Contemplating doing something crazy | How About Orange

July 16, 2007

Contemplating doing something crazy

Our second bedroom is pretty blah. We weren't sure what we were going to do with the room when we repainted the condo after we bought it, so it's just cream-colored with an inflatable airbed in it and serves as a guest room. But it's really sort of a wasted space, since we don't always have people here. I want to turn it into something useful and fun. A reading room? A place to leave craft stuff out and not have to pick it up? (But keeping the guest room functionality, somehow.) I'm thinking I'll be bold and daring with the paint. But can anybody recommend a nice-looking sleeper sofa / futon / something that converts from a thing you can sit on to a thing two people can sleep on? We've looked everywhere and haven't been thrilled.

37 comments:

Anonymous said...

some gorgeous colours going on there... don't know of a good fold up bed option, BUT the walls are going to be beautiful

Anonymous said...

What fabulous colors! I wish I was that bold!

Anonymous said...

Not sure what you're looking to spend, but Haverty's Furniture (just google them) sells a really nice sofa made by Bauhaus. I just bought it in a chocolate brown color, and absolutely LOVE it! There are numerous color options in microsuede, and I got the "chofa" option (once on Haverty's site, you can search that term, and then it's in the urban loft colletion) with the additional chaise pad on the end... it's somewhat pricey, about $1,100. The quality is the best I found for what I wanted to spend, and it's a full size sleeper with a pretty decent mattress for a sleeper.
P.S. Love reading all your ideas on your blog!

Anonymous said...

This chair was just featured in the latest issue of Real Living (ha ha) but I don't know if they sell them outside Australia: http://www.aeroplus.com.au/aerodesign/products/singlesofabed_lge.htm

I've also contemplated the guest room/craft room combo - I rarely have visitors but want to be prepared when they do come. I have my heart set on a double-size Ikea loft bed because they're fun and inexpensive and make such great cubby-like spaces underneath, for sewing machine, art station, whatever. And if you craft so hard you need to nap (like me on occasion), you have the perfect place to lie down!

Anonymous said...

I too have been looking for a nice fold up bed option and have found a couple of things at CB2.com (I like the Lubi Bed). Then today I found some nice colorful (albeit slightly more pricey) choices at thefurnitureloft.com. Go take a look. And hey - I bought some of those little crystal growing trees for birthday party favors yesterday - SO COOL!

Anonymous said...

Some friends our mine picked up a futon from Ikea and love it http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/S79838628 they say it is just as comfortable as their regular mattress. GL making a combination room. I finally just made an office in ours and we blow up the air mattress for company.

Anonymous said...

Oddly enough, I'm in the same process as you are, and I've also chosen two of the same colors (haven't made the final decision) -I'm leaning toward the orchid colored one on the far left of your photo, and the poppy pink on the far right ...My husband is mortified. I'm only going to do one "feature" wall and keep the rest bland and neutral. I'm trying to decide between a really big "comfy chair" for reading for myself (selfish!) or a pull-out couch for others. I'm leaning towards IKEA for that. I'm in Europe, so my choices in this are very limited, so IKEA it must be. Incidentally, I'm originally from the Chicago area, and love reading your blog - especially when your drop little local things here and there. (I'll be home August 1st, though!!!) Thanks for your creativity, and the time and effort you put into this for all of us out here.

Jennifer said...

I love the colors, but sadly I can't help with a sofa bed. Maybe you could do one of those murphy beds. That would be fun.

maryse said...

cb2.com has a couple of options for you that aren't crazy expensive. the lubi and the see-saw sofa most notably.

Anonymous said...

How about the Basic Futon from West Elm? We just bought this for our guest room and are really pleased. The linen covers are very pretty and come in nice graphic patterns.

Anonymous said...

depending on how *many* you need to sleep (ie, # of guests you seem to have on a regular basis) this cute chair folds out to a single.

and it comes in brown which would be a nice accent to either pink or orange. :)

Riverlark said...

I have to have been partially inspired by you when i did this amazing wall: http://riverlark.blogspot.com/2007/07/beauty-and-wall.html
The colors, if you're interested, are Luma Orange and Tango Red.

Anna van Schurman said...

We have this from IKEA in beige (also comes in blue). Everyone who has slept on it raves about it. I don't know how fashionable it is, but it is also comfy for reading because you can use it as a chaise too.

Jen in KS said...

I saw these table beds on HGTV awhile back. Can't believe I found the website again.

http://www.inovallc.com/res_tablebed.html

We nearly considered one of these for the spare bedroom, but our book collection overtook the room. We'll just get a new mattress for the sofa bed.

Anonymous said...

I want to get this thing for my craft/work room for that exact same purpose...

http://www.worldmarket.com/Handcrafted-Furniture/living-furniture/chairs-ottomans/Studio-Day-Sofa/lev/4/productId/1178/Ne/1100001/sectionId/2868/N/1100040/categoryId/1100040/pCategoryId/1100038/gpCategoryId/1100002/Ns/NEW_ARRIVAL_FLAG|1||CATEGORY_SEQ_2891|0/index.pro

Anonymous said...

There's a great day sofa at World Market and it's on sale!www.worldmarket.com I love the bold colors and thank you for so much inspiration!

bowiechick said...

How about a Murphy Bed?

Anonymous said...

