The Evolution of the Futon
Added Friday, March 7th, 2008 at 9:27 am | View Comments
The futon is one of the oldest concepts of bedding in the world, though still a rather modern innovation in the UK. What is classed as a futon has changed greatly over time and the modern day western futon is now a very popular and versatile piece of furniture here in the UK.
Mattresses like the original futon have been used in the Far East for the past 4000 years. They are traditionally cotton mattresses made with the long strips of staple cotton from the cotton ball which is hard-wearing and does not form lumps.
The bedding used in Japan today had changed little and the setup is generally still a shikibuton (floor cushion) rolled out over tatami matting. It is the shikibuton that inspired the western futon. The mattresses are only about 2 inches thick and the Japanese customarily took the futons once a year to be cleaned and reassembled at a futonier. The mattress is rolled up and put away in the day and only laid out for sleep which saves space and allows the room to have multiple uses.
Western style futons take the concept from Japan and combine that simple ingenuity with the tastes of the West. Generally we don’t like to sleep at floor level and expect to sit on a raised surface. Therefore two American designers came up with a hybrid of the shikibuton and the western bed – what we now call the futon. This takes the flexible mattress and lays it over a wood or metal frame which can fold out to become a flat bed or in half to create a seat.
The mattresses used are much thicker and more bouncy than in Japan and can be made from a huge variety of materials. Futons have many advantages over sofa beds both in aesthetics and comfort which has made them very popular, they are also often much cheaper.
Western futons typically come in 2 designs – Bi fold and Tri fold. Bi fold futons involve folding the mattress once along its length to provide a reasonably large sofa. Tri fold futons fold the mattress twice across its width giving a more fluid and compact look to the seat.
Futons are a brilliant space saver and can convert an office or lounge into an ideal guest room without having to move bedroom furniture about. They are losing their reputation as student throwaway furniture and many people have switched to using a futon as their full time bed after buying it as a guest bed and discovering they like it!
Bedstar have a selection of beautifully designed cheap futons which convert easily from a practical seat to a comfy bed. To see our whole selection of bargain beds online check out bedstar’s catalogue. And to make sure you buy the right new bed, our bed buyers guide has tips to help decide which one of the many beds online is for you.
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