Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Day 18: Umm....We Got Rid of our Bed


The Task:  Okay, we didn't get rid of the whole bed.  Just the bed frame.

The Why:  There isn't any deep spiritual meaning or underlying concern for the environment on this one....I was just really sick of cleaning under the bed.  I hate how dust accumulates there.  Why not just ditch the dust bunny zoo altogether and be done with it? Sounds like a good step to a simpler life to me!

Here's what it looked like under our bed the day we decided to ditch the bed frame.  I think I see a corn chip. Ewww.


I've wanted to do this for ages,and I finally got hubby on board.We removed the bed frame a few days ago and so far we love sleeping closer to the floor!

The Pros: 
  • No more dust gathering under the bed.
  • No more socks disappearing under the bed.
  • No bed skirt to wash.
  • The bed is easier to make, no tucking necessary.
  • If I don't make the bed very nicely and just throw the duvet cover over everything haphazardly it looks more like a spread from the Anthropologie catalogue than a big ugly mess.
  • It's safer for the kids who climb into our bed in the wee hours of the night and occasionally engage in middle of the day tickle fights, wrestling matches and unsanctioned trampoline competitions on our bed.
  • I like the relaxed bohemian sort of look it gives to our bedroom
  • The bed doesn't make any noise when we, um, you know....
The Cons:
  • It's a little unconventional (which isn't exactly a big motivator for us anyways).

Also, we found we weren't using our nightstands for much (and they were too high without the bed frame raising the bed up) so we replaced them with one little basket to keep the books we are currently reading.  We had a sofa table in there too because we had nowhere else to put it...we got rid of that as well. The only furniture left in our bedroom is the bed and one dresser.  I love how big and open and relaxing it feels!

 The Verdict:  I realize this isn't for everyone, but I am thrilled to not have to clean under the bed anymore or squirm under there in search of lost socks.   Why keep something that just adds unnecessary mess and work to my life?

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48 comments:

  1. Reminds me of my younger, college, and early marriage days. I wish I could do this one, but with a bad knee I need the bed up high, about hip height. It's easier to just and roll on or off and without having to rise from a bended knee position. So will keep that. Could possibly replace the bed with one of the wood frames with drawers underneath for storage, but not affordable at this time. Will have to ponder that. Am hoping to purge some other items, like my husbands big ugly plastic trunk that he stores hiking gear in which sits under a window. That would help a lot if I could get him to do that.

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    1. We are tall folk, too! ;o). We bought a platform bed off Craigslist: it has 4 giant drawers in the bottom, and cost less than half the new price(at World Market) This keeps us high enough for comfort and ease, while allowing us to remove plastic bins and a dresser from the room.

      Very little dust etc gets under it, and twice a year, when the seasons change and we want our other season clothing and bed linens, we pull the drawers all the way out and clean well. I swear it's half the dust and fur in 6 months than we used to get under there every week or two, with the metal frame and those ugly bins!

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  2. Pamtap--You might consider a platform bed instead of the traditional headboard/footboard/frame. That will give you the height you need along with the benefits of the frameless bed. I know there are plans out there on the internet for making a platform bed out of old wooden pallets.

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  3. Okay, okay - we had our bed on the floor for over a year when our frame broke and we were too lazy to replace it. What I kept hearing from people was that it was dangerous because mold would grow. And our apartment is shag carpet on top of the foundation slab, so I can easily imagine it, although I noticed no evils once we moved the bed. Do you think there is really any danger of mold? I think a platform bed might be nice, though - I really liked how low I was to the floor with no bed frame, and it was easier to roll out of when pregnant. Now I have my toddler in with me half the time and that's a long way down!

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    1. I've heard that mold thing too....but i don't buy it. First of all, there would have to be a moisture problem for mold to be an issue. Secondly, if you have a box spring under the mattress (which we do) it allows for plenty of air circulation. I'm not worried about mold.

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    2. We've had our bed on the floor for over 5 years, with a box spring underneath it. We actually lived in a basement apartment for 4 years and when we moved we noticed evidence of mold near the baseboards. But our bed is totally fine.

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    3. Maybe it depends on the bed because we had our foam matteress on the floor for about 8 months and when we turned it over MOLD was on both of our sides!! We tossed it that day and had to get a new one and a bedframe. I will tell you though that I loved having my bed on the floor at first, but it definitely does at least for me get annoying....the dust and dirt that went under my bed was now getting on the edge of my comforter...I had to wash it repeately.

