colours, perhaps a new trend is emerging. Multiple chemical sensitivity syndrome is becoming an issue in the USA and the UK. Some customers want a finish as near to the natural wood as possible, using beeswax, others are tending towards oil finishes, providing a natural finish with a soft shine that can be revitalised at any point in the future.
Once all of these points have been raised, questions answered, and deposit paid, the making of your dream bed will become reality. Remember that anything handmade will take time, so allow a craftsperson time to do their work without rushing, that way you will have a finished piece that you are both happy with.
Once the bed, mattresses and bed base are made, shipping or delivery can be organised. Expect a small charge to cover fuel and time but you will probably have your bed assembled for you at the same time. Overseas customers should expect assembly instructions, the best being a step by step guide showing how to put your bed together, illustrated in pictures and captions.
Your manufacturer or retailer should be on the end of a phone for advice. (The other day, I had a customer who had bought a bed eight years ago, ring asking how to take his four poster bed apart as he was moving house. I took the removal men through it step by step on loudspeaker. It was easy.)
Finally you get the bed of your dreams, the bed that you have wanted ever since you were a child, the bed that you thought that you could not afford. They are not as expensive as you might think, especially with the power of the internet. It cuts out expensive overheads of a high street shop, keeping the product price at a sensible level.
Remember, when you are happy with your commission, the best way to thank a craftsperson, what ever they have made for you, is to smile and say 'Thanks that is just what I wanted.'
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