Thornbury Chesterfield Ottoman Divan Bed: Crystal Buttoning Over Full-Base Storage

The Thornbury is the most decorated bed we make and the most practical, which is an odd combination until you see it. The headboard is crystal-buttoned diamond tufting, and its side posts rise a little above the centre so the top has a stepped outline rather than a straight edge. Under the mattress, the entire base lifts. You can see both halves of that on the Thornbury Chesterfield ottoman divan bed page.

How the base opens

Gas struts take the weight of the mattress and the top swings up from the side, opening the full footprint of the bed as one lined compartment. There are no drawers, no runners, and nothing that has to clear a wall or a wardrobe door. It is as much storage as you can get under a bed of a given size, and it stays reachable even when the bed is pushed into a corner, which is the single biggest advantage ottoman beds have over drawer bases.

Drawer divan beds are not wrong, they are just a different trade. A drawer gives you compartments and a smaller opening; a lifting base gives you one large space and needs headroom instead of floor space. If you store duvets, cases and seasonal things rather than daily clothes, the lifting base wins.

The Chesterfield headboard

Diamond tufting is the pattern people picture when they think of a Chesterfield, and the crystal buttons are what stop it reading as plain upholstery. The stepped top, where the posts stand slightly proud of the centre panel, is the detail that dates it least. Headboard, base and sides are all upholstered in the same cloth, so the bed arrives as one object rather than a base and a board that nearly match.

Six sizes

Measured across the finished bed at its widest point:

• Small Single 2FT6 - 75 cm wide by 191.5 cm long
• Single 3FT - 90 cm wide by 191.5 cm long
• Small Double 4FT - 120 cm wide by 191.5 cm long
• Double 4FT6 - 135 cm wide by 191.5 cm long
• King 5FT - 150 cm wide by 200 cm long
• Super King 6FT - 184 cm wide by 200 cm long

These are tighter than the frame-built beds in our range, because a divan base is square to the mattress rather than surrounding it. A 4FT6 Thornbury is 135 cm across, where a frame-built bed of the same size has to add its surround to that. In a narrow room that is often the deciding factor. The four smaller sizes are all 191.5 cm long and the two largest are 200 cm.

Headboard height and fabric

Two headboard heights are listed, a 26 inch board and a 54 inch floor standing board, and which options appear depends on the size you pick, so check the configurator on the page rather than assuming. A floor standing headboard changes the measurement you need at the head of the bed, since it rests on the floor behind the base instead of bolting to it.

The Thornbury is upholstered to order in any of 26 colourways. Buttoned tufting shows cloth off more than any other style here: a Plush Velvet in Black, Steel or Mink gives you deep shadow in every diamond, while Silver Chenille, Almond Coniston or Cream Naples keep it quieter. Ask for samples if you are matching anything in the room.

Buying and delivery

Mattresses are sold separately, so you choose the tension. Delivery is free within 50 miles of our Glasgow store and £50 beyond it. If you want to compare lifting bases across sizes before committing, the full set of ottoman divan beds is in one place, and the Thornbury is configured here by size, fabric and headboard.