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» Effective Breathing Exercises for Fussy Sleepers Is there anything more frustrating than settling in bed with the intention of getting a solid evening’s rest, and then battling to fall asleep? It’s like your own body is actively working against you. Plus, when you start worrying about falling asleep, you’re not exactly setting th...

» How To Create Your Own Sleep Sanctuary The new year has arrived and if you are like most South Africans, you may have a resolution or two that you plan to implement in 2019. If your health is at the top of your list of things to improve in the coming year, you may want to start with a reboot of your sleeping regime. Did you know that a l...

» Gift Yourself Better Sleep With A New Comfort Solutions Bed For most of us, the holidays are an opportunity to kick back, relax and get some well-deserved rest after a long year of having our noses to the relentless grindstone. However, it can be tricky to do so if your mattress isn’t up to the task. Have you considered gifting yourself with bett...

» 5 Christmas Traditions from the African Continent The Bed King team is getting ready to celebrate the festive season in style in sunny South Africa. As a proudly South African company, we have our roots on the African continent, and we’ve always been fascinated by the many colourful traditions and Christmas-related heritage events that are ce...

» How To Get Your Kids to Bed on Christmas Eve We were all kids once, so let’s be honest - we understand how difficult it can be to relax and fall asleep on Christmas Eve. There is just so much to look forward to the next day that it can be particularly hard to switch off and drift off to dreamland. Fortunately, parents around the globe ha...

» 5 Natural Ways to Quit Snoring There is literally nothing fun about snoring. It disrupts your sleep, you wake up with a sore throat and a dry mouth, and your bed partner is highly unlikely to be very enthused about the entire situation. So, what can you do? If those scary-looking breathing apparatus and nasal stickers that are be...

» 10 Tips For Sleeping Well in the Heat of Summer Summer has well and truly arrived in sunny South Africa, and while that means that the holidays aren’t far off, it also means the heat is on. When temperatures soar to the high 30s and low 40s it can be very difficult to get quality sleep, because our bodies are wired to release melatonin (the...

» Do You Really Need Less Sleep As You Get Older? Have you ever heard that older people need less sleep than their younger counterparts? This is one of those accepted pieces of wisdom we often accept without questioning the origin of the validity thereof. When you start to think about it, there are quite a few holes to poke in this particular old w...

» Ahhh-chooo! Might Be Time to Check Your Mattress! Summertime is here and while most of us are ecstatic at the thought of longer days, balmy evenings and plenty of opportunity to enjoy all our our favourite outdoor pursuits, there are those unlucky individuals who spend the entire season sniffling and sneezing. Allergies. Uuuurgh. The itching, the s...

» A Surprise Factor That Can Affect Your Sleep At Bed King, our focus has always been on providing South Africans with all the makings of a good night’s rest, which is why we are one of the country’s foremost suppliers of beds and mattresses. However, there is more to a good night’s rest than a suitable sleeping surface. Your l...

» Sleeping Disorders: The Concise Guide to Shift Work Sleep Disorder The Bed King team of bed supply specialists are often required to assist individuals with certain sleeping disorders to find a suitable sleeping surface. In previous articles we discussed insomnia, sleep apnea, restless leg syndrome and hypersomnia; today we discuss shift work sleep disorder -...

» 5 Ways Your Old Mattress Could Be Harming Your Health Investing in a new mattress can seem a little daunting. Depending on the sleeping surface you require, it could be quite a big expense. However, putting it off could be harming your health in ways that you haven’t even considered. This statement may seem a little hyperbolic, but it makes more ...

» Equal societies = better sleep. Here's why! Ladies take care of the kids, gents bring home the bacon. Right? That’s the way the world is structured, but this statement has not been completely true for decades. While there are some families for whom this is still the case, there are fewer and fewer couples who can afford to balance their...

» NEW Mewer Bed & Mattress Range Raises the Bar If there is one thing the Bed King team takes seriously, it’s the quality of the branded beds and mattresses we allow on our showroom floors. After all, when our founder Mervyn Ewertse opened the doors to the very first Bed King branch in Cape Town in 1999, it was his dream to share his passio...

» Reimagine Your Bedroom Storage With The Trento Drawer Base If there is one thing the Bed King team admires, it’s clever design. This is why we are so proud to be a stockist of Trento Upholstered Drawer Bases. There are very few manufacturers out there who can walk the fine line between making a beautiful product and crafting a user-friendly piece of f...

» Spring Inspiration To Reinvigorate Your Bedroom Spring is finally here and as the warmer days commence, it’s about time to rethink your bedroom decor. Wintertime is all about the snuggles, but once the blossoms come out, it’s nature’s cue to get ready for a new season of vitality. Pick A New Accent Colour One of the simplest way...

» Awake Frequently At Night? Get Back to Sleep This Way We all know the feeling. It’s the middle of the night and you’re wide awake for no reason. You fell asleep only a short while ago, and by the looks of your alarm clock you’d better fall asleep again soon if you want to function properly in the morning. But now you’re stressed...

» Are Sleep Trackers Causing Sleepless Nights? As the first generation with the widespread ability to measure our own metrics on the go, we are also the first who have to determine if this is a wise choice for everyone. Wearable fitness tech has now developed to the point where it not only measures your steps and heart rate, it can also measure ...

» How 1 Hour of Extra Sleep Can Make You Smarter & Stronger Depending on where you are in your life cycle, the duration of your nighttime sleep session can differ vastly. Toddlers kick up a fuss at the mere mention of sleepy time, teenagers go to bed at all hours and sleep in until noon, while students tend to forgo sleep in favour of night-long study (or pa...

» Should Sleep Be Included in Your Antioxidant Lineup? We all know antioxidants are good for us. That’s why we sip on cups of green tea, pay way too much for bushels of blueberries and munch handfuls of almonds when all we want is a chocolate croissant. But what exactly are antioxidants, why should we fear oxidative stress and should we be adding ...

» Bed King Launches Revolutionary Comfort Solutions LabÂ® Choosing a bed is an important decision that impacts on the quality of your sleep as well as your overall health. With this in mind, Mervyn Ewertse founded Bed King in 1999 to live out his passion for helping South Africans to enjoy better sleep and healthier lives. His first store was located in Du...

» Bed King gives back to the Red Cross Children's Hospital Bed King is proud to partner with the Children’s Hospital Trust to support their fundraising initiatives for the second year running. Bed King, alongside their mascot Kingsley Bear, runs an annual campaign to raise funds for the Children’s Hospital Trust. From the 25th of July to the 25t...

» Are Our Brains Wired to Use Music As A Sleeping Aid? If you've ever had a problem falling asleep or remaining asleep throughout the night, you'll know how debilitating this can be in the long run. A lack of quality sleep affects your whole life - from how accurately you are able to respond to stimuli on the road, to how well your body metabo...

» How More Sleep Can Boost Your Sports Performance What do Usain Bolt, Roger Federer, Lindsey Vonn, Sarah Hughes and Lebron James have in common? They all sleep more than 8 hours per day and they consider it to be a part of their training regime. No kidding, these world-class athletes take their sleep seriously, and with good reason - sufficient res...

» The Fascinating Forces that Drive Your Sleep/Wake Cycle Have you ever wondered how we are able to stay awake for up to 16 hours per day, and then go to bed where we remain asleep for up to 8 hours at a stretch? Isn’t it a little odd that our bodies can group together periods of sleepiness and wakefulness in this very convenient fashion, instead of ...

» Sleeping Disorders: The Concise Guide to Bruxism The Bed King team of bed supply specialists often provide advice on proper sleeping surfaces for individuals who deal with sleeping disorders. In previous articles we discussed insomnia, sleep apnea restless leg syndrome, and hypersomnia; today we discuss sleep bruxism - also known as nighttime teet...

» Sleeping Disorders: The Concise Guide to Hypersomnia The Bed King team of bed supply specialists often provide advice on proper sleeping surfaces for individuals who deal with sleeping disorders. In previous articles we discussed insomnia, sleep apnea and restless leg syndrome; today we discuss hypersomnia - excessive daytime sleepiness that is not li...

» Falling asleep fast (3): Physical Adaptation Welcome back, dear reader, to the final sitting of our sleep serenade. For our dessert course, we will be looking at physical adaptation. (Don’t worry, we’re talking feng shui, not surgery.) Even if you don’t realize it, the things in and around your bedroom greatly affect your sle...

» Bizarre Sleeping Habits of the Rich and Famous Does optimal amounts of sleep lead to success in life? Not necessarily… When it comes to getting a good solid snooze session, some people will go to extreme lengths to ensure it goes ahead without disturbance or hindrance. But for others, sleep is not considered a priority and they are capabl...

» Store While You Sleep With The Trento Lift Up Storage Base Many would agree that our homes don’t have enough storage especially the bedroom. It can quickly become one of the most cluttered places where clothes, shoes and personal items take over our personal space. Nothing is more frustrating and stressful than a messy bedroom and overflowing closets....

» Falling Asleep Fast (2): Preparative- & Preventative measures Welcome back to the buffet! In our previous sitting (Mental Exercises) we peppered you with a course of vol-au-vents chock-full of sleeping advice. If you’re still having problems going beddy-bye, after flexing all that Jedi-muscle, it might be time to try a different approach. What we do befo...

» Melatonin Dosage, Benefits and Side Effects There are many sleeping tips and tricks people swear by but when it comes to melatonin, its best to err on the side of caution. While some studies suggest that melatonin can be an effective sleeping aid, taking too much can have several side effects. Although there is no evidence that an overdose of...

» How Long it Takes to Fall Asleep and How to Prevent Sleep Sabotage Do you ever get the feeling that the sandman might have misplaced your address? Are you one of the many day dreamers and night thinkers? Having difficulty falling asleep can be frustrating, especially if it becomes a regular occurance. We, as Bed King, know just how vital it is to choose a bed that ...

» Best Sleep Temperature Literal billions have been spent over the years to determine exactly what it is we need to do (and eat and think and wear and on and on…) to get a good night’s sleep. The question has left us hot and bothered. And that, it seems, might be part of the problem: temperature. Some experts s...

» Back to School(night) Routine Holidays and long weekends are fun but they can play havoc with your internal clock. Do you go to bed (on the last day of your break) dreading the shrill siren of your alarm? Does the thought of getting up (on your first day back) fill you with life-sucking denial? Join the club. We might not have j...

» Sleeping Disorders: The Concise Guide to Restless Leg Syndrome The Bed King team of bed supply specialists often shares advice on proper sleeping surfaces for individuals who deal with sleeping disorders. In previous articles we discussed insomnia and sleep apnea; today we discuss restless leg syndrome, a neurological disorder that causes a person to feel a str...

» 5 Tips To Cozy Up Your Bedroom This Winter Summer is almost over and with wet and cold weather just around the corner, it’s time to cozy up your bedroom for winter. For many of us, there is nothing better than watching the rain while nestled in bed under the covers enjoying some hot chocolate or your favourite Nespresso! We can all agr...

» What Happens when you experience Microsleep? We have all experienced the difficulty of trying to continue focussing or functioning when you are over-tired or sleepy. You suddenly jerk awake and realise that, for a fleeting second or more, you have no recollection of time or what you did. Pretty scary, right? These episodes are called &ld...

» Yawning Truths: Itâ€™s Not What You Think The age old question of why people yawn is yet to be conclusively answered. Fatigue is a typical symptom of yawning indicating that our body is ready for sleep but it’s not the only reason. Although this may be true in some cases, there are many other interesting claims. Yawning is a reflex ac...

» Falling asleep fast (1): Mental Exercises Here’s what you need to know: insomnia is real. It affects everyone, not just the over-sixties or the compulsory three out of ten people. It can strike at any time and last for anything from a few hours to the rest of your life. Everyone has a brush with sleeplessness now and again, usually at...

» Sleeping Disorders: The Concise Guide to Sleep Apnea As bed supply specialists, the Bed King team is often asked to weigh in on mattresses and bedding for individuals who suffer from sleeping disorders. In a previous article, we took a look at insomnia; today we discuss sleep apnea, which is defined as a condition where the upper airway becomes blocke...

» Choose Comfort Air Mattresses & Rethink the Way You Sleep Have you ever been described as a fussy sleeper? We’re here to tell you there is no such thing as a fussy sleeper - only discerning individuals who know what they need in a sleeping surface. At Bed King, we have mattresses down to a science. This is why we offer a range of Comfort Air Mattress...

