It’s Time to Decide If I Can *Actually* Fit a King-Sized Bed in My Bedroom
Project 365, Day 205/365
For as long as I can remember, I’ve been a “design by gut” designer. Mostly because no one else’s money has ever been at stake—just my own—until recently. This might make you think I’d value my own funds enough to not go by gut, and be a little more intentional but…I can be a bit free-spirited, much to my rigid, Charles’ chagrin.
As of late, I’ve been helping a friend furnish a townhouse he’s building in Philadelphia, and we went into it thinking the whole time he’d get a king-sized bed. Before he went to purchase the bed we’d both been eyeing for him, I had the sense enough to get Charles to model the dimensions of both a king and a queen in the floorplan so we could see how much room we had to work with (thank goodness for having an architect husband, hm?). That king size…enormous. It would have eaten the room and left almost no room for anything else. The queen was a far better scale for the space. Measure twice, buy once, people. Typically, I’d recommend mapping things out in a room with painter’s tape so you could get a visual of size and scale, but this is a new build that hasn’t been delivered yet, so all we have to work with is a floorplan and given dimensions.
Disaster averted. We did the same thing with the giant RH Cloud sofa he insisted on buying, but that’s neither here nor there.
Anyhow, this leads me to my own bedroom. I’ve fallen in love with this bed from Lulu & Georgia, and my head is set on a king. We’ve lived with a queen for five years and while it’s certainly large enough for two people our size, I can’t help but dream of a time when I’m not shoving Charles’ pillows over to make sure I have enough room for my arm to flop next to my own pillow should it need to. I’m constantly drawing a divide between us, demanding more space (I’m such a delight!). He’s constantly telling me how annoying it is to feel the corner of the pillow I use under my knees to sleep, especially when I’m on my side and “over the line.” We are a “everyone on their own side” side couple, certainly not cuddlers by any means, so…a king makes sense if we can fit it. Plus, I plan on having this next bed for a decent amount of time, and I’m sure we’ll be adding some tiny people into the mix at some point in the future.
We won’t always live in this apartment, sure, so it doesn’t have to be a *perfect* fit but I also don’t want to design a space that doesn’t function properly for however long we are here.
So, I put my Charles to work to see the space difference between a queen and a king in our existing bedroom (which he so wonderfully decided to measure out of the blue one day without telling me so he could model it and have it ready to use whenever I needed).
Let’s take a look:
Here’s what a queen-size of the Lulu & Georgia bed looks like in the space:
If you recall this post about extra-wide nightstands, you know I like, well…extra-wide nightstands. A queen size allows for at least 44 inches left and right, which is great for a sizable piece plus some space to breathe. There’s also plenty of room in front to allow for standing at the foot of the bed to open and close dresser drawers. It’s absolutely the right scale for the room, if I was giving myself my own professional advice.
But first, let’s see how a king works:
This mock-up represents the Lulu & Georgia bed in a king. Obviously, it’s much larger. A king mattress (76 inches wide) is 16 inches wider than a queen (60 inches wide), but the same length (80 inches). Tack on a handful of inches more for the bed frame and headboard spread. Here, I’m left with about 36 inches comfortably for nightstands to the left and right of the bed, so I’d likely be looking for something about 26-28 inches in width…I can make that work. The space in front should be the same, so no concern there. (For reference, the dresser I’m eyeing is 20 inches in depth, which leaves about 34-35 inches of free space if I count the baseboards…36 inches is an ideal minimum, FYI, but I’m good with sacrificing an inch or two. Here’s a helpful article about how much room you need to comfortably move around your furniture in the bedroom. )
While I know my eyes will be a bit in shock once a larger piece comes in, and I’ll immediately think “OH GOD THIS IS TOO BIG,” dimensions-wise, it works both from a “I really want a king so I really want this to work” perspective as well as a “if I was giving myself professional advice, I’d say it works” perspective. It doesn’t eat the room, at least on paper. Plus, the bed is a lower profile, and my existing (queen) bed is a larger wing-back, so I think visually, it may be a good balance.
After seeing both to-scale floorplans, I feel confident a king of this particular bed will work just fine, which makes me very happy. My marriage will greatly benefit it, as well.
While my mind is pretty set, I’d love to hear from you regardless. Thoughts?
See you tomorrow, FOAS.