Oh for a lottery miracle so that one might float in to slumber in a gilded scallop shell! The original was a state bed made in 1661 for an Italian princess who required a fitting public backdrop for the presentation of her firstborn son. “The magnificence of it excited admiration everywhere,” wrote Princess Maria Mancini. “Everyone thought it so close to the reality as to be confused by it.” The 21st-century bespoke version is modelled on an engraving of this royal extravagance and towers 290cm (9ft) to the shell top. The mahogany is hand-carved then covered with silver leaf which is in turn doused in transluscent glazes to produce that celestial shimmer.
£70,000. And So to Bed andsotobed.co.uk 0808 144 4343 Photograph: guardian.co.uk
The dukes of Devonshire took their rest in similar style, for this bateau lit is a copy of one in the master bedroom at Chatsworth. Both original and reproduction echo the pomp and circumstances of Louis Philippe's tastes in the 1830s. Simon Horn introduced "boat beds" to the UK in 1982 in his endeavour to revive French period bed frames and his versions are reliably sumptuous. The price tag may be a little frightening but this is intended as an heirloom and your family tree should unfurl prodigiously thanks to it. Made from handcrafted rosewood
From £3,280; Simon Horn; 020-7731 1279 Photograph: Dominic Blackmore
If you want to look more like an English colonial you can order a canopy and a Regency-style headboard to turn it into the classic four-poster. The posts are faithful copies from Regency beds and the upholstered headboard ( Fadini Borghi silk shown here but you can command a covering to match your curtains/dog bed) hints at your funky modern soul. Made from solid mahogany hand carved in the West Country.
From £5,495 for a double; Simon Horn; simonhorn.com; 020-7731 1279 or 0121-420 1966 Photograph: Dominic Blackmore/guardian.co.uk
Gothic drama with modern restraint. A bishop would look fitting amid this tubular metal which you can order with silver or antique bronze finish. Each bed is handmade.
From £399; The Original Bedstead Company; obc-uk.net; 020-7351 1955 Photograph: guardian.co.uk
Dismiss the notion that floating on a balloon of water is in any way 80s. We were developed in fluid-filled wombs, remember, and there’s not much of us that isn’t essentially water. This Hydro-bed, patented to the UK’s longest established waterbed company, is the hi-tech way to rest. The mattress moulds to suit your own weight and contours and the temperature naturally adjusts to accommodate yours. Better still, bed bugs dislike it so here’s the solution for back pain and allergy sufferers. Unlike conventional mattresses this one doesn’t sag or settle and the quilted tops can be removed and washed or replaced. The mattress and its frame can be fitted to any bedstead including four posters.
From £1,200; The British Waterbed Company; waterbed.co.uk; 01395 268866 Photograph: guardian.co.uk
A bit of leather can revamp the bedtime routine. This is Italian leather – you can have it in brown or white – encasing an elegantly simple platform frame and it should inject a hotel-style glamour into a weary chamber. You could add a slatted base to lift the thing up and allow you to shove wardrobe overspill underneath, although the oriental low-slung look is part of its power.
£1,199; Habitat; habitat.co.uk; 0844 499 1111 Photograph: guardian.co.uk
£52,000; Vi-Spring; vispring.co.uk; 01752 366311 Photograph: guardian.co.uk
Proof that you don’t need a venerable old manor to fulfil your four-poster cravings. This smart iron edifice would look perfectly at home in the master suite of a modern semi. It would also give a millennial edge to an ancestral chamber. Moreover, as four-posters go it’s affordable.
From £499; The Original Bedstead Company; obc-uk.net 020-7351 1955 Photograph: guardian.co.uk
This is what it is like to be an upmarket cephalopod. It is inspired by the iridescent curves of the nautilus shell, home to these ancient tentacled lovelies, and the mahogany frame is carved with fish scales, shells and scrolls for a more thorough nautical sensation. If it looks altogether too plain you can have it gilded with silver or gold leaf. The chief joy is that no one else is likely to sleep like you do.
From £4,050 (current sale price); And So to Bed andsotobed.co.uk; 0808 144 4343 Photograph: guardian.co.uk
Miniature bedrooms can be magnified by this symphony in walnut. It enables you, basically, to sleep on top of your chest of drawers and to save the rest of the wall space for something more frivolous. When the drawers are shut and your undies firmly prodded in it is a sleek piece of minimalist chic which would preside gracefully over rooms large or small. If the congestion of drawers unsettles you can have one without.
Currently £849 down from £1,195; Feather & Black; featherandblack.com; 01243 380 600 Photograph: guardian.co.uk
