If you said the word "futon" in a word-association game you can guarantee the following would come up - oriental, minimalist, versatile, stylish and good for the back. Fashionable since the Eighties, when nibbling sushi and buying kimono-style dressing gowns was also hip, futon shops are now part of the high street. The Futon Company (0171-978 4498 for mail order and enquiries), Britain's biggest futon manufacturer, was the first to open in 1980, and now has 20 branches across the country. Habitat (0645 334433 for nearest store), Muji (0171-323 2208 for stockists) and Futon Express (0171-833 3945) also stock them. With price tags as low as pounds 99 for a single and pounds 149 for a double, they make financial sense.According to Dr Peter Skew, a muscular-skeletal physician, well-made futons can be a good option: "They are filled with cotton, they take away sweat quite efficiently, and because there are no springs they keep well." His main concern is that they double up as sofas. "A lot of them are too deep and you don't want a sofa longer than your thigh length because then you slouch, which is bad for the back."
A good futon should give the right amount of support to the body. "Ideally, your futon should be placed on a surface that gives a little bit, rather than the floor or wooden slats," says Skew. This might be an area for concern. The Japanese use futons with a specific type of floor known as tatami - mats made of straw and woven sea grass - which is yielding and springy to the touch. Shinka Suga, a freelance journalist in London, says: "It is this springiness of the tatami which makes it so comfortable and it is also important in terms of the way it supports the spine. I suppose you could consider placing one directly on the carpet." James Thompson, a 6ft 4in sports teacher whose backache disappeared during the three years he slept on a futon in Japan, bought a pounds 280 futon with a pine frame when he returned to the UK but was disappointed with it. "It was lumpy and uncomfortable and I was waking up several times during the night." Taking a British futon back to the shop is no mean feat.
While its oriental equivalent is light enough to be thrown around by Japanese housewives, futons here tend to be unwieldy and heavy. Jessica Alexander of the Sleep Council (01756 792327), a body advising on beds and sleep improvement, emphasises the need to make a good choice in the first place. "We encourage people to spend maybe five to 10 minutes trying a bed out." It is a serious purchase and difficult to take back. Once slept on, it is no longer sellable for hygiene reasons. "Futons might be natural and organic but it is always important to have correct spine alignment," advises Alexander. The futons that Japanese have been sleeping on for centuries are hand- stitched, and made of two or three layers of soft, recycled cotton. They are light and thin and packed carefully to give an even surface. "Sleeping on a new one is like sleeping on a feather bed," says Suga, who is not too impressed by those on sale here. "They are fatter and look like gym mattresses to me. I guess that someone had the idea of making a sofa-bed to save space and gave it the name futon."
The British futon joins the list of "imported and adapted" cultural items alongside curry and tea-drinking. They are five or six layers deep, and packed with a mixture of cotton, wool, and foam. Greg Houlgate of Campus Futon (0181-932 0066) says: "In Europe there is a stigma attached to sleeping on the floor for historical reasons, so we prefer to sleep on a raised surface. As soon as you place a futon on a frame you have to give it extra layers to make it comfortable, so we pad ours with cotton, wool, coir and foam." The Futon Company also adds two layers of foam to its three- seater sofa-beds to provide "extra seating comfort, a firmer surface and extra spring". Tokuko Hashimoto, editor of The Eikoku News Digest, is intrigued by the wooden frame. "It is totally against the principle of the Japanese futon. They are supposed to be stored away in a cupboard to make space when not being used. People who keep their futons out permanently tend to be frowned on a bit in Japan." Futon maintenance is taken very seriously in Japan.
On a sunny day in Tokyo, it is hard to find an apartment block without futons draped over its balconies. "When I first came to Britain I was wondering how people in this country keep their mattresses dry and aired," says Suga. "Japanese are obsessed about it because the cotton absorbs body sweat overnight, so as well as the airing they send them to be professionally cleaned regularly." The Futon Company recommends regular turning and rolling because British futons are too heavy to sling over the washing line (and, of course, British weather is not conducive to this practice). Not all futon manufacturers point this out to their customers, however, and it is virtually impossible to buy Japanese futons or tatami mats in this country. Muji imports its futon mattresses from Japan, but these are made to specific British requirements, and are sold with metal or wooden frames. Satomi Nakagawa-Mason, a Muji sales assistant, confesses: "They are completely different from Japan's, somewhere between a bed and a futon.
I would much rather sleep on a proper futon." Bell Living (0181-991 0334), an organisation trading in Japanese household objects and furniture, has a few for rental, and Campus Futon can import tatami mats (about pounds 85 each) for anyone seriously into Japanese culture. The other problem in Britain is the floor, according to Tokuko Hashimoto: "In a British home the floor is like an extension of the ground outside, but in Japan the floor is clean and hygienic enough to lie on. All Japanese remove their footwear and put on slippers before entering a house and change to toilet slippers before entering the bathroom."Maybe we should stick to the good old wooden slatted frame after all.Too many sofa beds fall short of being useful as either a sofa or a bed. With firm cushions, bad support, thin mattresses and clunky mechanisms, they’re usually not met with great enthusiasm by house guests. Thankfully, there’s a whole new breed of bed designs that solve the problem, with those at the top of the range being so comfortable they’re good for use every day.
