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By Rachel Chou & Elien Becque
Your worst case scenario: bed collapsing whilst sleeping. For maximum survival probability, avoid being surrounded by furniture that can potentially fall out from under you. How to do? Purchase everlasting goods.
Second-worst case scenario: day one of move-in to your beautiful NYC bedroom (perhaps courtesy of RoomZoom), you fall asleep on a pile of unlaundered clothing and wake up to chirping birds and a bra cup hanging off your ear. To avoid face-plant exhaustion into your dirty underwear, pre-order beautiful furniture and assemble bed before you start unpacking.
Third-worst-case scenario: you picked up a bed frame off the street and wake up the next morning to find itchy clusters of red dots all over your body. Buy furniture you trust to avoid bed bugs nestling in with you at night.
Best-case scenario: a good quality, decently priced bed that flows with the aesthetic of your new digs. No bugs, no problem. Here are some of our favorite sites to bed-surf.
And finally, a tip: buy a bed that's got a solid wood (better if it's from a sustainably managed forest of course) or metal base; the "upholstered" beds tend to be made with toxic flame retardants. Similarly, beds say that they're made from "manufactured" wood typically include fiberboard, which is made with formaldehyde. This disqualified nearly all of the "wooden" beds for sale on Wayfair.
Super Affordable: Azaruddin Metal Storage Platform Bed with Headboard Shelf; Available on Wayfair
$139.99 for Queen Size
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No fake wood 👍🏼. If you've got a bit of elbow grease and creativity and don't want to spend a ton, this bed could be for you. Select your own boxes (perhaps something on rollers) if for below the bed if you'll be using these as drawers you access daily; or maybe some rectangular baskets if you're storing items you're not accessing very often. Pair those with a creative way to hide the awkward gap between the wall and the bed that this admittedly convenient shelf atop the headboard makes, and you're good to go! Perhaps some remnant silk from the garment district.
More Chic Than You Think: Raymour & Flanigan's Aversa 1-sd. Storage Bed
$1,015.96 for Queen Size
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Ok this brand isn't necessarily known for their design-forward thinking, *but* this bed is quite reminiscent of the DWR model below that's almost exactly 5x the price. And actually, we think this design is quite elegant.
Nice and Clean: West Elm Headboard Storage Platform Bed
$1,599 for Queen Size
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Ok yes it's technically from the "Kids" section but what's the actual difference if you buy a queen size bed? And this bed is prettier, more functional, and more sphistocated than many, many beds we reviewed from the "adult" section.
The Handmade Option: NdRsV01 Solid Hardwood Platform Bed with 4 Drawers made by SolidCherryHeirlooms on Etsy
$2,475.00 for Queen Size
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Handmade by a really responsive person named Lee who has this shop on Etsy, and horses, apparently, where they live, this bed comes in a variety of customizations and the price reflects the benefit in cutting out the middlemen, branding departments, & marketing budgets while still buying something luxurious.
The Luxe Option: DWR's Matera Bed
$7,795.00 for Queen Size (in the configuration shown)
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Ok yes, this bed comes in at a whopping eight grand--which incidentally, is about half of what I paid for my car during the pandemic--BUT if you're looking to make a lifetime investment, if you've got a deluxe job that requires you sleep like a baby when you do manage to make it to bed, or you're someone lucky whose parents want you to have nice things as you start out your new adult life, it's definitely worth considering. The headboard comes in two heights, depending on the aesthetic you're going for, there are three storage drawers on each side of the bed, and it's also available to ship in two weeks; almost unheard of for furniture of this caliber.
