Up by day…down by night

The Murphy bed is a classic way to save on space, particularly when space is both scarce and expensive as it is in Santa Barbara. Invented by William Murphy (1876-1959) as a way to convert his one room San Francisco apartment into both a parlor for entertaining guests and a bedroom in case they stayed, the bed has since taken on a wide array of elegant designs and multiple functions.

“In Santa Barbara a lot of homes need a room to function in a multipurpose fashion so including a wall bed into an office, a guestroom, or any other space is optimal as it does not occupy the space constantly like a regular bed would. It can be easily put up in seconds and you have your room back to how it was the day before!” says California Closet designer Raquel Trujillo. “Horizontal tilts are fantastic as well, which we are seeing a lot more of. It’s a nice spin on the classic vertical tilt as you can get the same bed size but take up less of the wall allowing for art, or other pieces to exist above it and no one even knows it’s a bed. It’s fabulous! Instead of having a somewhat comfortable air mattress (that is if you splurge on a decent quality one and it doesn’t get any holes in it) with a murphy bed you always have the reassurance that your guests will have a comfortable and proper bed to sleep in when they visit, and you can also add in additional storage which most people need in their homes.”

As for installation, in most cases, depending on extras such as nightstands, bookshelves and additional storage, Trujillo says the systems go in quickly and are usually ready for use the same day. It should be noted that systems that are improperly installed could be dangerous which is why a professional should always be used. “We have our own installers that put these systems together day after day and are amazing. They know the materials and work like machines with it, except of course they are much better!”

As for price, the systems start around $4,000 and up depending on size, finish and additional designed storage. The mattress needs to be a standard coil mattress (memory foam is too heavy) and be maximum 12 inches in thickness. –By

Raymond Bloom

California Closets designs with a wide range of colors and textures. The Tesoro line is imported from Italy and is exclusive to California Closets For more info on these and other systems contact California Closets, 15 West Anapamu St. Santa Barbara. 805-485-9100. www.californiaclosets. com/santabarbara Open Mon-Fri 10-5.