Beds are Going Lower & Lower—Do You Love (or Loathe!) the Trend?

I think it safe to say that, while we’re probably at the height of the bed-in-a-box phenomenon, beds themselves are at an all time low, literally. Many of the popular sleep startups’ mattresses don’t require a boxspring, and a bunch of new bed frame designs are basically hovering just a few inches above the floor or right on top if it, a la this Lonny bedroom. So what was once the look of college crash pads is basically now high design. I’m not entirely sure how I feel about this.

And yet, big boxes and home decorating stores alike are carrying more and more of these styles. There’s even a new company called PONS, which makes pillows, mattresses and an easy to assemble low slung bed frame that, you guessed it, is less than a foot above the ground but still manages to integrate four USB ports. Priorities are a-changin, folks, as our possessions become increasingly of the digital variety.

When you’re looking to make a major, modern statement, the ultra low, platform bed may be the way to go. You don’t need much else going on in a room if you commit to this one striking piece of furniture. It’s decorating gold for those of you that don’t want to do a ton to pull your bedroom design scheme together. Levi and Claudia’s master spotted on The Beetle Shack has major style, but take away the ultra-low platform bed, and all you really have is super dark floors and white walls.

So how do you know if a low bed frame is right for you? It’s probably not the best plan if you’re short on space and still have lots of physical stuff. A few low beds feature built-in drawers, but if you want to be able to store bins of off-season clothes or extra linens, you’re going to need something taller.

Consider your ceiling height. Lower bed frames can be a great solution for rooms that have lower ceilings. That logic would suggest that loftier rooms need taller bed frames, but Nancy and Ethan managed to make this low bed work in their master bedroom that features a high sloped ceiling. That may have something to do with the shelves they mounted above the bed (not something we’d suggest in an earthquake-prone area, though). The shelving breaks up blank wall space that might have otherwise made their low bed choice look awkward.

And, though I haven’t seen any studies or hard data to back this medically, sleeping so close to the ground can’t be great for allergy and asthma sufferers—unless you’re also vacuum happy. Dust has to go somewhere, and gravity would suggest the floor is the first place it’s going to settle.

But if you like this more modern look and aren’t a total germaphobe, I say go for it. I think the biggest thing to remember, design-wise, is that the rest of your furniture has to play nicely with your bed in terms of proportion. In Chris and Jenny’s setup, repurposing a vintage box as a nightstand makes sense because the bed is so low. You can’t pair a low bed with a tall bedside table and expect to be able to grab your glass of water easily. The heights of your pieces have to match up for your room to look good and be functional.