» Sleeping Disorders Series: The Concise Guide to Insomnia As bed supply specialists, we are frequently asked to recommend sleeping surfaces that will improve the experience of individuals who suffer from sleeping orders. Over the course of the next few articles we will take a look at the most current definitions of a few of the most well-known sleeping dis...

» Why Do Dogs Sleep So Much It is said that dogs sleep on average between 12 and 14 hours a day. Now, while this does sound like a lot (and while, to many of us, the thought of that amount of sleep sounds like bliss), in actual fact, it is not as much as it sounds because it is not a solid stretch of sleep, instead your pooche...

» Sleeping In a Cooler Room = Better Rest (Here's Why!) If you are one of the approximately 30% of adults who have short-term issues with insomnia, or the 10% who suffer from chronic insomnia, you'll know that even the slightest environmental irritant has the potential to hamper your ability to drift off to dreamland. Room temperature has been repor...

» Dress Your Nest: Set the Scene for Romance this Valentineâ€™s Day It’s that time of year when love is in the air whether you like it or not. Let’s be honest - Valentine’s Day can be a bit much with all the hearts and flowers and schmaltzy love songs all over the show, but it’s also a great time to show your partner that you still <3 them...

» Mattress Shopping Lingo: A Guide to Bed-Buying Terminology Shopping around for big-ticket lifestyle items such as a beds or mattresses can quickly become a lot more complicated than you thought it would be. Mattress technology is developing rapidly to keep up with a discerning clientele base, and the terminology can be a little confusing if you don&rsq...

» Sleeper Couches: The Most Versatile Interior Item for 2018 Multi-functional furniture items like sleeper couches are one of the major interior trends for 2018. There is a global shift towards ergonomic design and layouts that facilitate space saving in smaller apartments and homes in urban areas, where square footage comes at a premium. After all, what'...

» Back To School: Painless Bedtime Tips for Families Hello 2018! Are you and your family ready to tackle the year ahead? With the start of the new school term just around the corner, many parents are dreading the notion of getting their kids back in a sleeping routine after the long summer holiday. Fortunately, it doesn’t have to be a painful ex...

» Upcycle Christmas stuff to decorate like a champ in 2018 Are you keen to liven up your home in the new year, but not feeling all that flush? Step right up, we have a great selection of DIY ideas that will help you to upcycle Christmas stuff to decorate like a champ in 2018. Here goes! Get Creative With Tinsel For the love of Pete, don’t chuck the ti...

» 5 Must-have Student Digs Essentials At the end of your high school career and getting ready to make your move to a tertiary education establishment? Or perhaps you’re already at university and you want to step up your room setup game this year? Great stuff - you’ve come to the right place. We’ve made a list of those ...

» An Easy Solve for Stubborn Aches Do you wake up with a pain in the neck? We don’t mean the fact that you’ve got to schlep to work. No, a real (physical) crick in your neck, back or shoulders? Well then, good news: we can fix that. And double good news: most of these solutions involve a second pillow, so your artistic sc...

» Awesome Bedroom Interior Gifts for Christmas 2017 - Part 2 The holidays are here and it’s time to decide which gifts will be doing the rounds among your friends and loved ones this year. To inspire your gift shopping for Christmas 2017, we thought we rustle up a few of our favourite bedroom interior gifts that make for a nice change of pace from bath ...

» Magical Bedtime Stories for The Holidays It’s the most wonderful time of the year (tralalalala!). All around the globe, families are gearing up for the festive season and getting ready to delight their children with all sorts of wonderful holiday surprises. To get you in the spirit, we’ve made a list of all our favourite bedtim...

» Awesome Bedroom Interior Gifts for Christmas 2017 - Part 1 Christmas is a time for giving, but it’s also a time for getting. We all love presents, but we especially love things that are useful too. Most of us, if we are really honest, have more stuff than we know what to do with so the gifts that bring us pleasure and are also useful are usually the o...

» 3 Steps to Lighting a Dark Bedroom Now, before you skip over this bit, rest assured: this is not going to be some touchy-feely feng shui-ninja mumbo-jumbo. This is about science (yes, admittedly the science of bedroom decoration) and hard facts. It is about how light behaves. Scientifically. Leaving aside for the moment concepts like...

» Cortisol: Why youâ€™re not losing weight Jessica Spendlove, noted performance dietician to several high profile Australian sports teams, recently revealed why your diet isn’t working. Are you eating right, training right and still not seeing the expected results? Have you, in fact, become a little too stingy with the calories and too...

» You Might Have Night Terrors and Not Know It... Let’s clarify. We’re not talking about nightmares. Nightmares are a relatively common occurrence and half the population is likely to have, on average, one per month (according to the American Sleep Association). Although each person’s nightmare presents in a unique fashion, they m...

» Product Focus: Legend 800 Pocket Spring Mattress There are only so many clever sleep metaphors one can crowbar into a piece on mattresses. For the most part, they are as over-used and tired as we ourselves still feel in the early morning when work looms and caffeine is a fond wish. So it is (with only the lightest dusting of metaphor) that we guar...

» Recurring Nightmares Possibly Linked to Oversleeping If you have a tendency to wake up in a cold sweat after vivid dreams of falling off a cliff, pitching up to work starkers or arriving at school to write a test you haven't opened a book for, it might be time to give the snooze button a miss. A scientific inquiry has found that getting more than...

» Get Grateful & Enjoy a Great Nightâ€™s Sleep The study of sleep is an ongoing initiative practiced the world over by somnologists, psychologists and doctors of all kinds. This is because sleep plays such a vital role to support our health. Without proper sleep, our immune systems become compromised, mental clarity becomes clouded and our emoti...

» One Hour of Sleep is Stealing Your Teenâ€™s A-grade If you have a teenager in the house, you probably know the symptoms. You wonder how that sweet, laughing child could have turned into this thing... It sleeps all day and refuses to leave its cave. Careful attempts to prod it awake are met with half-articulate growls and, sometimes, thrown objects. W...

» The Pros and Cons of Sharing Your Bed with Your Pets When you think of sharing your bed with a dog do you see your warm and cuddly fur-baby or do you see dirty paw prints and stinky dog breath? For the majority of people who don’t own dogs, the idea of having a dog sleeping in your bed is not one that you would relish. Even among dog owners, the...

» Rest Easy on a Restonic Orthozone Premier Pocket Mattress Do you wake up feeling like you've run the gauntlet? Does your body feel like it's been put through its paces even after a night's sleep? Do you toss and turn trying to get comfortable? Are you tired of being tired in the mornings? If you answer yes to any of these questions, it might...

» Up At the Crack of Dawn? Your Prehistoric Watch Just Began... Why are teenagers such night owls and so cranky in the morning? Why do older people wake up at sparrow’s fart, even once they’ve retired? It turns out the answers to these questions may lie in the dark and stormy times that preceded modern-day life and shaped the deeply entrenched sleep/...

» There is a New Way to Fall Asleep & itâ€™s a Little Strange... The internet can be rather odd place, as the latest trend in personal sleep aids clearly shows. Cue ASMR videos - an emerging YouTube phenomenon that is said to induce relaxing chills and tingling sensations in viewers by means of certain auditory and visual cues. ASMR stands for Autonomous Sensory ...

» Could Sleep Influence If You Are a Good or a Bad Person? We live in a fast-paced world where time poverty is seen as something of a status symbol. Sacrificing sleep in favour of a longer workday is becoming the norm. This also often means increased hours of staring at computer and mobile screens that emit blue light, further hampering our ability to enjoy...

» Sleep & Your Hormones: What You Need to Know For something that is not supposed to require a lot of conscious effort, getting a good night's sleep can be pretty complicated. According to studies that have been conducted by sleep specialists around the globe, the quality of your shuteye can be influenced by everything from how many steps y...

» A Lack of Sleep Can Add Inches to Your Waste We all know that lack of sleep is not conducive to being a highly functional and effective human. In fact, being sleep deprived often results in grouchiness, lack of cognitive functioning and a general state of lethargy, not to mention the big black bags and puffy eyes. But, not getting enough sleep...

» The Importance of a Good Mattress for Growing Kids As adults, we know that the difference between sleeping on a good quality, supportive and comfortable mattress and one that is lumpy, unsupportive and uncomfortable is the difference between a good day and a bad day. Our quality of sleep determines how we function in the world. But, for children who...

» Which Fairytale Character Describes Your Sleeping Persona? Finding the best mattress in the world can be quite the tall order, especially if you don’t know where to begin. Here’s a pro tip – it all starts with knowing yourself. Not in ‘Eat, Pray, Love’ sense of the word (although that’s always worth a shot if you have the...

» Ten Ways to Get Cosy this Winter Despite the fact that summer clothes have hit the shelves at all the big shops, we are still well and truly in the grips of winter. Dark mornings, shorter days and that icy cold bite in the air are all reasons to create a warm, cosy and comfy bedroom where you can snuggle up and seek refuge from the...

» The Art of Sleep with Comfort Solutionsâ€™ Michelangelo The Comfort Solutions brand of beds has been developed around the idea that, like our fingerprints, our comfort requirements when it comes to beds are all unique. This range of beds was created to provide comfort solutions, as the name suggests. Each Comfort Solutions range has been built to a speci...

» The Importance of Darkness to Our Health If you were ever asked what you need to survive, would you ever list dark as one of those things? The truth is most of us never would, but some of the latest scientific research has shown us that darkness is as essential to life as light when it comes to both physical and mental well-being. The prob...

» How to Choose the Right Pillow for You One of the greatest feelings is waking up in the morning and feeling like you have slept like an Egyptian Pharaoh – rather than a baby who wakes up every hour crying. But the flip side of that is waking up feeling sore, stiff and totally exhausted. For many people, this is a reality. There is ...

» Improve your Sleep by Connecting with Nature There is a very strong correlation between our exposure to nature and our health, both mental and physical, and our general sense of well-being. Studies have been done across a multitude of disciplines involving huge samples of people, young and old, male and female, that have all produced similar r...

» Your Sleeping Position and How it Affects your Health Sleep is one of the vital functions needed for our bodies to operate at their best. Without it, not only would we wandering around like zombies, bodies would suffer too. There is so much happening behind the scenes when we sleep that we don’t really think about very often. The most obvious is ...

» Hormones, Stress and Sleep Have you ever noticed that when you are stressed out, anxious and carrying the woes of the world on your shoulders, that one of the first things to suffer is your quality of sleep? Now, you might think that you are not sleeping properly because your mind is busy being stressed out, and while this is...

» Why the Snooze Button is Bad for Your Health As winter sets in, it is getting more and more difficult to get out of bed in the mornings. Let’s be honest, with it staying dark for longer and the sudden drop of temperature it’s only natural that bed is so inviting. The idea of getting up in the cold isn’t exactly enticing, espe...

» Can Your Mattress Cause Your Back Pain? Back pain can be one of the most debilitating ailments to suffer from. Whether it is intermittent or ongoing, not only is it painful, but it can have huge impacts on daily life. Constant back pain can prevent you from carrying out even the most mundane tasks like carrying the groceries from the car,...

» What is Sleep Architecture? As humans, we spend about a third of our lives asleep. That sounds like a lot! But without sleep, we wouldn’t be able to function properly. It recharges our batteries, quite literally. While we sleep our cells repair and regenerate, our brain can sieve through what happened during the day and ...

» How to Prepare Your Bedroom for Winter Winter is well and truly on its way! The days are getting shorter, it’s darker in the early mornings and the temperature is dropping. It’s getting harder and harder to get out of bed when the alarm goes off, and in the evenings the snug call of bed beckons. This is our ingrained pattern ...

» Product Focus: Comfort Solutions Bellini Bed Set Whether you’re talking about the Italian painter; the Italian opera composer; the Italian champagne cocktail or the mattress double base set: Bellini denotes robust and decadent comfort. This bed set comes to you from Comfort Solutions, the pre-eminent international supplier to the exacting an...

» Mattress Myths Busted It has been said that buying a mattress is a lot like purchasing a new car, as comparing prices, features and brands can be time consuming thanks to the multitude of variables that are part and parcel of both purchasing experiences. Thankfully however, thanks to Bed King buying a new bed or mattress...

» How Often Do I Really Need To Wash My Bedding? How often is considered often enough to strip that bed and do some laundry? Cold winter mornings are best spent in bed. From freshly baked bagels and croissants to full English breakfasts, we have all been spoiled with breakfast in bed at some point in our lives, but it is not merely food stains tha...