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    4. We also had a mattress on the floor in the basement for about 5 months and the bottom was covered in mold when we went to move it.

      Stephanie

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  4. I love this idea. The only downside I see for me is that I'm 6'2", and it would actually be more uncomfortable for me to get in and out of than if I was "built closer to the floor" as some have put it. Lol.

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  5. We got rid of both our bed frames (ours and our daughter's) when she was about 15 months old. We did it to allow her to climb out of her bed and into ours in the middle of the night (previously we would go get her out of her crib when she awoke). I hadn't thought of all these positives! There is one con you didn't list, though, which is less storage space. It was seriously important space in our first shoebox apartment!

    Also, as to the mold issue, we just lived for a year in a part of Northern California that grows mold *prodigiously*. We had mold growing *a lot* of places in our (uninsulated) house, but under or on the mattresses or box springs was not one of them! If it won't grow mold there, I'm not sure it could be a problem anywhere!

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  6. We moved three weeks ago and decided to get rid of the bed frame for the same reason!!! I had enough cat hair under there to make several more kitties. I might get a platform bed later but I love that I don't need to vacuum under there anymore!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Pixie

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  7. We haven't had a box spring since R was born since he sleeps with us and can crawl in and out all by himself easily.

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  8. Not happening here. I can't imagine comfort-wise getting into and out of the bed, especially not when I'm pregnant. I also like having a couple storage containers under our bed to keep things like our heavy winter blanket. Of course, I never clean under our bed, and with carpet and the space filled with storage containers, it doesn't get that dirty, and you can't see it anyway.

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  9. We have had our box spring and bed on the floor since our first child was little. It makes it way easier for kids coming in the night, and my husband and I are shorter too, so it is way easier to get in and out of the bed for us too! I love the no cleaning under the bed too. Enjoying your posts.

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  10. When I read the headline of this post, I really for a second thought you guys got rid of the bed :).
    Ieva

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  11. You could put the candle & basket on a tray and set the tray on the bed. It would be pretty & your floor would be completely clear during the day:)

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  12. Okay, I think you've finally lost me with this one! :) I'm on board with throwing out old makeup and replacing paper towels with bar mops, but I'm not sleeping on the floor! Plus, I love under-bed storage too much.

    Loving this blog (except for this suggestion, haha), keep it up! :)

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  13. We've done this for literally years. YEARS. When we got married we bought a traditional sleigh bed, and it was pretty, but after a couple of moves I noticed disgusting spiderwebs underneath our nightstands and dressers that were not flush to the floor. And I remembered as a child getting numerous spider bites at nighttime...so I eventually asked my husband if we could just put the box spring on the floor. We never got around to buying bed frames for the kids, since the way we transition from crib to bed is from crib to a mattress on the floor (safer than a toddler bed with a frame).

    All our bedroom furniture is flush to the floor, to avoid spiders nesting there. I'm serious--my parents had given me my childhood bedroom furniture, which had fancy scrolling and space under the furniture, and we found NESTS of spider eggs after one move. Yes, I know, I should have been a better housekeeper and regularly vacuuming under those..but it was just easier to relegate that furniture elsewhere or get rid of it.

    I've told other people that we don't have a bed(frame) and they look at me like I'm nuts. It's just a lot easier to deal with. Moving is easier! Cleaning is easier! The kids can't stuff junk under their beds the way I did when I was young and lazy! :)

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  14. BAHAHA!!!!! You totally had me with the "doesn't make noise when we, um, you know". I MUST do this in our room :) Thanks for the motivation!!

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  15. I'm glad this works for you. My DH and I did this for a long time, but I found that I had a terrible time getting out of bed during pregnancies. I'm tall and to sit on the bed placed my knees higher than my hips. It became a comical to see me get out of bed. I would roll until my knees where on the floor and then crawl into an upright position. :)

    I have thought of ditching the frame and building a box (extra building materials from the area) with either drawers or open shelves and removing my dresser instead.

