Well, you’ve heard about the mattress (queen size MYRBACKA from IKEA, and it is awesome—feel free to ask any mattress-specific questions you might have), you’ve seen the cute, cheap sheets, and now…the bed frame!
Yes, it’s the MANDAL bed, also from IKEA. You know I was saying the last week about how sometimes IKEA just nails it? This bed is a perfect example.
Nearly all of the components of the MANDAL bed are solid birch that’s been finished with a clear lacquer. I was a little concerned about how such a light wood would look in combination with the very warm, oak floors in the apartment, but it turns out to be a perfectly happy mix. The birch will darken a bit in time, anyway, so I’d imagine that in a year or two they’ll be almost the same tone. That inset white “floating” platform helps prevent the whole thing from looking like a continuous block of wood, too.
The best thing about this bed is the storage. There are four nice, big drawers underneath, perfect for storing extra linens, pajamas, or, as seen here, a bazillion tote bags. I’ve even thought about turning one of them into a little trundle bed for the dogs…
I never could get into under-bed storage boxes, but this? Amazing. The amount of stuff you can fit into these drawers essentially clears out an entire closet.
Here’s a closer look at the construction. On the left, you can see the mitered corners (one of the many nice details IKEA has been incorporating in their solid wood pieces lately) where the sides and top of the frame meet. The picture on the right is a little weirdly angled because I was hefting the mattress up with my left hand while shooting with my right, but I wanted to show how the wood slats (which support the mattress in lieu of a box spring) sit flush with the top of the frame. The whole thing is just so well put-together.
Speaking of being put-together, I’d estimate it took about three hours for me and Evan to assemble the bed. No biggie. Of course, I don’t really understand when people say they hate putting together IKEA furniture. Personally, I find it very relaxing and satisfying. It’s like adult Tinker Toys.
Oh, ALSO. For the first time ever, we sprung for IKEA’s delivery service. The price varies depending on location/distance, but in Brooklyn, it’s $59 no matter how much stuff you’re having delivered. Yeah. At that price you still have to load up your cart in the warehouse yourself and go through the whole checkout process, but if you pay $99, they’ll do everything for you, including pulling the items…but only if they have more than 10 of each thing in stock. And that’s the kicker, of course, because if you’ve ever been to the Brooklyn IKEA, you know that stock counts tend to hover around 0–3 at all times. So we went with the $59 option. SO WORTH IT, OMG. Our apartment is on the 3rd & 4th floors of our building (and of course there’s no legal street parking out in front), and this stuff is heavy. Having a couple of dudes drive it over and carry it upstairs made life so much easier.
I haven’t done much serious decorating in the apartment yet since I’ve been so focused on just getting large pieces of furniture into place and organizing all of our stuff, but I did order two of the “Bigmouth Strikes Again”-themed prints (Sweetness and Joan of Arc) from my K IS FOR BLACK shop and put them into frames. I’m not sure this will be their final destination, but I do like them leaning against the wall side-by-side.
For reference, these are the X-LARGE size (28″ x 38″) prints in the largest size RIBBA frames (27 ½” x 39 ¼”) from IKEA. This is the birch frame, which they’ve inexplicably discontinued. Weird. At least you can still get them in black and white, though, and the aluminum STRÖMBY frames are an even more affordable alternative that looks great. But I digress.
Yeah, still using my faux-Aaltos (aka hacked FROSTA stools) as bedside tables. Love ’em.
If you’re wondering what happened to our former bed, the discontinued (all together now: of course) green wool-upholstered GRIMEN, it went to live with my friend Tiesha, who is awesome. I really loved that bed, and we’d definitely have kept it if it were queen-sized. Two people and two dogs in a full size bed is…tight. Anyway, I’m happy it went to a good home.
110 Comments
It’s SOOO hard to find an affordable/decent looking storage bed! This bed was a top contender for my next renovation project so I’m glad you’ve reviewed it because I was on the fence. It looks so good in your space!
I know, the other two storage beds I was looking at (CB2 and Mash) were SO expensive, and when it came down to it, I honestly like the design of the IKEA bed better. Win/win.