» How to Sleep Better in Hotelsâ€¦ Sleeping in an unfamiliar environment, like a hotel, is one of the biggest things that negatively affects people while travelling. Lack of sleep = Lack of will to function! Good news is – we will be discussing the 12 best ways to make this experience as comfortable as possible for you! 12 TIPS...

» 10 Hit-The-Sack Songs As a species, one of humankind’s claims to fame (and sentience) is our ability to create art. Specifically, music. After all, even cats sleep, dogs dream and birds sing. But a bird doesn’t sing about a dog who dreams about chasing a cat. A human would, though. (The very idea sounds ripe ...

» 6 Beloved Bedtime Story Books Sleepy parents everywhere; have pondered whether might be there; a book that once read will keep; their tykes abed and fast asleep… Don’t worry, we won’t be rhyming throughout this whole blog. Mostly because we’re parents ourselves and we haven’t found this… yaw...

» Can You Solve Problems While Dreaming? “The result of the struggle between the thought and the ability to express it, between dream and reality, is seldom more than a compromise or an approximation.” – M.C. Escher. Lucid dreaming is an enthralling, all-consuming affair. An alternate reality where one can be whomever you...

» Out of this world places to sleep When you think about amazing places, unusual or interesting places that you might sleep would you ever have imagined a glass panelled igloo or an airplane suspended in a tree top? These are not sets on extravagant movies or ideas from some far fetched fiction. No, not at all. Today, thanks to the vi...

» Product Focus: Serta iIndulge Perfect Night Mattress Are you tired of waking up feeling exhausted? Do you long to sleep like a metaphorical baby? For many of us bad sleep is not just a nightmare, it’s a reality. And it has a massive impact on our daily functioning. Not only does poor sleep, or lack of sleep, pose a health risk it can also cause ...

» 10 Eco-Friendly Ways to Keep Cool on Hot Summer Nights There are several essential elements to getting a good night’s sleep and one of these is making sure that where you sleep is the right temperature. Sleep scientists have carried out a multitude of studies which all conclude that the room should be cooler than your body’s core tempe...

» Our Tongue-in-the-Cheek Take on V-Day for Singles Every year droves of desperate, single people set out at the dawn of February to find dates, like it’s the stone age. We used to call this behaviour the evolutionary imperative and survival of the species. These days we call it FOMO (Fear of Missing Out). Well, we’re here to tell you tha...

» Ten creative budget tips for student digs This month most students start their studies, and for many this means moving away from home. Whether you are a first timer or are returning for another year of academic enlightenment the idea of leaving the creature comforts of home can be daunting to say the least. But being a student, living on a ...

» How Midnight Snacking Affects Your Sleep It’s after midnight. You’ve melted out of the bedroom like Christian Bale in Batman; you’ve dodged all the kids’ toys like Sean Connery in The Rock and now you’ve repelled into the kitchen like Tom Cruise in Mission Impossible. You’ve made it. The cold light of th...

» Five Phenomenal Sleep Apps There are few things quite so horrible as pulling an all-nighter. (Unless it is followed by a really tedious Monday morning meeting.) It brings home to us what a treasure sleep truly is. Our sleep might be the most valuable thing any of us own. It is the only currency accepted at the ‘go away ...

» Things to Banish from the Bedroom this Year How many times have you longed for your “own bed” when you were away from home, over-tired or on your last nerve? Do you know why that is? It’s because your bedroom represents your innermost sanctum, the place where you can be your simplest self and lock the world outside. So why w...

» Realizzze your Resolutions through Rest Have you made your New Year’s resolutions yet? Or have you given it up as a wool gathering exercise? Well, it doesn’t have to be. A study by Richard Wiseman seems to suggest that that there is a strong correlation between getting adequate rest and realizing your goals. In fact, sixty per...

» Teenagers, School and Sleep Soon schools will be opening again and the struggle to get your teenagers to bed early enough is on. Often teenagers make this effort so difficult for parents that parents just capitulate and let them go to bed whenever they want, even if it means they wake up with difficulty in time to get to schoo...

» Product Focus: Comfort Solutions Rembrandt Range When you think Rembrandt you think Classical Master. And that is exactly what you get in this decadent, masterful range. Comfort Solutions is one of the leading suppliers to the (highly demanding) Hospitality Industry and they produce five star comfort as a matter of course. Incorporating proprietar...

» Seven scents that help you sleep Do life’s strains and stresses keep you up worrying at night? Are you struggling to fall asleep? With just a few drops of one of these fragrances you could be one step closer to deep, dreamy sleep. Used for centuries, essential oils extracted from plants are said to have a wide range of healin...

» Why do we yawn? The short answer is, we don’t know. Some very smart people have spent a great deal of time trying to answer this exact question. And after all of their effort, it turns out, very few of them can actually agree on a cause. So while the question has not yet been answered definitively, we’l...

» No time for sleep - got to diet and exercise In our modern day culture, success means having it all: The high-end career, the fancy car and the hot bod. For most of us, this means waking up early to grab that morning jog and to snarf a healthy breakfast. It means eating greens at your desk, working during lunch and networking everywhere else. ...

» The Battle of Bedtime: Meat Eaters vs Vegetarians There is huge debate at the moment around diet. The rising popularity of the Banting lifestyle has brought about big discussion around the topic of eating meat: should you? Shouldn’t you? With it has also come a much greater awareness of vegetarianism as it too garner’s popularity as a w...

» Choose the Rright Pillow for Neck Pain Let’s face it. Yes, your job is a pain in the neck. Literally. Yes, the drones you work with give you a dull throb between the eyes. And yes, screaming at your computer all day is bound to build some tension in your neck and shoulders. But why, after five (five and a half - if you’re luc...

» Decorating your Guest Room for Christmas Can you believe it’s that time of year again! Tinsel and baubles adorn the trees in all the big shops and malls, carollers croon over the sound system and everyone is buzzing trying to get ready for the holidays. Yes, Christmas is nearly upon us. Time to dust off the old Christmas tree, dig ou...

» Five Funky Ideas to Revamp your Bedroom There are so many brilliant ideas out there when it comes to home decor and interior design tips that there is no need to live in an old, drab bedroom for a second longer. The internet means that we now have a wealth of knowledge and resources at our fingertips, and there amazing DIY tutorials on ev...

» Product Focus: Serta iSupport Sandringham Bed Set As one of the world’s leading mattress manufacturers, Serta most definitely sets the bar when it comes to luxury, comfort and superb quality sleep. Having been in the mattress business for over 80 years they have set themselves apart by constantly striving to create better sleep solutions thro...

» Serta: Sleep solutions that have stood the test of time Since 1931 Serta has been breaking new ground when it comes to comfortable sleep solutions. Established in the US between the wars, Serta burst into the mattress market with the pioneering Perfect Sleeper mattress. The company started off setting the bar high, and has never looked back. Today, they ...

» What you need to know about your body while youâ€™re sleeping For most of us, the idea of going to sleep means lights out, quite literally. Your head hits the pillow and your are out for the count. The next thing you know it’s the morning after and you are jumping out of bed ready to face another day in the trenches. How often do you stop to think about ...

» The Augusta Mattress from Silentnight The Augusta mattress from Silentnight is the one of the top products from this prestigious international brand. Hand made using time tested techniques combined with the most cutting edge technology, Silentnight really does know the secret to a great night’s sleep. The Augusta mattress comprise...

» Brand Spotlight: Silentnight Limited Established in North Yorkshire in 1949 by Tom and Joan Clarke, Clarke’s Mattresses Limited was borne. For the next five years the Clarke’s would build a brand that was to become synonymous with high quality, affordable sleeping solutions. The beds and mattresses produced by Clarke’...

» Five foods thatâ€™ll have you dozing off during dinner If you’ve ever wondered why so many people say “you are what you eat” all you have to do is look at the immediate effect on our bodies of some of the foods we eat. It has been proven time and again that food can definitely be used to treat many maladies. Natural cures are more popu...

» Movie Bedrooms (Part 2) Hollywood is the stuff of dreams not just for those of us who love to watch the movies, but also for the characters themselves. A few months ago we set about trying to find the five best bedroom sets in film. This task was almost impossible. With so many great movies made since the dawn of the...

» The Six Stages of Sharing a Bed (part two) Continuing our theme on the difficulties of sharing a bed with a significant (b)other, we start this week by looking at the fourth stage of this risky enterprise. (For a discussion on the previous three stages, see the previous blog post.) Stage Four. Weird angles. Have you ever looked at your slumb...

» Pillow Talk There are few things in the world that equal the nightmare of waking up stiff, sore and feeling unrested. It really is a sure-fire way to getting out of bed on the wrong side, to starting the the day on the wrong foot, not to mention what a pain in the neck it is, quite literally! Sleep is one of th...

» The Pitfalls of Sleeping on a Bad Mattress Do you have trouble falling asleep or staying asleep? Or do you get your recommended hours of sleep each night and STILL wake up feeling tired, sore and unrested? Poor quality sleep can have a very adverse effect on our daily lives, and one of the most common factors in how we sleep is where we slee...

» The Six Stages of Sharing a Bed (part one) Don’t get the wrong idea. Once you get over the initial excitement and get past the nudge-nudge wink-wink engendered by the phrase - sharing a bed - with someone is hard. It’s hard because the simple act of sharing a bed with someone means there are twice as many people capable of keepin...

» Backache, be gone! Back pain is a common issue for many people. Whether it’s a chronic, ongoing condition or something that comes and goes, at some point in our lives we are all bound to suffer from the aches and pains associated with having a bad back. In most cases, this backache is mechanical, caused by sleep...

» Discover the bed of your future dreams today Remember the days when keyless cars and home automation were the stuff of movies? Fridges that could tell you when you need to buy more milk; lights that would turn on with the clap of your hands; remote control adjustable beds. These futuristic, sci-fi gadgets were flights of fancy that we never th...

» Sweet Dreams for a Better Life The older we get the more we appreciate the simple pleasures in life. In today’s busy world, our chaotic lives keep us permanently in a state of high alert. We are bombarded by life’s daily stresses and struggles, so much so that sometimes we forget to take the right care of ourselves. O...

» Exploring Expressions of Sleep There are so many expressions in our everyday vernacular that relate to sleep. Some of them are actually about sleep, but some, like the expression “let sleeping dogs lie” aren’t. We have done a little bit of digging around in the annals of history and have unearthed the etymology ...

» Blanket or Duvet? There are two very distinct camps when it comes to bedding choices. Blankets or duvets. Very rarely do you find a blanket lover who also loves a duvet, or vice versa. While they both perform the same function, and that is provide warmth in bed, they are very different. Let’s look at the blanke...

» Night Night, Sleep Tight Sleep is one of the greatest joys in life, and the older we get the more we appreciate its value. Not only is it a vital biological function needed by our bodies to survive, like food, water and oxygen, it improves our mental well being, aids in growth, development and cellular regeneration. Without...

» The History of the Bed The history of the bed dates back as far as the history of man. While beds have come along way, as have we, for as long as man has walked on two legs he has slept in a bed of sorts. The beds our earliest ancestors slept in would hardly be classified as beds today, but they were a place to rest their...

» Movie Bedrooms From the days of black and white to today’s high tech technicolour, from fantasy to futuristic, from France to India, comedy, drama and musicals, bedrooms have been a big feature in the movies. The scenes of teenage angst, passionate love, death, trickery and misadventure, so much more has hap...

» Five of the Worldâ€™s Most Luxurious Hotel Suites on Show Gold leaf, Italian marble, jacuzzis, butlers, four poster beds, down pillows and silk sheets. These are just some of the elements you’d expect to find in the world’s finest hotel suites. For most of us such opulence and finery is a thing of dreams, reserved for the movies. The guests you...

» Modern Bedroom Design Tips The idea of Modernism in interior design is one that has been around for almost a hundred years, which might seem to be contradictory as we are talking about things being modern. But this movement, which originated at the Bauhaus School of Design in Germany, is one that has been so popular and relev...

» A Dream Horse For Your Child. Yea or Neigh? Get out of town. So. They’re too big for the bassinet and too big for the toddler bed. Lately, your bed is too small for the both of you and one of you will have to get out of town before sundown. Buying your kids their first mattress should be easy and not spur you to bank robbery. Though the...

