Marlow Ottoman Divan Bed: Diamond Tufting Over a Base That Lifts

The Marlow is an ottoman divan bed, and the base is the whole argument for it. The entire top lifts from the long side on gas struts that carry the mattress with it, and the space this opens is the bed's full footprint, lined and undivided. Nothing slides out, nothing runs on rails, and no part of it needs clearance from a wall or a wardrobe door, which is why the Marlow ottoman divan bed still works pushed into a corner.

Side-opening, and why that is the useful kind

Divan beds carry storage in three different shapes, and they are not equivalent. Drawers need clear floor beside the bed and lose volume to the runners and the drawer sides. A base that lifts from the foot end needs you to stand at the foot of the bed, which in a small room is exactly where the wardrobe is. A side-opening ottoman lifts the whole top and loads from the long side, standing where you would get into bed. It is the most storage available under a bed of this size, and all of it is one space rather than four smaller ones.

Crystal buttons and diamond tufting

The headboard is diamond tufting finished with crystal buttons, inside a plain border, with an upright post at each side and no wings. The posts square the whole thing off, so it reads as a piece of furniture rather than a padded panel. The absence of wings keeps it flat to the wall and means it takes no width out of a narrow room. It is upholstered in the same cloth as the base and the sides, so the bed arrives as one piece rather than a base and a board that almost agree.

Six sizes, including a small single

• Small Single 2FT6: 75 cm wide by 196.5 cm long
• Single 3FT: 90 cm by 196.5 cm
• Small Double 4FT: 120 cm by 196.5 cm
• Double 4FT6: 135 cm by 196.5 cm
• King 5FT: 150 cm by 205 cm
• Super King 6FT: 184 cm by 205 cm

The 2FT6 is the size people overlook. At 75 cm wide it goes into a box room or an alcove where a 3FT will not, and it opens exactly as the larger sizes do, so the smallest room in the house ends up with the most storage per square metre in it. Every size in the range lifts, so taking the narrow one costs you nothing except width.

It is also worth knowing that a divan base measures tighter than an upholstered frame for the same mattress. The Marlow double finishes at 135 cm across, where an upholstered Linwood double is 143.5 cm. In a room where the wall is the constraint, that 8.5 cm is sometimes the whole decision.

Headboard height

The listing sets out the headboard options, including a 54 inch floor standing headboard. The taller board fills the wall above the bed instead of stopping just above the mattress, and on a divan base, where the mattress already sits high, that proportion usually holds together better than a short board does. Check the options showing on the product page for the size you want, and measure your wall height before choosing.

Where the crystal buttons show best

The Marlow is upholstered to order in any of 26 colourways, with headboard, base and sides all in the cloth you pick. The crystal buttons catch the light, so they show up most against a deep colour: Black Plush Velvet, Emerald Coniston, Charcoal Chenille. Against a pale Cream Naples or Almond Coniston the tufting reads as soft shadow instead of sparkle, which is a perfectly good look if you want the shape without the glint. Ask us for samples if two are close.

What is included, and getting it to you

Mattresses are sold separately so you can match the tension to the sleeper rather than to the base. Delivery on beds in Glasgow and anywhere within 50 miles of our store is free, and £50 beyond that radius. The Marlow product page carries the size guide, the colourways and the headboard options, and the rest of the range sits under ottoman divan beds.