Blog Post

Make Room for Your Guests With a Murphy Bed

George Chowanec • Dec 30, 2019

How do you feel when overnight visitors are coming? You might experience a mixture of excitement, apprehension, and a bit of overwhelm. One factor that might concern you is where your guests will sleep. If you don’t have a dedicated guest room (or if you do have a guest room but you are expecting more guests than you have bed space in that room), you might fret over the options. Do you want to put your parents on your pull-out sofa? Should you give up your own bed? Is it too much to ask your old college roommate to sleep on a blow-up mattress on the floor of your kids’ playroom?

The good news is that there are options that don’t include putting on an addition or giving up your home office or den. You could have a Murphy bed installed instead.

What Is a Murphy Bed and How Does It Work?

A Murphy bed is a wall bed. During the day and when you are not using the bed, it looks like any other wall-mounted storage unit with cabinets or drawers. By night (when you have visitors), however, you pull down the bed part, which unfolds from the unit. You make it up with fresh linens, add a pretty comforter and some pillows, and voila, you have a comfortable place for your visitors to sleep.

The next morning (or when they leave), simply remove the linens and pillows, fold the unit back up to the wall, and you have your space back. It is quick to set up and take down, so you won’t have to worry about going to great lengths to prepare for last-minute guests.

Why Is a Murphy Bed Better Than Other Temporary Sleep Arrangements?

If you’ve ever slept on a pull-out sofa, you know that they are simply not comfortable. There’s a bar that always seems to lodge itself right in the most sensitive part of your back, and you wake up the next morning stiff and sore. While a sofa bed is okay to use in a pinch, it isn’t somewhere that you would want to put your friend or relative for more than one night. And, let’s be honest, you will feel a bit guilty about offering a sleeper sofa to your parents or an older family member for even one night.

An air mattress is okay for when your college student has a friend home for Thanksgiving or if your high school-aged child has a friend sleep over, but most adults are uncomfortable on these. They also have the tendency to deflate overnight, so your guest might go to sleep in relative comfort and wake up flat on the floor. No fun!

A Murphy bed comes with a thick mattress that rivals the comfort level of any standard bed. Although it is a temporary bed, it doesn’t feel like it. It won’t deflate and it won’t be poking your family members in the back. It’s also quick and easy to set up, which is not necessarily the case with the other options you might have available.

What If I Don’t Have Frequent Overnight Visitors?

Many people think that they are not a good candidate for a wall bed because they don’t frequently host overnight company. If you shell out money one week per year to pay for your parents or grown children to stay at a nearby hotel, however, a Murphy bed will pay for itself rather quickly!

Not only that, but when you have a place to have someone sleep over, chances are good that you’ll begin to see the opportunity arise. Maybe your teenagers have avoided inviting a friend to spend the night because they knew there wasn’t a comfortable place for them to sleep anyway. Or perhaps you’ll hear of a friend in need of a bed for a few days while they have their bedroom remodeled and you’ll volunteer to host them. The possibilities are endless.

Which Room Is Best for a Wall Bed?

You can have a Murphy bed installed in any room of your home. A children’s playroom is a good choice because there’s often a lot of potential for clearing out some floor space on the day that someone sleeps over. A den or family room that isn’t in the center of the home is another nice option. Even your home office is a good location. Usually, these rooms have a door to offer your guest some privacy, so if you can give up the use of whatever room you’re considering for the length of their stay, that is best.

We have seen people install Murphy beds in dining rooms and other more public locations in the house, too. Remember, a wall bed offers storage space and looks like any other furniture because these come with various finishes. It would not look out of place in any room.

How Do I Get Started?

If you live in New Jersey, you can have your wall bed designed by the storage experts at All About Closets. It all starts with a free consultation and design appointment. During this in-home appointment, your designer will measure your space, talk to you about what you want as far as storage options and size, and design your custom Murphy bed. From there, it’s just a matter of you looking at and approving the design and then scheduling your installation appointment. Once your wall bed is installed, you’ll be ready to host guests in comfort and style. Give us a call today to schedule your free design appointment and to learn more about Murphy beds and other storage systems.

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