» Simmons, the Sleep Technologists Following last month’s blog post, we have decided to do a feature on the Simmons range of beds that we currently stock at Bed King Since the early 20th century, Simmons have been leading the way when it comes to sleep science and bed technology. Pioneers in mechanised bed production, the compa...

» Simmons: Leading the way for over a century One of the oldest bed manufacturers globally, Simmons is the master bed maker. With over 137 years in the bed business, Simmons has become one of the leading brands when it comes to comfort. As a pioneer in sleep technology, the Simmons Bedding Company has been leading the pack since 1870 ensuring q...

» Product Discussion: Mattress and Pillow Protectors Mattress and pillow protectors are as vital to a good night’s sleep as bedding. These two items are often overlooked when buying bedding, and for the most part this is a great mistake. The first thing to clarify is exactly what they are, and why they are needed. Both mattress and pillow ...

» The Headâ€™s Up on our Headboards Dating all the way back to ancient Egypt, the headboard was originally designed to regulate temperatures by creating airflow between the bed and the wall in the summer and preventing against cold and draughts in the winter. Seen as a status symbol, only wealthier families had the luxury of headboard...

» Double Trouble For anyone who has ever shared a bedroom with a sibling you’ll remember how close you got to starting the next world war over such silly things. “It’s on my side of the room so it’s mine!” You’ll remember screams of “MOM, he’s on my side! Tell him to g...

» What Does Your Bedside Table Say About You? Bedside table, nightstand, pedestal, bedstand. These are just some of the names that refer that oh-so essential little piece of furniture next to your bed. Books, magazines, kindle, light, lotions and potions, crystals and candles. There is no end to what treasures can be found on and in the bedside...

» Decorating your bedroom on a budget In todaý’s economy it pays to be frugal. But that being said there are plenty of little hacks that can be adopted to give a facelift to a tired bedroom. It’s amazing how a little can in fact go a very long way when it comes to spending money on revamping certain areas in your hous...

» Mewer Product Spotlight The Mewer brand of beds has become synonymous with affordability, comfort and durability since it started producing beds in 1999. Mewer beds provide a stable, restful night’s sleep across their range of beds at a price that won’t give you nightmares. With three varieties available, the D...

» 5 Ways to Stop Snoring and Sleep Better at Night Did you know that more than 45% of adults snore? Now, everyone snores every now and again, but regular snorers can suffer a great deal in day to day life. Snoring usually means poor quality of sleep, and we’re not just talking about for those who share a bedroom with snorers either! Regular sn...

» Tired... of not being able to sleep? Researchers say that interrupted sleep is worse than short sleep! What matters though is just how you sleep? Are you able to get a full 6 to 8 hours a night without stirring? Perhaps you're in bed for many hours, but just can't stay asleep for long enough. It's shocking to think that ...

» Five Steps to Feng Shui Your Bedroom Feng Shui is an ancient Chinese philosophy that works on the principles of harnessing natural elements in conjunction with spatial arrangements to create the right energy flow in your living and working environment to create peace, harmony, prosperity, health and wealth. This energy (sometimes refer...

» Power Naps - How Power Napping Really Works Need to recharge and recover? Tired of feeling tired? Do you turn to caffeine for an energy boost when you're feeling tired and worn out? Don't – naps and your mattress (or nearest flat bed) are the answer! You can truly boost your energy levels and cognitive skills by having a power...

» Five Things to Consider When Buying a New Mattress There is nothing worse than a bad night’s sleep. It sets the tone for the entire day, and leaves you feeling flat and out of sorts. Imagine an endless stream of nights without sleep. Sounds like hell. This can be a reality if you are sleeping on the wrong mattress. We spend approximately one t...

» What's the Difference Between a Memory Foam and Spring Mattress? Getting a good night’s sleep is essential to facing the new day feeling fresh, well-rested and energised. A great deal of your comfort depends on the type of mattress you choose for yourself, and we all have different mattress needs and requirements based on our body types and sleeping p...

» Colour Therapy for the Bedroom The colours in your home have a direct effect on your mood, personality and the quality of your life. This might sound quite extreme, but it is in fact true. Through the study of colour psychology, experts have learnt that different colours create different reactions in people, and while everyone is...

» How to Choose the Right Mattress Companion (Your Pillow)! Sleep enthusiasts should never underestimate the importance of their pillow in the sleep process. In fact, your pillow can directly affect just how much sleep you actually get. With the wrong pillow, your chances of waking up in the morning with neck, shoulder or back pain, or all three, are greater...

» Five Myths Surrounding Sleep There are numerous misconceptions surrounding beds, mattresses and the amount of sleep your body requires, but with so many misconceptions floating around we often don’t know when to sleep, how long to sleep for, or why sleep is so important. If this is the case, don’t fear! As long as y...

» Product Spotlight - Restonic Connoisseur Pocket Memory Bed Set “Early to bed, early to rise, makes a man healthy wealthy and wise.” But what if that poor man, or woman, is sleeping badly. There is nothing worse than a bad night’s sleep, except many bad nights’ sleep. All too often we wake up feeling like we haven’t really slept pro...

» Why Do I Dream More? Why Am I Dreaming More? A question that sleep specialists are often asked, but despite all of the sleep research done by doctors dreaming and why we do it still seems to be a mystery. That said, dreams are a healthy part of a good night’s sleep and unless they can be classified as night terror...

» 7 Tell-tale Signs that it's time for a new Mattress There comes a morning in every sleeper’s life when it’s time to face the facts – purchasing a new mattress has become a necessity. The only problem is knowing when that time has come. There are several signs indicating that a new mattress is in order, and failing to notice the sign...

» Peaceful Sleep in Small Spaces If the kitchen is the heart of a home, then the bedroom is surely the brain. It is where we go to recharge, to find peace and to reenergise after a long day. A bedroom should be a haven of tranquillity, a place where the day’s stresses and troubles just dissipate and disappear. But, for some o...

» Top Decor Tips for Toddlerâ€™s Bedrooms The transition from baby to toddler is a big step in your child’s development, and this is particularly noticeable in their sleeping habits. The biggest step is probably the move from cot to bed, and from nursery to bedroom. It is essential to provide a space for your toddler that is inspiring...

» Product Spotlight: Comfort Solutions Support Plus Mattress A peaceful and refreshing night’s sleep feels like heaven to a tired body and mind, and a comfortable mattress is the golden gate that paves the way towards this heavenly sleep. However, by choosing the wrong mattress you might find that the gates of sleep will forever remain shut, or at least...

» I've Got a New Mattress - Why Canâ€™t I Sleep? So you have just bought a brand new mattress, you are super excited about getting it home and fitting it with that premium duvet cover and then having the best night’s sleep ever - except it's 2 o’clock and you still can’t sleep. We take a closer look at a few things that migh...

» Product Spotlight: Salvador Pillow Top Bed - The Art of Sleep If you familiar with Salvador Dali’s art then you’ll know his famous ‘melting clocks’ that look as though they are made from soft toffee. The Salvador Pillow Top Bed makes you feel the same way, like you’ve been poured into bed - except not as sticky. Featuring m...

» What Making Your Bed Says About You There are two kinds of people in the world, those who make their beds in the morning and those that don’t. But does making your bed in the morning say anything about you? According to some William McRaven, an admiral in the US Navy, if the first thing that you do in the morning is to make your...

» Why Our Bodies Love Sleep So Much Considering that we spend up to a third of our lives sleeping, it is no surprise that our bodies are designed to love sleep so much. After all, not only is it refreshing, revitalizing and reinvigorating, with the right bed it can be the best part of your day (or night). But what exactly happens to y...

» Product Spotlight: Embrace Your Mewer Destiny If somebody said that your destiny involved sleeping, chances are you would be pretty happy with that - especially if it was on the Mewer Destiny bed. This bed offers amazing value for money and while it is perfect for your bedroom, it also is outstanding for kid’s and guest’s rooms. Ava...

» Spring into Spring with a Spring Mattress Spring is traditionally seen as the time of new beginnings. The sun is starting the day earlier, the birds and their chicks are starting to chirp and the flowers are starting to bud. All around you there are the signs of new beginnings. But if spring is the time of new beginnings, then maybe i...

» Tired of Counting Sheep to Fall Asleep? Try this Cool Trick When it comes to falling asleep, one of the most common methods people who struggle to fall asleep is to try count sheep. Sounds good right? But what does it actually work and are there better ways to fall asleep? The most common thought behind the effectiveness of counting sleep is that by fo...

» 7 Point Guide to Sleeping Cool this Summer In most parts of South Africa summer is well on its way, which means that higher temperatures can influence the quality of your sleep. But all is not lost, because we here at Bed King have provided you with some of the best tips to banish sweaty sleepless nights in our “7 Point Guide to Sleepi...

» Should You Have Flowers in the Bedroom? With spring here in force and the flowers creating vast swathes of colour across the garden and countryside, it is really tempting to have bunches of flowers throughout the house. But should you have a bunch in the bedroom? The trouble with flowers in the bedroom seems to have started with an old wi...

» Work before 9am is 'Torture' says Sleep Expert (Video) Dr Paul Kelley, who is a sleep specialist at Oxford University, has publically stated that “making people aged under 55 start work before 9am is akin to torture”. He added that “forcing staff to work nine-to-five leaves their bodies exhausted and stressed as a result of sleep depri...

» Product Spotlight: Serta Wellness Plush Perfect Sleeper with Latex Mention the word Serta to anybody and the first thing that they will immediately think about are those old adverts with the Serta Sheep. These friendly sheep had joined the ranks of the unemployed due to the simple fact that due to the comfort and softness of the Serta mattress, no one needed to cou...

» Why Sleeping in Spring is so Difficult for Hay Fever Sufferers When spring comes around one of the most common questions that we are asked is why people suffering from hayfever find it so difficult to sleep. It seems as though not only is spring obviously the worst time of the year for hay fever sufferers, but many people seem to find that their systems get wor...

» Breakfast in Bed in an IKEA Store? | Bed King Blog Would You Do Breakfast in Bed in a Retail Store? Breakfast in bed is loved by many people around the world, but in the UK furniture retailer IKEA has decided to introduce it into their pop-up “café” in London. In fact, they are bringing naptime to the bed and mattress retail floor...

» Product Spotlight: Kansas Double Sleeper Every parent comes to that time in their lives when the house is filled with the sound of little feet… and they are not your kid’s. Whether it is parties, playdates or sleepovers it seems that there is never ending need for more space for the kids. This is where the Kansas Double Sleepe...

» Can Changing Your Mattress Reduce Back Pain? It might just be that I am getting older that the discussions with friends around the dinner table or around the braai are starting to become less about the exciting things that we are up to but rather more about aches and pains that we have discovered, and one of the most common gripes is that of b...

» Great in Bed: Best SA Female Writers to Read Before Going to Sleep There is nothing better than reading a good book before going to sleep. Not only is reading a great way to relax the mind and help promote a great night’s sleep, but with such a plethora of amazing South African writers to choose from, there is always something exciting to read. So this woman&...

» Product Spotlight: Serta Perfect Touch Range We often talk about how important it is to have a good night’s sleep and what impact a good mattress has on your sleeping habits. To help make choosing a mattress even easier we are going to be taking a closer look at some of best beds and show you exactly why these beds are so great! This wee...

» Awesome and Elegant: The Enignum VI Canopy Bed When it comes to cool beds we’ve been looking at some seriously technologically advanced beds lately. But what about those beds that are simply breathtaking thanks to their unbelievable design. This month we change all that with one of the most beautiful beds that we’ve come across. Meet...

» How to Make Early Mornings Bearable No matter where you are or who who are, one thing is certain: Winter mornings are a special kind of torment. You know the mornings I mean - the ones where if feels as though there is ice on your duvet, the frost giants are attacking or simply that you have been forced to join the Night’s Watch...

» Having Trouble Telling Friends from Frenemies? Get More Sleep! Having difficulty reading people’s expressions? Having difficulty trusting people around the office? It turns out that this could be because you are suffering from a lack of sleep. New research from University of California Berkeley published in the Journal of Neuroscience suggests that ...

» The Bed King's Favourite Winter Warming Ideas With winter well and truly here in some parts of the country, we once again turn our attention to trying to keep warm, and what better way to do that this winter than to turn the heat up in the bedroom… With a little bedroom redecorating and ideas of course! 1. A Good Rug Not surprisingly, qu...