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  16. Sam and I had no bedframe until we moved to Stirling. We have a double pillow top bed so it's pretty high as it is. Our joke was that when we were given the beautiful bed frame for free, it made the double pillow top mattress (also a gift to us when we got married) so high, and I am so short that i would need to take a running jump to actually get into the thing. I do love our bed frame now because it's beautiful, however, i do hate how much noise it makes when...you know...;)

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  17. We did this when we moved and just had not gotten around to setting up our bedframe yet. I liked the coziness of it. I would not have liked it while pregnant, but that's a relatively short span of time.

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  18. I haven't had a bed frame by choice since I was 12. I stub the crap out of my toes on tradtional frames. And platform frames? Shin and knee hell. I like being closer to the floor. I don't ever collect clutter under my bed. I've never had a mold problem either. And I live in a humid climate where climate control only works so well to keep moisture out. It makes the rooms I've had over the years look and feel bigger. Apparently people think not having a bedframe makes me seem "poor".

    Also, I spent the last trimester of my pregnancy on a mattress on the floor. It was no harder than getting up out of a chair or off the sofa. Climbing into the bed with the bed frame (husband at the time insisted on bed frames) was far more difficult for me.

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    1. Hahaha my husband likes tall beds, and when I was preggo he actually made me a stool so I could still get in bed on my own :D

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  19. We've done this ever since we had a kitten that crawled up from under into the bed and got caught in the box springs. We did get said kitten rescued with no lasting harm, but it took some work. (It was hanging from the springs with one back leg.) Bed on the ground for us! We solve the height problem by having two sets of box springs under the mattress. And as we live in the desert, mold has never been an issue.

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  20. When my marriage ended last year, the bed went with my ex. I bought a good quality air mattress that is about 20" high and put it on the floor. I only have to top it off about once a month. It is seriously the most comfortable bed I have ever slept on.

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  21. When I first met my husband he was still in bachelor mode & had the bed on the floor. First thing we bought with our wedding money - a new bed & frame. It drives hubby nuts that we don't have a headboard 15 years later - can't imagine going back to bed on floor. LOL We have a robi vacuum that cleans for us anyway LOL

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  22. A guest, too embarrassedAugust 8, 2012 at 10:50 PM

    Well, we're not getting rid of our frame - but we are getting rid of our fancy head and foot boards. They, um, make noise and we have teenagers that are up at all hours. And we're just not fancy anymore. We're trying to be simple, right?

    On a related note, our kids were on the floor in our room the other day, and my son noticed the one container that's under our bed (target sack with special lotions, etc)- and I quickly said, "oh, that's not for you." and he looked at me with understanding and left it alone. I swear he knew what it was! I threw out the whole sack the next day.

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  23. This would not be for me anymore.. My teen years yes but not now. I mean your preggers did you think about how hard its going to be for you to get out of that bed in a few months? lol.. Going simple is nice but lets not get to carried away here lol..

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    1. Well, like I said, I know it's not for everyone. :) And I'm quite short, so the low height isn't as difficult for me as it might be for somebody much taller.

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  24. It's your home. Make it what you want and especially what you need in terms of simplicity! I love that you are stretching yourself and taking limitations off. There is a HUGE spiritual message in this! GET CARRIED AWAY!! You don't need our permission. ;)

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    1. I like you Stacey, you "get" us! LoL.

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    2. Well said Stacy. It is YOUR home, and YOUR life, and you have blessed US by sharing it with us. Like you said, atleast 5 times in the post- that you knew this wasn't going to be for everyone, but it works for your family. There is no comprehensive final at the end requiring us to do all the things you do. (if there is, I am going to fail :) )

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    3. Amen Stacy!! You're right, it's Kelly's home not ours! More power to them!!! She's blessing (and inspiring & encouraging) others with THEIR journey. I hope some of the comments don't discourage her at all. Keep on keeping on, Kelly!

