If you have small bedrooms it can be frustrating trying to find furniture that fits in them. In your search for an adequate bed style, you may have run across loft beds. These beds are raised high off the ground.
Loft beds are a good choice for small rooms. The loft bed is elevated off of the floor, providing space for other furnishings and storage. Be sure to measure the room from floor to ceiling before choosing a loft bed option.
Loft beds can be great for small spaces. However, they could create problems as well. Let’s take a closer look at loft beds and their designs to find out if this is a good choice for your small room.
What Do You Need to Know About Loft Beds?
Loft beds are an excellent choice for small spaces. They are raised off the floor to allow usable space beneath the bed frame. Depending on how tall your bed is and how high the ceiling is you can utilize this space with:
- Desk and chair
- Futon
- Beanbag
- Dresser
- Play-fort
- more
The limitations you may experience with a loft bed include ceiling height to bed height. If you have low ceilings a tall loft bed will not give you much room to sit up in your bed. A lower loft bed will not give as much room underneath.
You may also want to keep the bed away from windows to prevent possible falls as well as keep emergency exits easily accessible.
What Type of Loft Bed Is Appropriate For Your Small Room?
There are many varieties of Loft beds, making it easy for you to choose a design that will fit your particular needs. There are loft beds built for:
- Young children
- Teenagers
- Adults
These beds are a creative way to give added space to your small room. Choosing a loft bed design will help you declutter while letting your personality show. Here are some designs suitable by age.
Loft Beds For Young Children
Loft beds for young children are often shorter than those for teens or adults. This is to help prevent a child from falling from a high height. Loft beds designed for young children come in many designs that combine fun and function.
Here are some popular loft bed designs for young children that are sure to pique your interest:
- If you are looking for a child’s loft bed that will give your child extra play space this Donco Kids Loft would be an excellent choice.
The underneath has tent panels to turn this into a cool fort for playtime. It also offers a great place to store your child’s toys. To add to the fun, there is a slide for your child to slide down.
This loft bed is made from pine wood. It weighs 112 pounds. It stands just over three and a half feet tall and will fit a twin-size mattress on the sleeping platform.
- Another fort-style loft bed is the Max-Lily Farmhouse. It is made of New Zealand pine. The fort area is enclosed with wood making it durable for years to come. The bed is 84 ½ inches long, 42 ¼ inches wide, and 84 ¼ inches long.
The outside of the fort area has a large storage drawer with a shelf that could also act as a bench. There are three fort walls. One end wall has a window opening while the middle wall has a doorway opening.
- The Naomi Low Study Loft would be ideal for a young child to a preteen. This bed is made of solid wood. It is practical in the sense that it has a three-drawer dresser, a bookshelf, and a desk that slides out into the room when in use. There’s actually space left under the bed that a child could use as a fort or for extra storage.
- If you would rather have a metal bed frame this DHP Junior Multifunction loft bed may be just what you are looking for. It has a slide for playtime and a built-in ladder. The footprint of this bed is 43 inches in height by 77 ½ inches wide by 98 ½ inches deep.
The depth includes the space the ladder takes up. This bed is light weighing just over 71 pounds. It has a weight limit of 200 pounds. There’s plenty of space underneath for small furnishings or playing. A fire station curtain is also available to purchase to enclose the lower part of the bed frame.
- This simple metal frame design will add function to space-saving. It is just a low metal loft with a small staircase to the sleeping platform. The stairs are actually lidded boxes to help keep clothing or toys put away.
It measures 92 ½ inches in length by 41 ½ inches wide by 44 ½ inches high. It has a weight limit of 200 pounds. It states in the description it is not suitable for children under the age of six to be on the bed platform. This is probably due to the height.
No matter what you are looking for in terms of a young child’s loft bed, you will be happy to discover there are plenty of designs to choose from. Many of these are very sturdy and will give your child many years of comfort and flexibility.
Loft Beds for Older Children and Teens
There are many fantastic choices an older child or teenager will enjoy when it comes to loft beds. These beds can be low lofts like the ones mentioned above or high lofts that give a lot more space underneath. Let’s look at some options below.
- The most basic of the loft bed frames come in metal or wood. The basic metal frame has a ladder built-in. This means less floor space is used for the bed area. The basic wood frame loft has a detachable ladder that will come into the room at a slight angle.
Still, either of these simple frames allows room for accessories underneath the bed platform. So, if you have a dresser or a desk you want extra space for this design will be very pleasing.
- If you are looking for a loft bed that is convertible. This wooden loft has a table with bench seats below the sleeping platform. The table and seats convert into a second bed for company or when you don’t feel like climbing the ladder.
The benches include four cushions. These can be used as a mattress when the table is lowered. It’s reminiscent of a camper dining area. Two drawers that fit beneath the benches are also included.
- Here’s a loft bed designed just for gamers. It has a stylish wrap-around screen with an extra-large desk below the sleeping bunk. The desk is large enough for multiple monitors. A u-shaped shelf is above the desktop and a smaller shelf is underneath the desk.
It is made of heavy-duty steel that is painted a fashionable black with the red X and Rocker painted in white. So, if you have an avid gamer in your home and need to create extra space, this is the loft bed for them.
- This sleek-looking loft bed will delight even the most picky of teens. It is a metal frame with a nice curved appearance. Below the bed platform is a desk on one side with shelves above it. On the other side are three wide shelves that are perfect for books and other items.
- When it comes to function and style this loft has it all. It boasts a full size bed platform. It also includes a nice 6 drawer dresser and an L shaped desk. It even comes with a matching chair. It’s like a bedroom in a loft bed!