» What are Your Cats Dreaming About? We’ve all seen the cats twitching and moving in their sleep, but what are they actually dreaming about? Hunting mice? Endless fields of catnip? A can opener designed for small kitty paws? Well it would be wonderful to ask them, but unfortunately we can’t, so how do we find out what the t...

» Seven Super Foods That Help You Sleep Better Struggling to fall asleep at night? Try changing your diet a little before you go to sleep and you could be falling asleep quicker and having deeper, better sleep than ever! Almonds: You wouldn’t think it but these delicious snacks are a secret sleep miracle. These nibbles are packed wi...

» Memory Foam: Why Memory Foam is so Good For a Great Night's Sleep Everybody has heard of memory foam and that it is a revolutionary new mattress material that was developed from technology from NASA, but what exactly how does this mattress improve your sleeping and what health benefits does it offer you? Memory foam mattresses are made from heat sensitive material...

» Let Sleeping Kids Lie: Why Sleep is Essential your Kids Believe it or not, but there is actually a reason why it is so difficult to get your kids out of the bed in the morning. With Youth Day coming up, here at The Bed King we thought we would take a closer look at your children’s sleep needs and just why it is so important that you let them sleep ...

» Sleep With the Stars in the Cosmos Bed Love sleeping under the stars? Looking for a bed that combines beauty, functionality and features? Look no further the Cosmos Bed, one of the most inspiring and beautiful beds that we have ever seen. Created by the amazing Russian Industrial Designer, Natalia Rumyantseva, this futuristic bed looks l...

» Bed King's Best Buy Guide: Wood or Metal Bases? When you build a house you need good foundations, and the same goes for beds. A great Bed King mattress is going to need a great base to rest on. But with so many varieties and models available, how do you choose between a wooden and a metal bed base? Wooden Bed Bases: With looks ranging from classi...

» The Wave Chaise-Longue: The Ultimate Teenager's Bed? Last month’s blog about the Somnus Neo was so popular that this month we are taking a look at another one of the world’s most awesome bedroom designs, except this time we are looking at what might be the most insane and awesome lounger ever designed for teenagers. Meet the Wave Chaise-Lo...

» Foam Mattresses vs Spring Mattresses: What's the Difference? Over the last few years a lot has been said about the emergence of foam mattresses and the repositioning of spring mattresses on the market. With a good mattress costing you several thousand, is there really a massive difference between these mattress types and is one really better than the other wh...

» How to use light, texture and placement to create the perfect bedroom The modern world is fast-paced and in a constant evolution. At the end of every day, when we finally put our stressful and busy minds to rest, many of us find it difficult to fall asleep. Not only that, but often our sleep patterns are disturbed throughout the night, leaving us feeling tired and dra...

» Winter Fashion for the Bedroom There is nothing better than altering your bedroom fashion according to the seasons, and winter is the season that you will experience the most fun doing this. The bedroom is easily the most cosy and intimate room in the house so why not trend it up a bit with a wide selection of pillows, duvets, th...

» Cotton, Linen, and Thread Counts: What's the Big Deal? Cotton and linen may both be natural fibres, but there are many differences between them that may help you choose which one you get for your bed. America’s most infamous crop, cotton is harvested from the bolls of cotton plants. These small balls are soft, fibrous clusters that are harvested a...

» Spoil Mum This Mother's Day with These Breakfast in Bed Ideas For most us we don’t need a reason to spoil mum (we do it anyway!), but Mother’s Day is the perfect time to really pull out all the stops and what better way to ensure that mum’s day starts out perfectly than by making her the most amazing breakfast in bed! Don’t forget that ...

» Demystifying Sleep Ailments: Sleep Apnea While we all might love sleep, there are those of us who sometimes struggle with an assortment of sleep problems and ailments. These problems can range from the mildly annoying to those around us to serious medical conditions, but one this is common: They are not always as well understood as they sh...

» Duvet, Quilt and Comforter: What's the Difference? With winter approaching many people are starting to pull out extra blankets to keep the chill at bay at night. Of course, blankets aren’t the only way to keep warm this winter… There are also duvets, quilts and comforters to choose from. But what is the difference between all these opti...

» Exploding Head Syndrome More Common Than Thought. Wait! What!? Exploding head syndrome? You mean that thing that happens when you try to understand the logic of a politician right? Or when you explain to your child for the billionth time they can’t have another ice-cream? Actually Exploding head is neither of those things and there is a good chance that i...

» Need A Pick Me Up? This Is Why A Nap Is Your Best Friend! Remember when you were a kid and nap times were compulsory? Good times! While we might still associate nap times with childhood, more and more evidence is emerging that nap time is more than just a great break from world, but that it is also several amazing benefits that will not only blow your mind...

» Sleeping Through History: A Brief History of Popular Beds As long as there have been people, there has been a need for a comfortable and cosy place to sleep. As South Africans we can be proud of the fact that one of the oldest beds in the world has been discovered here. Granted it is nothing special to our modern tastes – there are no springs or foam...

» Top 2015 Design Trends to Make Your Bedroom Pop! We’ve just relaunched our Bed King website and given it a brand new look, but websites aren’t the only things that sometimes need a fresh new look - bedrooms also can do with a fresh look every now and again. We might be in April already, but its never too late give your bedroom a 2015 s...

» Putting Allergies to Bed by Changing Your Pillow When it comes to allergies, most people immediately think of pollen and pets as the prime cause, but if you are constantly waking up each morning with itchy eyes and a leaky nose then the cause of your allergies might be far close to home: your pillow. Conventional belief is that if you suffer for a...

» The Somnus-Neu: Your New Dream Bed Forget everything you ever thought you knew about beds, the Somnus-Neu will be the bed against all which future beds will be measured. Designed to be the most high tech bed you can image, the Somnus-Neu blurs the line between day and night, relaxation and thrills, sleep and entertainment. While this...

» Wanted: Somebody to Sleep for Science! I have just found my dream job! NASA is looking for somebody to spend 70 days in bed! And they are willing to pay close to a quarter of a million rand! Can anybody say best job ever?! Okay, maybe there is a little more to it than just lying in bed for two odd months. NASA is looking to study the eff...

» Are We All Sleeping Wrong? Getting seven to eight hours of sleep a night is a good idea right? Right?! People speak about the need for getting enough sleep every night so often that it is almost a given, but what if there is a fundamental flaw in how we sleep? We’re not suggesting that you shouldn’t be striving to...

» Should You be Hot or Cold in Bed? There is nothing better than a warm bed on a cold winter’s night and a cool bed on a hot summer’s night, and of course everybody has their own favorite temperature between the sheets. But wouldn’t it be nice if there was a perfect temperature that would not only give you a great ni...

» Luna: The Mattress Cover that'll make your Bed Smarter Imagine a bed that was able to warm your bed for you, set the alarm clock, lock the doors and even make you a cup of coffee in the morning. Well, imagine no more! Introducing Luna, the world’s first smart mattress cover. Thanks to its sleep tracking technology, Luna is able to track your sleep...

» Lucid Dreaming Could Make You More Self-Reflective! Lucid dreaming is one of the holy grails of sleeping - the ability to consciously control your dreams while you are asleep, and now it seems that research is showing that not only is lucid dreaming a great way to take control of your sleeping life, but it could also help you to make your waking life...

» The Small Screen Could be Stealing Your Kid's Sleep! We used to be worried that our kids would spend the entire night watching tv in their bedrooms, which is why many of us either established strong tv watching curfews. But now an even more dangerous screen is threatening to steal your children’s sleep away from them. Most children today will ha...

» Need to Make a Big Decision? Sleep on it! It turns out that the old adage that the best way to deal with a difficult decision is to sleep on it might actually be closer to the truth than expected! New research is finding evidence that rather than just shutting off when we go to sleep, the brain continues to process information about the day...

» Get Your Bedroom Summer Ready Summer is finally upon us which means it’s time for fresh ideas! And there is nothing as refreshing as a change, so alter your decor as you get ready for the Christmas season. As they say, a change is as good as a holiday! Here are some tips that are bound to bring a breath of fresh air to you...

» Make Christmas Dreams Come True with These Stocking Stuffers Looking for a great Christmas present for a loved one this season? Look no further than these great sleep related presents! Not only are they amazing presents, but they are also really inexpensive! Make somebody’s Christmas dreams come true with these great presents! The Luxurious Visco Elasti...

» Top 5 Apps To Help You Sleep In a world that is buzzing with social events, family obligations and work requirements, people are unfortunately starting to view sleep as a commodity rather than a necessity. Stealing a few hours away from sleep to do the things you really want to do can’t hurt, can it? Actually it can. When...

» Lark or Night Owl? You might be another bird! For years now we have heard of the night owl, who stays up until the early hours of the morning, and more recently of the lark, or the early bird, who gets the worm. Of course the myth that night owls are lazier than larks was dispelled a long time ago, with people like Erwin Schrödinger, a Nob...

» Sleep Rhythms of Cities The activity and sleep patterns of a city can tell incredible stories about a city’s culture and the people who inhabit it. They reveal the movement and rhythm of a city: when people go to bed, how much they sleep and how they change their patterns from week to weekend. Tech-device maker Jawbo...

» NASA crew to sleep for six months For years science fiction has been intrigued by space travel and specifically by colonising Mars. As humans travelling into space on journeys of discovery are becoming a reality, colonising the red planet is no longer just the stuff of dreams. The race to get humans to Mars has started, and NASA is ...

» Know Your Sleep Inhibitors When it comes to your sleeping routine, there are a few annoying things that can really keep you up at night. Sleep inhibitors are quite common, but in most cases it is simply a matter of changing your habits. Knowing what inhibits your sleep can be the first step towards regaining all those lost ho...

» Why Do We Snore? We all know someone who snores, that person may even be you; and it’s such a common problem that even children can struggling with snoring. Have you ever wondered what’s behind the snorting and strange noises we make at night? As it could be a sign of a serious medical issue, it’s ...

» Sleep through the Ages Sleep is such an essential part of a healthy life that countless studies have been done on the adverse effects of too little sleep, interrupted sleep or even low quality sleep caused by disorders such as sleep apnea or anxiety and depression. A lot of babies’ brain development takes place whil...

» Best Ideas for Stylish Boy's Rooms Gone are the days where you need to deck out a boy’s room with boats or cars. Understated is the new overstated with muted blues and greys working very effectively with a few choice items, such as a scatter cushion or curtains with bold blue stripes. We’ve trawled the internet and motore...

» Top Ideas for Stylish Girl's Bedrooms When you think girl’s room, the first image that springs to mind is a room bedecked with princess paraphernalia, with every corner screaming pink. While the traditional girly room is still very much a hit with aspiring princesses the world over, you don’t need your little girl’s be...

» Queen Mary Modena's Revolutionary Bed While the Queen-sized beds we sell will make any girl feel like a queen, there are still many beds in existence where true blue-blooded queens used to rest their heads. No bed was as contentious as Mary Modena’s bed where she gave birth to her only son who lived past infancy in front of an aud...

» Real Queen Beds - Queen Charlotte's Flower Bed While the Queen-sized beds we sell will make any lady feel like a queen, there are still many beds in existence where real blue-blooded queens used to rest their weary heads. When you start digging deeper into the history of these beds you start revealing rich life stories that only something as per...

» Unique Children Bedroom Furniture and Designs Space is a rare commodity these days and is almost being reserved for the very rich in urban areas. This begs the question: do children really need large bedrooms separate from the main living areas or can space saving bunk beds and fold up beds be an easy solution for use in flats? Here are some cl...

» Choosing the Right Headboard Headboards are often one the most overlook accessories for your bedroom, but the can play a massive role in shaping and creating the perfect atmosphere. (If you want to know about how to choose the right headboard for your bedroom take a look at our quick guide to bedroom basics.) While headboards w...

» The Worst Sleep Related Accidents We've all had those days that we are so tired that we do something stupid like leaving the morning cup of coffee on top your car or trying to put two contacts into the same eye. But these silly things pale in comparison to the people who caused some of the biggest disasters in the world due to ...

» Evilest Alarm Clocks in the World Evilest Alarm Clocks in the World Let's face it, getting out of bed in the mornings can be traumatic experience especially in winter. Most times you are crawling out of a super warm and comfortable bed only to be attacked by the cold and kids toys littered throughout the passage. The alarm cloc...