Hi, I've just come across your blog and thought I'd say hello. Ikea has a white wood day bed (Hemnes), that can be a day bed, a single bed or extend out to a double bed. It has 3 big drawers underneath, too. I didn't find it on the online site, but have seen it in the stores still - and we have one, too. It cost $350 - but it's very versatile! I can e-mail you a scan of the catalogue if you want

Unknown said...

The cushy lounge chaises here are aweosome and I think they would comfy to sleep on.

http://www.pbteen.com/shop/fur/fursea/index.cfm?cm%5Ftype=gnav


Yes it says teen but take a look

Anonymous said...

You might try a daybed with trundlebed that rolls underneath. Ours has come in handy many times for unexpected guests. And, it wasn't that expensive. The twin mattresses are comfy enough.

Anonymous said...

When we were looking at sofas a year ago, either American Signature, or Ashley furniture had what they called a "click clack" sofa. Most were hideous, but there were 2 that looked nice. very straight lines, one long cushion on the bench and the back. It did NOT look like a fouton (no wood to be seen, no folded mattress).

However I can't seem to find it online. If you have either one close by, you might want to check it out.

willikat said...

love the colors you're contemplating. we painted one of our walls razz berries by glidden paint and love it (deep, bold magenta). i was worried we'd get sick of it but i love it more nd more every day. begone, neutrals and quiet colors!

Jessica Jones said...

Whoa. I am blown away by all the helpful suggestions! I can't wait to check them out! Thanks so much!

Bree said...

I adore these two sofas from urban outfitters. I think the second one would look really great with your color scheme.

http://tinyurl.com/2srm83

http://tinyurl.com/yq9ae8

Of course, once you figure in S&H they can both get kind of expensive for a piece of furniture that you can't check the quality of.

Anonymous said...

Check out AU Furniture (www.aufurniture.com). I used to work for a furniture retailer who sold their products and all the customers *loved* their purchases. AU offers sleeper chair/loveseat/sofas in twin, full, queen, and king sizes, so you're sure to find a size to meet your needs/space restrictions. And they offer some fabulous colors!

Anonymous said...

There are few semi decent ones on target

here are the ones I thought looked decent:
Microfiber straight leg futonKind of expensive.

Regata 3-Seat Sleeper.

The negative thing about this, the picture of it folded doesn't look big enough.

and some on walmart

here is one that's decent: Manhattan Convertible Lounger, Oyster

Jane said...

I have no advice for you. When we upgraded to a King we tossed our full. I rue the day, because I hate our futon. I would rather have a full just sitting there than this stupid futon! And sleeper sofas are either so cheap or soooo expensive.

Anonymous said...

I think you totally need a craft room. So a table bed and lots of fun storage boxes would be the way to go.
As for color I would vote for a red or orange...for energy and inspiration.
Good luck, cousin!

Madie said...

I say go deeper! Last fall I painted my room Behr's Ruby Red. I thought I was crazy too, because at the time was in love with turquoise and I'm all about calm, cool spaces. I stepped out of my comfort zone here... and even went against the norm and painted the bottom half of the room white. I love (and still love) the end result. Can't wait to see what you do. Goodluck!

Anonymous said...

Here's a link to a blog with a pic of that Ikea daybed I was talking about - you might have had to wait weeks for me to scan a pic:
http://weewonderfuls.typepad.com/wee_wonderfuls/2007/05/a_quick_pop_in_.html

You can slide the base out and put a double mattress on it, to sleep two. I hope that helps.

Anonymous said...

It is difficult to find the perfect solution for guest/craft room. Best wishes...gotta say, you're off to a great start with those awesome colors!

Anonymous said...

"wall hugger" futons are the best because they stay against the wall even when pulled out to a bed. we put this one in my office, which we use as a sofa during the day and a bed for guests. http://www.thefutonshop.com/Product.asp?ProductID=94

PS LOVE the colors!

Jessica Jones said...

dml, that's great. Thanks. I was hoping to get a look at it. The storage makes it a serious contender. Madalenna: awesome. It's gorgeous! I hope I can do as well.

And in general: wow. I had no idea there were this many good options out there. I don't know how to decide!!!

Heidi said...

we have the same problem - wasted guest room space. I turned it into a craft room and all my stuff is in boxes or rolling shelves that I can wheel out if needed. We bought a trundle bed set to address the sleeping issue! So when it's a "craft room" there is a single bed with a 2nd single tucked under it. I use this to sit on or stack projects on. When it's a "guest Room" a single person can sleep as is, but if you have a couple over, the 2nd bed pops up to the same level as the first and we now have king size bed. We also considered a Murphy Bed - I would google both Murphy bed and trundle bed to see what you get. have fun with the paint, great colors!

grnteagirl said...

try this store -- http://www.apt-ny.com/ -- APT is located here in NY but you can browse their website for some fab furniture. they have a couple of nice modern sofa beds that are a step above futons. hope this helps you.

Tina
http://tinarosadiabondoc.blogspot.com/

Anonymous said...

my husband and I sat on a futon at IKEA yesterday to debate which dining room set we were going to get (because the 90 minutes we'd spent in the dining room section wasnt long enough to make a decision) and when we got down to the wharehouse section, we both commented that the futon had been comfortable and we should have paid attention to which one it was! :P Maybe check IKEA? ;)

Unknown said...

check various furniture at spacify