Alderley Upholstered Bed: why the surround decides the size you need

The Alderley puts almost everything into one detail. Deep diamond tufting, set with crystal buttons, runs across the headboard and then carries down onto a deeply buttoned surround at the foot of the bed. There is no storage in the base, so the shape is the whole point. Among our upholstered beds it is the one where the buttoning goes right round rather than stopping behind the pillows.

One cloth, front to back

The headboard, the side rails, the foot end and the base are all finished in the fabric you pick. That matters more than it sounds. A frame bought in one place and a headboard bought in another usually sit a shade apart once a bedside lamp is on them, and the eye finds it quickly. Because the Alderley is upholstered to order as a single piece, the buttoned foot end reads as part of the same bed as the board above the pillows.

Measure the finished bed, not the mattress

The mattress drops down inside an upholstered surround, so the bed takes up more floor than the mattress it holds. These are the finished figures, taken across the bed at its widest point:

• Single 3FT – 139 cm wide by 223 cm long
• Small Double 4FT – 169 cm wide by 231 cm long
• Double 4FT6 – 184 cm wide by 233 cm long
• King 5FT – 199 cm wide by 233 cm long
• Super King 6FT – 228 cm wide by 233 cm long

A single Alderley is 139 cm across, which is wider than most people expect of a single bed. If you are fitting one into an alcove or a box room, mark that width on the floor with tape before you decide. The length is worth the same attention: at 223 cm the single is long, and a bed that slots neatly between two walls can still leave a radiator or a door swing fighting with the foot end.

Twenty-three colourways, and the weave matters

The Alderley is upholstered to order in any of 23 colourways, drawn from the Coniston, Naples, Chenille, Linoso and Plush Velvet cloths. The weave changes the bed as much as the colour does. A flatter weave keeps each diamond crisp and the seams legible from across the room, while a plush velvet softens the panel edges and shifts as you walk past it. Crystal buttons on Black Plush Velvet are a completely different proposition to the same buttons on Almond Coniston. If two shades are close, ask us for a sample rather than judging either from a photograph on a phone.

What it deliberately does not do

There is no storage in an Alderley base. That is a choice rather than an oversight, and it is what keeps the lines low enough for the headboard to carry the room. If you need the floor space back instead, the upholstered ottoman beds here lift the mattress platform on gas struts and open the whole area underneath as one lined compartment. It is worth settling that question first, because storage is the one thing you cannot add to a bed later.

Delivery and the mattress

Delivery is free within 50 miles of our Glasgow store and £50 beyond it. Anyone shopping for beds in Glasgow and the towns around it falls inside that radius; further afield, the flat charge applies and is added at checkout rather than sprung on you later. Mattresses are sold separately on purpose, so you are not tied to one tension: have a look through the mattresses and pick the feel you actually sleep well on.

Choose your size and your cloth on the Alderley page, where the size guide draws the bed from the side and from above with every size at the same scale. If you are still unsure which width your room will take, send us the measurements and we will tell you honestly whether the super king is going to work.