As always with large furniture pieces, think about size, access to your home, and guarantees that indicate sturdiness and good craftsmanship. 1. Willow and Hall Appley 2-seater Sofa Bed: from £554, Willow and Hall This small but comfortable bed from Willow and Hall folds out easily by pulling the wheeled base. Good for spare rooms and studies, the two-seater version is 122cm wide, and the armless design means it’s good for getting through small doorways. The frame is steel, and the cushions are foam and fibre. It’s available in 90 different fabrics and leathers, and is handmade and delivered in four and five weeks. 2. Sofa Workshop Jude Corner Sofa Bed: from £1,994, Sofa Workshop More of a sofa with an added bonus, the Jude sofa bed hasn’t compromised on comfort in order to discreetly include a pull-out double bed within its design. Made by hand in Britain, the sofa bed has a 15-year guarantee, a hardwood frame, foam seat cushions with fibre-filled back cushions and a deluxe double mattress that will give your guest a good night’s sleep.
3. John Lewis Clapton Sofa Bed: £349, John Lewis Great for small budgets and spaces, the petite Clapton sofa bed simply folds flat to go from day to night, rather than involving a bulky pull-out mechanism. The hardwood frame is guaranteed for 10 years – a good investment for a small price. Best for occasional use, the bed is a compact 182cm x 109cm when flat, and may need a mattress topper for added comfort. 4. Habitat Honovi Sofa: £1,700, Habitat If you’re dead set on impressing guests, the Italian-made Honovi sofa from Habitat is a three-seater that converts to the equivalent of a kingsize bed, with a luxurious 14cm-deep sprung foam mattress. Foam is used for the deep seats cushions, and feather-filled for the back. The covering fabric is removable (dry clean only), making it practical too. Delivery takes eight to 10 weeks. 5. Loaf Pavilion Medium Sofa Bed: £1,445, Loaf The slouchy design of Loaf’s beds and sofas put comfort first, with deep seats and feather-filled back cushions across the range.
The Pavilion sofa bed is no exception. Proving comfortable as both bed and sofa, it has a 12cm deep folding mattress and a mechanism that’s easy to use. The sofa comes with a 10-year guarantee. There’s a medium, large and love seat/single bed combination available too. 6. Made Jefferson Sofa Bed: £999, Made The ingenious folding mechanism makes Made’s Jefferson sofa bed stand out. The whole piece glides smoothly from sofa to bed in one action, with the back cushions stowing under the legs. With a 14cm-deep mattress it’s comfortable enough to be used every day – great for studio flats or small bedrooms. The polyester fabric comes in grey and dark red versions. 7. Esme Sofa Bed: £970, Living It Up Esme is a smart-looking sofa bed with extra care given for your guest’s sleep. There’s a 13cm-deep pocket sprung mattress with layers of cotton, fibre and insulator pads. The sofa bed also locks into place at six points, giving good support. The small two-seater version folds out to a bed of 85cm x 186cm.
The sofa has loose back pillows making it better suited to occasional rather than constant use. 8. Next Brompton Occasional Sofa Bed: £950, Next Next’s Brompton bed has a design to suit traditional interiors, with scrolled arms and a high back that look great in tweed and checked fabrics. It comfortably sleeps two with a fold-out size of 194cm x 98cm, and has a standard pull-out mechanism. There’s great scope to design a sofa to suit your needs, with a choice of three feet colours and 91 fabrics. Delivery takes six weeks. 9. Aissa Two Seat Sofa Bed: from £1,410, Sofa This charming sofa bed looks small but packs a lot of space. Thin arms allow it to deliver a generous area for seating and a surprising mattress size of 193cm x 153cm. Comfort is key: the seat and back cushions have feather in the fillings, and the mattress is 12cm deep. There’s a choice of 100 fabrics and the frame has a lifetime guarantee. 10. Backabro Sofa Bed with Chaise Longue: £725, Ikea
Ikea’s solution for combining corner sofa and bed is neat and practical – including hidden storage space under the chaise longue section for pillows and blankets. The pocket-sprung mattress is on the firm side, designed to give support, and the overall sleeping area is a huge 200cm x 248cm. The cover is a cotton and polyester blend. For unexpected guests, Willow and Hall’s Appley occasional sofa bed is sturdy and comfortable for a good price. Its compact boxy looks are made with the guest room or study in mind. If you’re opting for a sofa bed that can be used every day Made’s stylish Jefferson sofa bed delivers on comfort with a 14cm-deep mattress. Its clever fold-out mechanism makes using it easy to use daily. IndyBest product reviews are unbiased, independent advice you can trust. On some occasions, we earn revenue if you click the links and buy the products, but we never allow this to bias our coverage. The reviews are compiled through a mix of expert opinion and real-world testing