Well we finally moved house, and one of the great joys was putting lots of stuff in a skip. Honestly, if you love someone, don’t get the smellies for their birthday – get them skip hire. Very cathartic. One of the things I most enjoyed skipping was my daughter’s trundle bed. With several broken slats, it had served a purpose and I couldn’t even give the thing away.
This did mean that my daughter was temporarily without a bed, but as luck would have it, Bed Kingdom had been in touch to offer a chance to review one of their beds and they had exactly the type she wanted; a Midsleeper with drawers beneath. Flair Loop Midsleeper Bed Storage Set comes with the bed frame and two chests of drawers (six drawers in total) which fit beneath, and it is currently on sale at £289.99 for grey, and £299.99 for the white version, without a mattress.
As soon as we were in I was able to get it delivered to the new house.
What is a Midsleeper bed?
A Midsleeper bed is one with a raised bed frame with space beneath which can be used as a play area for small children, or for storage. Midsleepers are perfect if your child has a small bedroom as it maximises the available floor space. They’re not too far off the ground – less than a bunk bed – and have secure sides so they’re perfect for children around the age of six and upwards.
And, unlike the Ikea loft beds we had in our rented house three years ago and I would NEVER buy again, you can change the sheets without giving yourself a hernia.
How easy was the Flair Loop Midsleeper to put together, really?
When four massive boxes turned up I admit I was a little bit worried that they might stay like that for a long time until I picked up the necessary courage to tackle the task. Fortunately the delivery men were lovely and took everything upstairs for me, so that was one battle I didn’t have to contend with.
I’d say you will need a willing volunteer to put the bed together, unless you’re particularly good at this kind of thing. An electric screwdriver with Hex screwdriver bits so you don’t have to get callouses on your fingers from winding the supplied Allen key would definitely be advantageous. You’ll need the screwdriver for the drawers, too. And just generally. Everyone should have an electric screwdriver. What are you, 12?
I had my friend Claire on hand to help (thanks Claire!). Claire also comes with a very gobby black Labrador, who happens to be Izzy’s best friend (yes dogs can have best friends) and I must say that the two of them did NOT HELP AT ALL.
However, we found that the instructions were fairly easy to follow, and with no help from the dogs at all we got the bed frame and slats up in a little over an hour.
I then did the drawers (two chests of three drawers) myself the next day, which probably took a similar length of time, maybe a bit longer.
Yes, I made a few mistakes and put a few bits the wrong way around, but it wasn’t that bad. All in all, if I can do it, any idiot armed with a screwdriver can.
What is the Flair Loop Midsleeper like?
The Flair Loop Midsleeper bed feels really sturdy – I’ve been up on it myself to put shelves above the bed. The ladder doesn’t feel weak or shaky at all – although if you’re worried about slipping, you can get non-slip strips to apply.
My daughter really likes it; she has her old mattress on it, and says it’s very comfortable.
Practicality wise, it adds a lot of space to the room. As well as the two supplied chests of drawers, there is additional space underneath to the back and side. Although she’s too old to use it as a play area, it is useful space; I’ve put another chest of drawers underneath the ladder area, and then the back is storage for things that we won’t necessarily want to access often like Christmas clothes.
For less than £300 (and free delivery) it’s a really good deal. And Bed Kingdom partners with Quidco, too – so you can even get a bit of cashback on your purchase.
Buy the Flair Loop Midsleeper bed storage set from Bed Kingdom here; they also do a wide range of adult beds and furniture at pretty decent prices and you can currently claim £20 off your first purchase by signing up to their mailing list.