» The Snooze Button of Tiredness If you are like me then you have a nemesis. A monster with glowing red eyes that watches you while you sleep, patiently waiting until the perfect moment to unleash a deafening roar that signals the end of comfort and warmth. What is worse is that hitting this monster does not mean that it is defeate...

» Best Songs about Sleep The Top Ten Classic Songs about Sleep It is no secret that we love sleep, but we also love anything that is sleep related. So here are some of our favorite old or classic songs about sleep. They range from genre and artists, but at their heart they are all about sleep in some way. What are your favo...

» Top Bedroom Designs with Sleigh Beds for 2014 Buying a sleigh bed is an effortless way to turn your bed into an elegant focal point and revamp your bedroom’s tired look. With sleigh beds increasing in popularity in South Africa, due to the range of options available, it has one thinking about what bedroom designs are a hit in 2014. Here a...

» A Lack of Sleep Can Put on the Pounds! It might sound ridiculous, but failing to get enough sleep can actually cause you to gain weight! Recent studies have shown that people who are sleep deprived are more likely to put on up to a kilogram a week if they are getting less than six hours of sleep a night. Sleep deficit is already a major ...

» Learn While You Sleep Learning while you sleep might sound like some excuse that kids use when they are caught sleeping in class, but recent research by a team of Swiss psychologists have found that listening to other languages while you are asleep can help you to consolidate what you have learned. For the first time res...

» Lack of Sleep Can Lead to Serious Stress We've often spoken about how not getting enough sleep could affect your health and well being. However did you know that not getting enough sleep can also affect the people around you? We're sure that it has happened to you or someone you know - tempers fray quicker and people are more lik...

» Winter is the Perfect Time to Hibernate With frost forming on the lawn last night, snow reappearing on the mountains and threats of the ice giants returning, I've started getting more and more jealous and animals that hibernate. While there are not that many animals that hibernate in South Africa, with the exception of the cat which ...

» Sleeping at Work? Good for You! Sleeping at work and not getting fired? It sounds like something that is too good to be true! But science is suggesting that employees that have between 30 and 90 minutes of downtime during the day are in fact more productive and more likely to be creative. Long working hours are not something new -...

» The Best Winter Pre-Bed Activities Getting ready for bed in winter in a cold bedroom is often characterized by quick jumping into pjs and then crawling into a fetal position in bed to trap maximum heat. But there are a few tricks to ensure that not only is your bed warm before your climb into it, but that you are also more relaxed an...

» Sub-zero Snooze Time for Your Baby? With winter set in, it is difficult to imagine anybody being able to sleep in the freezing cold, but in Sweden babies regularly are put outside to sleep at temperatures as low as minus 10º! In fact it is nothing out of the ordinary for parents to leave their babies to sleep in their prams outsi...

» Finnish Babies Come With and Sleep in Cardboard Boxes It might sound like a really sick joke but in fact newborn babies in Finland actually do come with a cardboard box in a traditional that is almost 100 years old! The boxes are a gift from the government and come filled with all the basics that a newborn will need - The box itself can even be transfo...

» Keeping Your Bedroom Warm in Winter With the cold season upon us once again it is essential that we keep warm and snug at night not just for comfort, but also for health reasons! Keeping warm in winter will help you to avoid colds, flu, pneumonia, depression and even heart attacks or strokes! Keeping warm is especially essentia...

» Is your pillow giving you a pain in the neck? Your pillow supports a quarter of your total body weight, and since we spend about a third of our lives with our head on a pillow, It may well be influencing the quality of your sleep. Make sure it does the job well. Pillow talk? No, rather pillow health. So how to go about picking the perfect pillo...

» Tired Teenages Need New Beds Here at Bed King we have often spoken about the sleeping patterns of teenagers and how they differ from adults. But a new study by Professor Damien Léger, director of the Centre du Sommeil et de la Vigilance, has shown that over the last 25 years the amount of teenager are getting has decreas...

» Loss of Sleep Could Damage Your Brain You’ve been working on a new project at work for more than a week now. Sleep is down to two or three hours a day and your sleeping pattern is completely wrecked. But you aren’t worried because as soon as the project is over, you’ll catch up on sleep and everything will be fine. Rig...

» Why You Slept Wrong Last Night Struggling to sleep at night? Dr. Carol Ash, the director for Sleep Medicine at Meridian Health, has suggested a few things that you wouldn't think to be a cause of poor sleep. You would be surprised to find out that some of the most common causes of poor sleep are caused by not only the things...

» Five Most Common Nightmares Everybody’s dreams are different, however there seems to some common dreams and nightmares that most people seem to have: Many people have dreams in which they are falling. Some people suggest that this is the subconscious suggesting that there is something going wrong with your life or someth...

» Royal Bed Discovered in the Bin While every bed at the Bed King is fit for a king, debate is raging across the world about a recently discovered bed that is thought to have once belonged to Henry VII. The bed was discovered dismantled and discarded in a car park and sold to an auctioneer. While the bed initially fetched £2,2...

» Animal Sleeping Habits Everybody is used to pets who prefer to curl up on the bed or sleep on the couch, but what about other animals which make their own beds? Are they as picky as we are about where and what they sleep on? A new study published in the Public Library of Science (PLoS ONE) focused on chimpanzees and studi...

» To sleep together or not to sleep together? That is the question! To sleep in the same bed or not to sleep in the same bed? That is the question that is being debated in bedrooms around the world with both sides offering pretty convincing arguments about whether there should be one bed or two in the bedroom. Certainly if we look back at classic television sitcoms ...

» Revolutionary New Bed Cleaner! A new product that has been developed by LG, called the Bedding King, is aimed at cleaning your bed like never before! The new wireless product uses motion vibration combined with powerful suction power and a soft rotating brush to quickly and easily remove dirt, bed bugs and hair from your bed and ...

» Cutest Sleeping Pets Videos Sleeping Pets Videos: We usually talk about sleep related problems and advice on this blog, but sometimes you need a cuteness overload to make you smile. These are three great video compilations of dogs, cute puppies and kittens sleeping. Get your ‘awwwwwwsss’ ready! Enjoy!...

» Sleep Your Way to the Top Sleep Your Way to the Top TEDTalks is a daily podcast of some of the most influential and interesting talks from TED Conferences. They are often inspiring, amazing and will change the way you see the world. In this short TEDTalks, Arianna Huffington shares a small idea which she thinks will change t...

» Sleeper Couches Furniture If you have people coming over for the school holidays, now is the perfect time to get that sleeper couch that you always wanted. There is already a guide to sleeper couches on the Bed King website, so we’re not going to rehash what you already know. Instead this week we are going to...

» Going Beyond the Bed Bedroom Guide Part 3: Other Furniture Welcome to the third part of our Going Beyond the Bed Bedroom Guide. The first and second parts of this blog focused on headboards and bases, and now we take a look at pedestals, coffee tables and dressing tables for the bedroom. Pedestals Pedestals are also known as night tables, bed side ta...

» Going Beyond the Bed Bedroom Guide Part 2: Bases The first part of this Going Beyond the Bed Bedroom Guide focused on selecting the best headboard for your room. This time we are going to be focusing more on the most important part of your bed next to the mattress: the base. As anybody will tell you, the best way to achieve something is to have a ...

» Going Beyond the Bed Bedroom Guide: Part 1 Part 1: Headboards: When most people talks about their bed they only seem to think about their mattress. Don’t get me wrong, the mattress is the most important part of your bed. A good, comfortable mattress that guarantees a good night’s sleep is one of the most important things when it ...

» What Colour Should Your Bedroom Be? The first step to any redecorating is to get a colour wheel or colour palette. Most paint stores will have a great range of paint guides that will work in a pinch. The basic colour wheel is divided into three primary colour: Red, yellow and blue. More detailed ones will have multiple divisions and b...

» Feng Shui Your Bedroom for Greater Happiness Feng shui is a traditional chinese decorating system that is utilized to create harmony and assist with the flow of energy (chi) through a room in your house. In feng shui favourable and unfavourable elements objects and layouts can be used to balance the energies of the home. For pract...

» Protecting Your Guesthouse Beds Tourism in South Africa is already one of the biggest industries and many people are building up thriving guest house businesses. Google ‘guest house South Africa’ and you will discover thousands of great b&bs all over the country. However, one of the main worries of anybody and espe...

» Preventing Bed Bugs Bed bugs are an ugly reality. They give people the heebie jeebies and, as you can imagine, not many people want to talk about them. While they are definitely not a common occurrence, they occur often enough for people to freak out about them. Bed bugs are small blood sucking creatures that can live ...

» Mattress Maintenance: Get the most out of your mattress Your mattress should be looked after: not only is it a valuable investment, but you spend almost a third of your life on it! When it comes to protection, often prevention is the best option. If you have children, run a guesthouse, or like breakfast in bed, a mattress protector is essential! A m...

» The Dangers of Sleepy Drivers We all know that drinking and driving is an absolute no-no, but did you know that sleepy drivers are almost as dangerous? Attempting to drive when you are sleepy will result in a reduced reaction time, inability to concentrate and the possibility of losing control while driving! While young people a...

» Ridiculous Sleep Laws Sleep is a natural and necessary act that everybody does. So nobody would try to legislate it would they? Well, they might if they are American. 1. In Minnesota, it is illegal to sleep naked. 2. In Alaska, it is illegal to wake a bear to take a picture of it. It is however, legal to shoot them. 3. I...

» Cure Your Insomnia: 5 Easy Steps We’ve often spoken about insomnia on this blog because it is something that affects so many of us, with some studies suggesting that more than 50% of people experience sleep problems. Insomnia’s effects can range from simple continual tiredness to more serious health risks. While it migh...

» Weird things that people do in their sleep Think that you have some weird sleeping habits? Take a look at some of the most common weird things that people do in their sleep. Sleeping with your eyes open People who sleep with their eyes open suffer from a condition called nocturnal lagophthalmos. This condition is characterize by the eyelids ...

» Is Using Energy Drinks to Stay Awake Actually Bad for You? It’s 18:00 pm on a Friday night, you have just arrived home and you open your third energy drink of the day to try and shake off nine hours in the office. There is no harm in it right? Actually, drinking too many energy drinks is definitely harmful to your health - as is drinking too mu...

» How a New Duvet Cover Can Change Your Room In most bedrooms, the bed is naturally the focal point both layout and design wise, which is why having a range of different sets of bed linen is a great way to change the looks of your bedroom quickly and inexpensively. Rather than redecorating the whole room according, why not just change the bed ...

» Keep Cool through These Hot Summer Nights February is always one of the hottest months, especially down here in the Cape. Which is great for anybody who wants to go to the beach or work on that gorgeous tan down at Clifton. Except the heat really isn’t cool when it comes to trying to sleep at night. Trying to sleep through a 30 ...

» Famous people who survived on minimum sleep: One of our previous blogs spoke about people who managed to get by with very little sleep thanks to a mutation in their hDEC2 gene. Whether or not the following famous people have that mutation or just seem to manage without sleep we don’t know, but here are some famous people who did extraord...

» Five Ridiculous Beds and Their Unbelievable Prices There is nothing like the comfort of a quality mattress and buying the right one is an investment that is sure to pay you back many times over the years. But what happens when you spend way too much on a bed? We take a look at some the most ridiculously expensive beds out there and the small fortune...

» Debunking the Myths About Bunk Beds Bunk beds are one of the most practical methods to save both money and space in your children’s bedroom. Not only are they versatile, but they are often an exciting sleep solution for children as they create imaginative forts or pirate galleys to play on. Unfortunately there are many myths abo...

» Can You Survive on 4 Hours of Sleep a Night? Famously Thomas Edison survived on only a few hours of sleep a night, claiming that by taking cat naps throughout the day he could easily survive on four or five hours of sleep a night and for a very special few getting four hours of sleep a night is actually enough. We’ve previously spoken ab...

» Sleep Like a Celebrity on this Adjustable bed! Imagine a bed that you could adjust to fit your body exactly, one that could ergonomically match your exact sleeping position while cushioning your spine and promoting better health? Well, you’ve just imagined an Adjustable Bed - and they are not only real, they are available in South Africa. ...

» 5 Common Sleep Problems and Celebrities who Suffer From Them Last month we spoke quite a bit about how poor sleep can affect the growth and personality of teenagers, (http://www.bedking.co.za/blogs/consequences-of-poor-sleep-for-children/98), and it is certainly true for adults as well. If you don’t have the time to read our previous blogs, here are the...