I have been eying that bed for awhile now, your pictures make it look extra good. I think I’ll have to make an IKEA trip soon.
Oh wow, you may have just found my new bed for me. Thanks!
Good luck, Katie! 🙂
wow, you make that bed look SO much better than it does on the ikea website (where i think they’ve managed to make it look cheap). with offspring number 3 due any second we’ll be upgrading to a king size, so unfortunately ikea bases won’t cut it. tempted to get something like this though. maybe ikea replicas could be a new thing?!
Yeah, for some reason IKEA always does the worst styling with their bed product photos! It’s really nice in person, though, I swear. 🙂
And the thought of IKEA knock-offs is pretty funny…
i just had a thought…. maybe i could steal your dog trundle bed idea for the kids! get the good looking bed and still have somewhere for the children when they wander in during the night. win-win!
Just don’t post a picture of it on the internet, or everyone will tell you what a terrible parent you are putting your child in such a precarious situation! Hahaha.
Seriously though, I don’t think those drawers could support a child. A 9lb dog, yes, but a 30lb (? I have no idea how much children weigh) kid would be too heavy.
I’ve been considering that bed! Thanks for posting your review. And it looks GREAT on your new place. It’s such a dramatic room, I can’t wait to see what you do with it!
Thanks, Naomi! It’s a great bed.
Evan and me. Object pronoun.
I’m more than totally fine with colloquial grammar rules, Mindy (don’t worry, that includes your sentence fragments), but thanks for your proofreading efforts.
Haha, amazing.
I’ve been wanting this bed; it’s all about that storage! I’m starting to feel like you’re my personal shopper (the bill will be in the mail?). 😉
Man, I’ve had my eye on that bed for quite some time but sadly it doesn’t work if you have to have your bed in a corner (against two walls) but it looks great in your apartment and I’m green with envy 😛
Dying to see the rest of the place.
This is my favorite space that you have had yet. I LOVE the exposed brick, wood floors and that lighting. I LOVE this bed and the colors mesh well, not to mention the designs you did look great on the floor being that large and the bedding. You nailed it.
I love what you’ve done to the place so far! Those paintings next to each other look so cool
oh god, all my life choices have been justified…i have had this bed since 2011 and i LOVE IT but i always feel vaguely ashamed when people start harping on how shitty ikea furniture is – no matter what i say, they won’t believe me, but this bed is solid as a ROCK. (not so the mattress slats – those things are just waiting to break – but at least they’re not that expensive to replace.)
Most IKEA beds sell the slats separately, and I would strongly suggest buying the better-quality slats right off the bat. The cheapest ones (I think they’re called LADE) are really lousy, but the slightly more expensive slats are fantastic. This is my fourth IKEA bed, and I’ve never had a problem with slats breaking.
That said, the slats used with the MANDAL bed are included, and I am fairly sure that they’re specific to this bed. They’re good quality, though, and they fit snugly in the frame. Thumbs up.
Hi Anna – Are your myrbacka mattress and mandal bed still treating you well so to speak in 2017? I’ve been saving up for a bed for a long time so
I’m hoping to find a mattress that lasts a bit (warrant aside 🙂 ). I’m also considering buying a mandal bed off of a friend so I’m wondering how it wears. Thanks!
I’ve lived in another home in another state with a different bed for the past couple of years, but my ex-husband says the bed is has not changed.
Please relay this note to Anna, and please, totally and completely, seriously!, feel free to delete my question as I didn’t mean for it to be personal, but THANK YOU for addressing my question. That was so kind of you! This bed introduced me to your impeccable style, excellent writing, and good humor. I apologize as I missed those changes but I appreciate your reply and input a ton 🙂
With my best!
–Alex
I always wonder why Ikea keeps discontinuing the best stuff. It´s so weird. Anyway, your bedroom is looking great! We recently upgraded to the Myrbacka mattresses as well and love them.
Oh, those giant US mattresses envy!