With a loft-style bed frame, your teen will enjoy having more living space in their room. Another nice thing about loft beds is the ability to keep the sleeping area separate from the living space.
Loft Beds for Adults
Kids are not the only ones tight on space. Many adults these days are living in tiny homes or small studio apartments. If you are living in a roommate situation a loft bed as an adult also makes sense.
Let’s look at some choice loft bed designs with adults in mind.
- This queen-size adult loft bed is ideal for someone who wants more space. It is built of strong aluminum that can hold up to 1,000 pounds. It has a nice height of 53 inches below the bunk. A wide desk is built into the frame on one end and a sizable shelf is on the opposite end.
The dimensions of this bed are 80 inches by 61 inches by 55 ½ inches. If you have enough floor space for a queen size bed and your ceiling height is tall enough that you can sit upright in this bed, it is well worth a look.
- The Scanica Stairway Loft Bed is another nice loft bed for adults. It is made of wood with a full-size sleeping platform. The stairs are nice for those who may have trouble climbing a ladder.
Within the staircase are four built-in drawers for clothing and shelves behind each drawer for other storage needs. This pine bed holds a full-size mattress and measures 67 inches from the floor to the top of the guard rail; it’s 52 inches to the bottom of the bunk from the floor. The length is 97 inches and the width is 59 inches.
- This twin loft staircase storage bed is another excellent choice for adults. It has a built-in desk along the length of the bed. The staircase consists of four steps, three of them have storage drawers.
It is a compact design that will hold a twin-size mattress. The entire length of the bed with the staircase is 93.1 inches. The height to the top of the guardrail is 71.9 inches and it is 41.3 inches deep.
- If you want a bed with a lot of storage options this ACME Jason II would be great to have in a smaller room. It too has a staircase. The otter wall of the staircase has a 5 drawer dresser. On the other side of the bed is a two-drawer dresser with shelves, and a desk runs the length of the bed.
The dimensions of this bed are 72.8 inches tall by 56.57 inches wide and 98.07 inches in length. You need to have enough space on the length of the wall to get to the dresser on the side of the staircase. So, if you have a wall that is at least 11.18 inches long this bed would work nicely.
- Yet another great idea in loft bed style frames is the twin loft over futon. This combined design will save space while offering sleeping space and a couch to sit on. Since the futon unfolds into a full size bed, there will be room to accommodate guests as well.
This loft bed with futon is 78 inches long by 54 ½ inches wide by 72 ½ inches tall. The stylish black metal frame has a loft access ladders built in on either end of the bed. The futon will support up to 600 pounds while the loft bunk will support 200 pounds.
- If you have low ceilings and a small room this Merax Twin Loft is 29.4 inches from the floor to the sleeping platform. It includes many storage options. This bed has a roll out desk with two shelves, a three drawer dresser, and a two shelf book case. Each of these can be used separately or stored beneath the loft frame.
The entire footprint of this loft bed is 78.3 inches long by 42.5 inches wide by 44.5 inches tall. It is made of solid wood and has a ladder for easy access to the sleeping platform.
Any of these beds would all make good choices for an adult loft bed. They combine style and function in compact designs.
Build Your Own Loft Bed
If you are handy and have carpentry skills you can opt to build your own loft bed. This can give you many more options as you are able to customize the design to truely fit your needs and your space.
You can choose from a variety of online patterns or design your own loft bed pattern. When you build your own loft bed You will be able to adjust for
- ceiling height and wall length
- Sleeping platform sizes such as twin, full, queen, and even king.
- Different shapes. For example, you may have three children in one room. By designing and building your own lofts their beds could be a U shaped design depending on the available space.
- Guardrails can also be higher or lower than the standard prebuilt loft frames.
- Lofts can be permanently attached to and supported by the wall. This will provide more room by eliminating part of the framework. It also makes the beds much sturdier when they are part of the framework of the home.
Having a sturdy bed that fits your needs is a super way to utilize space above the floor in a small room. Measure your mattress and build a box that will hold it. Use 2×4 braces and plywood for a firm foundation.
Cut the pieces for the guard rail and attach them to your platform. Even if you do not want tall guard rails, having a short one will help keep your mattress in place on the loft bed.
Please note that guard rails are always necessary when building a bed for a child. A guard rail built with slats should not have more than 2 to 3 inches of spacing between them to prevent a child from getting their head stuck between the slats while sleeping or at play.
If you are going to attach the bed to the wall you will only need two legs to hold up the outer edge. How tall you make the bed will be up to your needs and what the room will accommodate.
A do it yourself loft can be as simple or as elaborate as you want provided that you have the skills necessary to build it. This could be a really fun project that may be less expensive than buying a pre-built loft bed.
Measure Your Room Before Getting a Loft Bed
It is important to remember to measure your room space and write down the dimensions. Make a note of where there are:
- Doors
- Closets
- Windows
Write down their dimensions as well. Watch for low hanging ceiling fans and lights too. These will all affect where and how you arrange your loft bed, as well, whether you buy a tall loft or a shorter loft.
For tall loft beds, you will want ceilings that are 100 inches from the floor. This will give adequate room to sit up without bumping your head. Normal 8 foot ceilings should be fine for the medium height loft beds.
Do remember to keep emergency exits such as windows clear and easily accessible. Children’s beds should not ever block a window or allow for a child to fall out of a window. Please keep safety your first priority.
Loft Beds Are A Good Choice For Small Rooms
There are so many designs to choose from when it comes to loft beds. They can be tall or medium height offering even those with low ceilings an opportunity to add extra floor space to their small quarters.