» Choosing the Best Mattress: Considering that you are more than likely going to be spending almost a third of your day, choosing the right mattress seems like an exceptionally important thing to get right. Serta’s website has a great and easy online app that can guide to exactly what kind of mattress you need. The app ask...

» Consequences of Poor Sleep for Children Wrapping up our month long focus on children and teenager’s sleep, here is the top five consequences of not getting enough sleep that can affect children and teenagers: 1. Memory: A lack of sleep can affect children’s ability to learn and reduce their short term memory. 2. Skin: Poor sle...

» The Best Serta Adverts: Serta is not only famous for its quality mattresses, but for its innovative advertising campaigns that captured the hearts and minds of viewers. The most famous of which was the Counting Sheep campaign in 2000. This campaign featured disgruntled counting sheep who were now unemployed bec...

» Top Two Mattress Trends of 2013: We take a look at the top two mattress trends of 2013: Sleep cool mattresses: Overheating at night is one of the primary concerns of mattress buyers, with more and more people opting to purchase a mattress that will keep them cooler at night. This has also seen a move away from synthetic fabrics in ...

» Easiest Way to Change the Cover on a Duvet Easiest Way to Change the Cover on a Duvet: Changing the cover of a duvet is one of the most frustrating and annoying things about cleaning a bed. Often it involves swearing, sweating and general annoyance, especially if you are short, frail or disabled. Traditional methods of changing the cover of ...

» Is it too early to learn? Early to bed and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy, and wise - but not so for teenagers. Teenagers are always complaining that school starts way too early for them and that they cannot concentrate that early in the morning. In fact if they had their way they would sleep in till at least no...

» Student's Digs? Futons! Symbols of the ‘60s and ‘70s, futons are seeing a massive resurgence in popularity. Today these old-school sleeping solutions are becoming one of the most fashionable furnishings around. Traditionally in Japan, futon referred to a mattress (shikibuton) and a quilt set (kakebuton) t...

» Back to School - Back to Sleep Most of our children use the school holidays to sleep in - teenagers especially seem to think that during the holiday the day begins at noon! But with school just around the corner, the disjointed and varied sleeping patterns of children can have negative side effects. A good sleep cycle often depen...

» Scent yourself to better sleep Having difficulty sleeping? Try using lavender or jasmine in your bedroom! Scientists at the National Sleep Foundation (NSF), an independent non-profit organization in the USA, have confirmed that having lavender or jasmine scents in your bedroom can give you a better night’s sleep. Researcher...

» Tooth Fairy app to put tooth price fears to bed Don’t know how much to leave under your child’s pillow for their baby teeth? Don’t worry there is an app for that. The Tooth Fairy Calculator app for iPhones and iPads will look at what parents of your child’s particular age group, income and education level are leaving under...

» South Africa: Birthplace of the Bed Archaeologists claim that South Africa is home to the oldest known mattress in the world after the discovery of a 77 000 year old mattress in the Sibudu Cave in Kwazulu Natal. The mattress, which is 50 000 years older than any previously discovered, was made from layers of reeds and bulrushes with a...

» New Rest for the Restless Having trouble getting a restful night’s sleep because of restless legs? Researchers at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center in the USA have discovered that pneumatic compression devices used to prevent deep vein thrombosis (DVT) can relieve the symptoms of restless leg syndrome. Restless leg s...

» Santa's Sleep Stress With it being the week before Christmas, and everybody concerned about shopping and getting the children to sleep on the night before christmas, maybe it is about time that somebody actually spared a little thought for all the sleep-related hazards that Santa goes through in order to get all the pre...

» Sleep is in, Parties are out Do you prefer to have a good night’s sleep rather than go and party? Don’t worry you are not the only one! New polls from Canada show that more people would rather go to sleep than go to parties. Increasing work and family pressure have taken their toll on people, with more t...

» More moon, less sleep Did you know that the moon affects your sleep? New studies from researchers at the University of Basel, Switzerland, have shown that the full moon can have negative effects on your sleep. Scientists have found that during the full moon it takes people on average five minutes longer to fall asleep an...

» Gifting Ideas from the Bed King During the Christmas season, many people ask us what would make the perfect gift for someone who loves to sleep. Considering that it is almost impossible to disguise a bed under the Christmas tree (not to mention it being almost impossible to cover in wrapping paper), how about a good pillow o...

» Why Bad Bedtime Routines Are Bad for Children Bad sleep and bedtime routines during early childhood are now believed to be able to disrupt a child's brain power later in life, according to a study published by Epidemiology and Community Health. Researchers who are a part of the long-term UK Millennium Cohort Study (MCS), analysed whether d...

» 4 Reasons Not To Drink Before Bedtime Many of us like to have a glass of wine or a whisky and soda in the evenings, but even though we believe that this is a great way to relax, when it comes to sleep this is not exactly true. Don’t believe us? Then take a look at the 4 reasons why you should not drink before bed that we have list...

» Better Sleep With Dr Neil Stanley [VIDEO] Do you find it difficult to switch off before bedtime? Or do you get up in the morning feeling like you could do with just that little bit more sleep? Then you’re not alone! A new report, commissioned by Horlicks (yes, that bedtime drink) in the United Kingdom has revealed that millions of peo...

» What is Sleep Apnoea and CPAP? [VIDEO] This video provides a general overview of the symptoms and most common treatments for obstructive sleep apnea. Sleep apnoea is a sleep disorder that causes a person to stop breathing during sleep. Loud snoring and choking noises are also common signs of this specific sleep disorder. The American Aca...

» Could This Be The Coolest Bed in the World? The highly advanced Somnus-Neu bed was designed with the help of the Auckland University of Technology in New Zealand and has been billed as not only the coolest, but also as the most technologically advanced beds in the world. Watch the video below and you’ll soon see why this is... The Somnu...

» How To Get a Good Nights Sleep [INFOGRAPHIC] Take a look at our informative "Good Nights Sleep" Infographic. It is jam packed full of interesting information and sleep advice. For example, did you know that on average, women have worse sleep patterns than men? Also, did you know that one in 3 workers in countries such as Britain find it diffic...

» How To Make Your Bedroom Sleep Friendly [VIDEO] Did you know that it is important to have a bedroom that is conducive to getting a good nights sleep? Watch our video post on this very subject matter and find out how a bedroom with a cool temperature, dark interior and with little or no electronics can ultimately ensure that you have a better nigh...

» Three More Sleep Mistakes That Parents Often Make In last weeks article about 3 common sleep mistakes that parents ame we covered things like putting children to bed to late, relying on motion to get a child to sleep and overstimulation. In this weeks article we add to the list of parental no-no’s with skipping routine, inconsistency and movi...

» Cell Phones Can Affect Sleep Patterns Did you know that taking your phone into the bedroom could be costing you a good night's sleep? Sleep psychologist Dr Michael Hlavac, director of the sleep unit at Christchurch Hospital in New Zealand, has said that cell phones and other communication devices such as the iPad and Samsung ...

» 3 Common Sleep Mistakes That Parents Make So you have a small child and like all parents you want what is best for them? Did you know however, that some of the decisions that we make during the course of a day can influence how they sleep? Read on and see how we can sidestep some of the more common mistakes and improve your baby's chan...

» What Can Be Done To Relieve Insomnia? Insomnia can be extremely debilitating and even though severe cases will need to be treated by a trained medical professional, there are a number of lifestyle changes that can help relieve short-term insomnia. Avoid Stimulating Substances There are a number of stimulants that need to be avoided as t...

» More Frequently Asked Sleep Questions [Part 2 of a 2 Part Series] You can read Part 1 HERE This is our second article in which we try to answer some of the most frequently asked sleep questions that South African’s ask us. FAQ 1: Do older adults need as much sleep as younger people? Answer: Peoples sleep needs do change thro...

» Early Risers and Night Owls Have Structural Brain Differences There might be more to the claim that certain people are unable to function properly early in the morning after all! In fact German scientists have recently discovered that there are actual structural brain differences between early risers and people who naturally find themselves staying up late. Th...

» Allergies Can Affect Sleep Allergic rhinitis is a physical reaction to allergens in the air that are breathed in by a person that is allergic to them. This reaction is characterised by the irritating and inflaming of the nasal passages. Allergic rhinitis allergens include dust mites, pollen, molds and pet dander (to name but ...

» Frequently Asked Sleep Questions [Part One of a Two Part Series] We’ve had a number of questions asked in our Bed King stores regarding sleep and why it is important to our daily health. To help both our store staff and you our valued customers, we have put together a frequently asked questions (FAQ) blog post relating to sle...

» How To Beat Jet Lag When traveling to a new time zone, our natural circadian rhythms are generally slow to adjust and often remain on their original biological schedule for a number of days. This results in our bodies telling us it is time to sleep, when in reality it is the middle of the day in the country that we are...

» Adolescent Sleep Patterns Report The National Sleep Foundation's (NSF) Sleep And Teens Task Force have researched and developed a report that identifies adolescents and young adults (ages 12 to 25 years) as a population group that have a high risk of suffering from sleep problems. This report, which we have linked to below, su...

» The Changing Face of Sleep [Part 2 in a 2 Part Series] In our previous blog post titled “How We Sleep Has Changed Over The Past 200 Years" we mentioned that two sleeps per night may have been the preferred sleeping pattern of antiquity. However, there still seem to be tendencies towards it that linger in modern man. Thi...

» Pregnancy Sleep Tips Many women find it uncomfortable and even a little painful to sleep when pregnant. With these 9 great pregnancy sleep tips however we will hopefully have you enjoying your dream time yet again. 1. During your third trimester, try to sleep on your left side. This will stimulate the best blood f...

» Better Sleep Infographic If you are looking for 10 of the best tips for getting a good nights sleep then you need to take a look at our better sleep infographic above. The top better sleep tips are: 1. Maintain a consistent daily schedule 2 Reduce your daily caffeine intake 3. Turn off your computer or television 4. D...

» How We Sleep Has Changed Over The Past 200 Years [Part 1 of a 2 Part Series] Our grandparents and even great, great-grandparents might have shared our modern European sleeping patterns, but if you go back to the early 1800’s you’ll soon see that the way us humans slept is a lot different than how we sleep now. In fact, modern humans wo...

» How Does Sleep Affect Your Looks? It is often humorously referred to as beauty sleep, but some of the latest finding in the sleep study field have found that there is more to this saying than originally thought. You've probably seen a sleep-deprived, swollen eyed face staring back at you in the mirror after a late night o...

» Why Do I Feel So Tired? There are a number of reasons why South African’s are feeling fatigued, and not all of them are to do with the everyday hustle and bustle of living in a urbanised country such as ours. We’ve listed the top 5, with a lack of sleep being number one on the list. You will however be surprise...

» How To Care For Your Mattress Your mattress is without a doubt one of the most important purchases that you’ll ever make in your life, luckily with today’s bed and mattress technology you don’t have to make it all that often, but it is still good to know how to look after it. It may sound like it is a lot of wo...

» Does Working Night Shift Affect Your Health? Getting a full eight hours sleep is no easy task, but it is especially hard for people who have to work during the night. Other than the obvious issues of working through the sleep hours, night shift is also believed to have several negative effects on a persons health. This is because sleep quality...

» 5 Videos That Will Put You To Sleep 1 Forest and Nature Sounds: The soothing sounds of nature have long been a source of good sleep. In fact, there is something primal in the sound that brings out the best in our sleep patterns. Maybe it is something as simple as our yearning to get away from the hustle and bustle of modern life. ...

» A Good Pillow is as Important as a Good Mattress Did you know that no matter how good your bed might be, it is also important to have a quality pillow if you are to get the most out of a good nights sleep? In fact, a good pillow plays just as an important role as the mattress in keeping your head and neck in alignment with your spine when sleeping...

» How to Take the Perfect Nap 40 winks, resting your eyelids, siestas or cat naps, no matter what your power naps, I think it is safe to say that we all appreciate a good bit of mid day shuteye now and again. That said, did you know that there is also a wrong way about catching some sleep outside of normal sleeping hours? In fac...

» Why Do We Sleep? [VIDEO] Professor Russell Foster is a well-known circadian neuroscientist who has spent most of his career studying the sleep cycles of the brain. In this video from TED Talks he shares some popular theories about sleep, but also busts a few myths and sleeping “old wives” tales. Interestin...