I just knew you were going to pick that bed. It looks great. I think I would want something for a backrest on the wall (for reading in bed), you could use one of the Ikea solid wood countertops for that (cut to size) and just wall mount it, I think there are (were?) some in birch to match with the bed. But maybe you don’t read in bed, because I don’t really see any lights either (my mind tends to wander, sorry).
The trundle bed sounds like a fun idea. Could work for a baby in the first few months as well (as I said, my mind sometimes wanders off). Have a wonderful day!
Hi Simone, I briefly considered a headboard, but I think it would have killed the line of the ceiling and thrown the whole space off-balance. I very seldom read in bed, anyway.
Lighting will happen eventually—like I said in the post, I haven’t really gotten beyond furniture arrangement at this point. 😉
I later saw that there is a separate headboard available for this bed, forgot about that. The space does look a bit low near the windows? I guess the headboard would emphasize that. If it were not so sad it could be quite funny how often the words “Ikea” and “discontinued” come up in your replies on this post.
Anna, this looks wonderful! Are the dogs able to jump that high? And if not, then wouldn’t it be great if they would be happy sleeping in one of the drawers (or you may end up there yourself one day)?
Fritz can make the jump, but Bruno can’t quite do it. I’ll try to get them to sleep a drawer, but Fritz really likes to be snuggled under the covers and Bruno really likes to be between our pillows…
Whoa. Have we talked about the rug yet? It’s AMAZING.
Hi Jess, the rug is also from IKEA—discontinued long ago. I bought it in 2007, and it’s found its way into every space I’ve lived in since then:
http://www.doorsixteen.com/2007/12/22/a-little-work-in-the-living-room/
I’m sure you’ve probably said this somewhere before, Anna, but who makes the cover you have on your bed? It has a wonderful sashiko look to it.
Beth, the blanket (discontinued) was from IKEA’s 2009 PS line:
http://www.doorsixteen.com/2009/01/14/new-ikea-ps-collection/
Love it! And it looks fantastic with that rug!
7 or 8 years ago I bought this bed (back when they had the version with black drawer faces/toekick, and it has since been through five moves with me and is still holding up like a CHAMP. I did run glue in the grooves of the drawers to keep the bottom panel in–after loading them up, the middles started to sag, pulling the drawer bottoms out of their side grooves. Easy fix and it has lasted me probably 6 years at this point.
So happy you had easy delivery too–what a great option!
Lina, they’ve actually fixed that drawer issue since you bought your bed—there is now a steel brace that runs perpendicular to prevent the drawer bottoms from popping out of their tracks. Like so:
Mandal bed frame = A+. I had one for years, & it was exactly what I wanted (& I’d still have it if I hadn’t moved to another continent). However, definitely make a point of keeping the drawer contents on the lighter side of things. We overfilled one of ours weight-wise & the base bowed, never to return to its former beauty.
Oh hey, I just read the above comment. Glad they provided a fix!
This post and your last one have really made me keen on comparing the differences in IKEA’s product lines between the US and Germany (where I live now). It’s strange that they’ve discontinued the birch RIBBAs over there… because they’re still available here, along with an oak finish. (On the other hand, Germany doesn’t have the aluminium colour or high gloss grey ones.)
Actually, it looks like the RIBBA frames in Germany are no longer wood, either—they’re also fiberboard with a “foil”/paper faux-wood finish:
http://www.ikea.com/de/de/catalog/products/30270793/
The non-colored RIBBAs used to be solid wood. All of my older ones (including the two pictured here) are either solid birch or solid oak. It’s such a shame that they’re all fiberboard now, because the quality really is not as good. As far as which faux finishes are available where, I’m sure that’s just down to what sells best. Faux-oak and faux-birch were gradually phased out in the US in the last two years, as best as I can recall.
I’m German, and yeah, they’re all foil-covered crap now. I hate the look.
I used to love the birch Ribba-frames, then they suddenly went and slightly rounded the corners a few years ago – they were nice and crisp before – and I already liked them a lot less. Now with it just being plastic, I won’t buy them again. Also with foil, what used to be slight dings in the wood are now visible breaks of the foil, which you can’t fix.