      ~M~

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  25. we just changed our bedroom suite. We havent much storage in our room so opted for a `lift ` bed. The whole mattress lifts up and the whole underneath bed area is an area for storage. Its great. No cleaning under the bed but there is loads of room to store a ton of stuff. :D

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  26. We just too our head/footboard away and love it except that we sit up in bed at night to read and nurse the little one and the bed always gradually slides away from the wall. We have wood floors and I see that you do too. Have you had a problem with sliding when the mattress is directly on the floor? Love the idea of not dusting and of being able to sleep with the little one in bed and not worry about him falling from such a great height! Thanks for the great ideas and for putting yourself out there:)

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  27. I think I would have done this one at one time in my life when I was younger and single. I don't think removing the frame negates cleaning under the mattress. I do think it would mean doing it much less often, but the mold issue being even a possibility would have me doing it at least once a month or so. Our bedroom suite is a beautiful cherry set handed down from (hang on here...) DH's Stepmother's grandmother (yeah...that's it). It's beautifully built and beautiful looking (without the cost of buying something like this!). To me simplicity doesn't necessarily mean getting rid of things just because we can. It's getting rid of things that actually complicate our lives. That may not be the same for everyone though. For you cleaning under the bed complicated life. For me it reminds me of how blessed I am to have such a loving family. :)

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  28. You are my hero! I have been wanting to do this for ages, but my husband is convinced that he absolutely NEEDS all the stuff we keep under the bed (that we haven't even looked at in over a year). Now I have one more thing in my arsenal of reasons that may bring him over to my side. Thank you!

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  29. Putting a bed on the floor would be a disaster for us - there are always some type of crawling critter (read SPIDERS) that would have easier access to their wanna-bite-mes. YIKES!

    thriftshopcommando.blogspot.com

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  30. We've never had a bed frame, going as we did from dorm to newlywed to grad student, etc. 13 years (and a real job) later, I've been contemplating a bed frame to make our room feel more "grown up", but you've just talked me out of it. Whew - one less expense! Plus, it keeps it all safer for the 2 small kids and 2 cats who think our bed belongs to them :-)
    (oh, and never had a spider or mold problem, even on carpet in damp climates - I'd be afraid of bugs hiding under the frame - eww!)

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  31. Wait, I'm confused. I just hopped over here for the first time (from your I.H. blog, of which I frequent) - Aren't you still trying to sell your home? I remember all of the staging entries. I would think your stager would freak, lol!

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    1. Hi Catherine! I'm going to give an update on that situation on the other blog soon! :D

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  32. My husband and I have a very close, solid marriage with 3 kids in tow... in part becasue of the time spent together, um, you know.... having our mattress and box spring on the floor keeps our private time quieter, and therefore private. Many things keep a marriage in tact, and this is an important factor; so if a bed on the floor keeps it going, so be it! Simplifing the stuff and space in our lives really does allow more opportunities to strengthen our family ties, friendships, and time with God.

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  33. Thank you for posting this. We have our matress on the floor and on box springs as do our 4 boys you have made me feel more"normal" i hate cleaning under the bed. I was wishing i had storage space under the bed but i am more inspired to purge more stuff so i dont need to store stuff. Thank you

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  34. We moved across several states last month and didn't bring our bedframe. I do like how large the bedroom looks, but we will be making a bedframe sometime. Even though we went from a small-ish house (1700sqft) to a large-ish one (2300sqft), this new house has close to 0 closet space and none of us have a logical place for off season clothes and blankets. So a platform bed with drawers underneath will be the answer to that.
    But I agree, a bed close to the floor makes it so much easier for the littles who cannot resist Mommy & Daddy's bed!
    All of our kids' beds are on the floor too, but that has more to do with the fact that they all roll out of bed at night. ha!

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  35. I love this idea! I think we'll do it in our son's room- that will complete eliminate the stress of him potentially rolling off the bed once he's there!

    Love Letters 7.10: The story of and earth minded family and their journey to a simpler life.
    http://www.loveletters710.blogspot.com

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  36. This is something I would actually love to do. Our almost one-year-old daughter occasionally sleeps with us and has no perception of, "if I crawl off the edge, I will get hurt". Being closer to the floor would be much more calm for my heart. Also, our night stand is jam packed with junk and has a stack of about ten books on top that we are "currently reading" - but actually not reading at all...I think a simple basket would do us some good! Oh, and I'm sure there is junk under that giant bed as well!

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  37. I've had a mattress and boxspring on the floor for years. I love the streamlined feel it gives to my bedroom, and feel like the room is much bigger. :) I sold my bedframe when I was moving about 3 years ago (with the intention of replacing it), but I realized I didn't want a bedframe at all. So I'm rockin' the mattress-on-floor look like the poor, pseudo-bohemian twenty-something that I am. ^_^

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