» Good Sleep = Good Health We’ve all experienced a bad nights sleep that leaves you feeling groggy, irritable and unproductive the next day, but there might just be more to getting an early night than what you might think. Just ask Andy Murray for instance, he put his 2013 Wimbledon win down to a good 12 hours sleep the...

» Is the Snorelab App the Answer to a Good Nights Sleep? Many a relationship has been spoilt by a snoring partner, and it was with this thought in mind that entrepreneur Jules Goldberg decided to look for a solution to his snoring after repeatedly being chastised by his wife for keeping her awake. At first Jules Goldberg found it frustrating that there si...

» Sleep Apnoea Can Be Combated Through Good Sleep Habits Medical sleep specialists from the University of South Carolina School have provided some healthy advice that could assist sufferers of sleep apnoea. This video was put together by the USC's Division of Pulmonology and Critical Care Medicine and is backed up by an interesting sleep apnoea artic...

» Sleep Education Film from 1950 We were going through a number of old sleep videos that we found on YouTube and we stumbled upon this sleep education video from the 1950’s. It was produced by Encyclopedia Britannica Films in conjunction with the then world renowned Doctor Nathaniel Kleitmen Ph. D. It was aimed primarily at c...

» Lack of Sleep Can Be More Dangerous for Woman The saying that everybody is created equal holds true in most cases, but according to a study done in the UK, this might not be the case when it comes to sleep. In fact, the report released a few years ago reveals an alarming discrepancy between the effects that a lack of sleep has on man’s bo...

» Five Little Known Sleep Disorders We have all heard of sleep disorders such as sleep apnoea, sleep walking and grinding teeth, but how about ones like hypersomnia or even exploding head syndrome (yes this is a real sleep disorder)? Read on to learn more about these and a few other little known sleep disorders that people from around...

» Why Do We Need Sleep? Human beings spend almost half of their lives asleep and many people view this as a waste of time. However, it has been proven time and time again that constant good sleeping patterns are not only good for ones physical health, but also for ones mental well being. There are a number of theories on w...

» Children & Sleep For many new first-time parents there is nothing that is more challenging than dealing with a child’s sleeping patterns. The good news however, is that over time these sleep patterns do change, as your child grows older it will sleep for longer periods and will start sleeping through the night...

» Sleep Affects Your Physical and Mental Wellbeing [VIDEO] The video below shows you 5 refreshing new ways in which you can get a good night’s sleep. This will help alleviate that slow groggy feeling that many of us feel when waking up in the morning. So without further ado, here is the video for 5 tips and tricks for getting a good night’s slee...

» Why Do We Dream? [VIDEO] The study of dreams and why we dream is known as oneirology, but for most of human history it did not exist. This all changed however in 1952 when scientists at the University of Chicago discovered the state of REM, or Rapid Eye Movement, sleep. Find out more in our video about why we dream below....

» 10 Things That Negatively Affect Your Sleeping Patterns If you are looking at getting a good night’s sleep, then here is a list of 10 things that you should avoid doing before pulling back the covers and turning off the bedroom lights. If you have some more sleep tips that you would like to add to the list, please feel free to add them to the comme...

» The Truth About Sleep Apnoea [VIDEO] There are a lot of sleep disorders that go untreated in South Africa, but most people dismiss the fact that sleep apnoea can and will damage your health. Watch our truth about sleep apnoea video below to find out more about what sleep apnoea can do to your body and lifestyle and learn more about sle...

» We All Need Sleep If you are you one of those people that live to the mantra of “I’ll sleep when I’m dead”, then you could be doing yourself an injustice. This is because the latest studies being done on sleep in America and Europe show that a regular good night’s sleep is just as import...

» 10 Curious Facts About Sleeping [VIDEO] Sleep is a big part of our genetic makeup and scientists still do not know exactly why we need to sleep as often as we do, but we do know a few very curious (not to mention interesting) facts about sleep that might just get you smiling. Take a look at the video from the Australian Broadcasting Compa...

» A Future Where Sleep is a Thing of the Past! If that sounds like science fiction to you think again, because it could soon be science fact! In an extended essay in Aeon magazine, Jesse Gamble has introduced us to a number of new sleep technologies that improve and could ultimately illuminate the need for sleep. The Sleep Mask Calif...

» Sleeping In Space In this interesting video courtesy of NASA and the CSA, International Space Station Commander Chris Hadfield shows us how astronauts catch some Z's in Space. If you have a strange bed request or need advice on alternative beds and mattresses then speak to one of our trained BedKing staff in our...

» How Does A Mattresses Age Effect Sleep? If you’ve ever been told by a friend or family member that a “worn in” mattress is more comfortable than a new one, then you better take a look at the survey results released by Furniture Today and their research partner, Apartment Therapy. New Mattresses Are Better Mattresses ...

» The BedKing Store Special For May 2013 Can you believe that April is already over and we are well into the year? In fact with winter just around the corner and us celebrating the “Better Sleep Month” during May 2013 now might be the best time to buy your new bed or mattress. Take a look at our latest specials below and save u...

» Lack of Sleep Affects Hunger Levels We’ve all been told that it is not a good idea to go to a supermarket when hungry, but now research that is being done in America shows us that we might not want to go shopping for groceries when we are tired as well. In fact, scientists have found a very strong link between the lack of sleep ...

» Friday Funnies: Sleep Jokes Although lack of sleep is no laughing matter, we here at BedKing still think that a smile at the right time can help relax a person and put them in the right frame of mind for a good night’s sleep. So with that in mind (and without further ado) we’d like to introduce you to our first in ...

» Clean Your Room for a Better Nightâ€™s Sleep Most people do not realise it, but a clean room and not just a comfortable bed can help a person get a good night’s sleep. In fact, a cluttered and unkempt room can affect ones sleep for a number of reasons… Dust and Allergens How often do you vacuum your room? The more often the better...

» Are you Shopping for Sheets? Shopping for bed sheets can be a little different than shopping for clothes or shoes. In fact, because of the sheer amount of choice available it can be almost as intimidating as choosing a mattress. Because of this, we here at BedKing thought that we would put together a concise guide to shopping f...

» Exercise Helps You Sleep Better at Night! If you have ever enjoyed a hard workout at the gym then this little bit of information released by the National Sleep Foundation should come as no surprise to you – Exercise Helps You Sleep Better at Night! In fact, the survey undertaken by the National Sleep Foundation in the US found t...

» Relaxing Music to Fall Asleep By… We all need a bit of “down time”, a relaxing part of the day just before we fall asleep. But sleep does not always come easily to all of us. If you are one of those people who suffers from lack of sleep, or simply find it hard to relax and take a nap, then take a listen to the Chinese Ba...

» World Sleep Day 2013 World Sleep Day is Friday March the 15th, 2013. So how should we in South Africa celebrate it? Should we try and get an extra hour of sleep? Or maybe go out to one of the local BedKing stores and purchase a new bed? Both are good ideas, but one of the most important things that we need to do is unde...

» Size Does Matter in the Bedroom When it comes to buying a mattress that is! In fact the selection of the right size mattress for your bedroom is not as easy as you might think and needs to take a number of different variables into consideration. 1. Where will the bed be placed and how big is the space it will be in? You need...

» How to Clean a Mattress after a Bed-Wetting Accident All moms will have asked this question at least once in their childrens lives, now with this video we give you an easy way not only to clean up after a bed-wetting accident, but also how to get rid of the accompanying stain. Watch the video below: ...

» It's Time to Buy a New Mattress When... Another of our videos from howcast.com show you when it is a good idea to invest in a new bed. In fact, you’ll know it is time to buy a new mattress when you see or experience the following when using your bed: Sags, lumps or valleys on the mattress Creakiness from the bedsprings Aches, stiffn...

» How to Make the Perfect Bed 15 steps to making the perfect bed that would make any drill sergeant proud! This video is from our friends at howcast.com, who have a range of different bed and sleep videos that we will be posting over the next few months. Do you use a duvet cover? Then also watch this video from Womans Day Magazi...

» Could this be the Bed of the Future? With a bed like this people would hardly have to leave the comfort of their own bedroom. But what do you think of this modern bedroom marvel created in New Zealand? Created by Somnus® and the Auckland University of Technology, this bed is not just a place to sleep but is a union of design ...

» What is Sleep? There are more than 20 definitions of "sleep" in a number of online dictionaries, but the one that seems most appropriate is a verb: “To take the rest afforded by a suspension of voluntary bodily functions and the natural suspension, complete or partial, of consciousness; cease being awake&rdq...

» Songs to Sleep to Many of our clients grew up in the 80’s and might remember this great song by Max Headroom and the Art of Noise. Did you know? The original version of this song was released on the album In Visible Silence, but it was not until the Max Headroom vocals were added for the Re-Works of Art of Nois...

» What You Eat Affects How You Sleep For generations we have been told that what you eat (and when you eat) will affect the way you sleep. It turns out however, that some of these “old wives tales” might have a big helping of truth to them… A warm glass of milk before bedtime is good for you! In fact most dairy produ...

» Will a Good Night’s Sleep Make you Smarter? Lack of sleep can cause some pretty serious health issues in human beings, but did you know that it also has a very negative impact on cognitive development and responses? This report by PBS correspondent Miles O'Brien takes you behind the scenes of a sleep experiment that is going on right now...

» The Different Types of Mattresses Explained A good mattress can make all the difference between a good night’s sleep and a bad nights rest. That said, before you rush out to start shopping for a new mattress you will need to know some of the bedding basics. In fact, with some general information about the different types of mattresses a...

» Why Not Create a Sleep Sanctuary? Even though the mattress and bed base are the heart of your bedroom there are a few other environmental elements such as the colour of your bedroom and the lighting (to mention but a few) that can affect your sleep experience. Take a look at the video below, from the Better Sleep Organisation in the...

» We All Need A Good Night’s Sleep (Infographic) If you are one of those many South African's who think that a good night's sleep is not that important you might just want to take a look at this sleep infographic below… Although the information is US centric it is still a big shock to see that 20% of motor accidents are caused by ...

» 10 Tips for Improving Your Sleep Quality Would you like to get a better night’s sleep? Well then take a look at this video from the US that shares with us 10 tips on how to improve the quality of your sleep....

» Get Physical With A Good Night's Sleep An interesting report by the American Better Sleep Council will have South African sportsmen and woman looking at their beds and sleep patterns with renewed interest. The findings in the report show that better sleep can translate onto both the sports field and everyday life as it improves phy...

» How many hours of sleep equal a good night’s rest? Sleep is an essential part of everyday life, but thanks to the pressures of modern lifestyles many of us do not get enough. In fact the average adult sleeps for less than 7 hours a night and even though most people think that this is more than enough, the reality is that they are often suffer...

» You May Need a New Mattress if… There is nothing better than a comfortable mattress to sleep on, but unlike that favourite old t-shirt or tracksuit pants an old mattress will not feel better with age. It is therefore VERY important to make sure that your mattress has not lost its ability to provide your body with both the comfort ...

» The Bed of Ware Did you know that one of the biggest beds ever made was built in 1580 and can still be seen today in the Ware Museum in England? Its exact measurements are rather intimidating with a width of 3.26 metres (10.7 ft) and a length of 3.38 metres (11.1 ft). The bed itself was so famous when first b...

» An amusing look at how to get a good nights sleep Take a look at this humorous short film about sleep and the development of the bed mattress from Disney. First shown in 1953 it stars Goofy as the hapless sleep deprived individual....

» Myths about Sleep Dispelled Although sleep is still a part of the human condition that is shrouded in mystery, there are a number of myths regarding our resting time that we can dispel right here and now. We have adapted the answers to these myths from an article supplied by the National Institutes of Health in a document enti...

» 10 Strange Facts about Dreams and Sleeping We spend a large portion of our life sleeping and much of that time sleeping is spent dreaming. But did you know these 10 strange sleeping and dreaming facts affect all of us? Take a look at the video below:...

» What do my dreams mean? Over the next few months we will be posting a number of blog articles about dreams and what they could mean to you and your subconscious. These blog posts are by no means meant as a hard and fast rule of dream interpretation, but more of a dream guide. To get the ball rolling we will be starting wit...

» The Bed Ad You Never Want to See on South African TV If ever we here at BedKing ever decided to do TV ad’s we promise that they will never be like the Dodd’s Chiropractic Mattress Centre Ad’s in America. That said, it has worked for this family owned store and their bed and furniture ads have been a big hit on youtube and other ...

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