Ikea’s really been moving towards being of cheaper quality in a lot of details, small things were you don’t notice at first, but makes it feel cheap. Some even have been reconstructed to better work with the cheaper materials, and are a lot worse for it. One thing that stands out for me is the picture ledges. They used to be called Stripa (in Germany at least) and were solid wood painted white, seemed to be cut from one piece, with the corners rounded and the elevation of the back part and front just right. When I wanted to add some more to what I have, I found it’s now also called Ribba, made of three pressed particle pieces that go a lot higher in front and back, and are a lot thicker as well as angular. Looks super clunky now were the others were graceful, and also looks cheap while drawing attention to its cheapness (visible dark lines were the pieces come together).
Ok, didn’t expect to write a whole paragraph about a picture ledge, but that and the Ribba frames were two of the most annyoing changes/discontinuations over tha last few years, because they used to make a wall look good for a small budget. That option’s now not there anymore, so makes good design on a budget or in a small space where you can’t just add another piece of furniture a lot less accessible.
Judith, I am TOTALLY with you on all of this. I feel the same way about the LACK shelves. I have an old one (purchased more than 10 years ago) that has a real oak veneer, and it’s beautiful. The ones they make now don’t even come close!
You’re right, IKEA seems to be cutting corners on their lower-end “classics” while ramping up the quality on the more expensive furniture. I understand the latter move, but not the former.
Thank you, Judith! I grew up in Germany some time ago (OK, a long time ago; I’m 51) and I remember all the IKEA items from my childhood as being of excellent quality. When my dad and I (many years ago) made what was then a substantial drive from NYC to Plymouth Meeting to go to the first IKEA in the US, I was dismayed that much of the good quality I remembered was seemingly already deteriorating. In the past ten years, though, it’s gotten so much worse. Anna, like your experience with the Lack shelf, our dining table and dressers are true good-quality veneer over solid wood–purchased 10+ years ago–and I don’t expect to come across things of that quality again at IKEA, at least not here. Even our Stockholm console tables (old version)–as you point out, from a more “expensive” line–are both warped on the top and I never did anything really abusive to them (OK, I used one as a behind-the-sofa desk in our old Brooklyn apartment, but only when I was working at home, which was not often.)
I remember the Stripa with great fondness. Room & Board got me to spend major $$ on one of their powder-coated picture ledges because it’s basically a copy of the Stripa.
I really love that bed… and it looks glorious in that space, woman! Well done!!
I’ve had this exact same bed for 4 years now, and while I MOSTLY love it, I have had a few issues.
– The white toe-kick at the bottom of mine (at the foot of the bed) inexplicably comes apart. The frame on it doesn’t seem to rest on it for support, so it just comes loose and will fly around underneath the bed which is not awesome. I could just put some glue on it, but I move around so much I would rather not compromise the ease of disassembling it.
– The crappy drawer bottom inserts, despite having the metal rod bolstering them up in the middle STILL bow. i have to kind of lift and pull up on the drawers from underneath to get them open which, again I could probably just save myself the headache and glue them in place but I sort of feel indignant about that shit and suffer through it. It only happens on two of the drawers, which are now loaded to have much less stuff in them. Something to consider if you’re wanting to keep your pups beds in there.
– I think the frame is specifically for a queen, so this is kind of my own cross to bear, but with my full bed, it doesn’t quite extend all the way past the wooden slats and loads of dog hair and lint and other lovely things fall into the drawers. Gross.
But really, I DO love this bed, for all of the little quirks. Hope yours is a little more solidly constructed, because it looks great!
Sara, the first problem you’re having seems really odd, and I wonder if maybe the construction of the bed has changed since you bought yours? The white platform on mine is actually screwed into the wood part with six locking bolts—there’s absolutely no way it could “fly around” like you’re describing or the whole bed would collapse. Maybe some of the the cam-luck nuts on your bed have come loose?? You might want to take your mattress off, pull the drawers out and do a little inspection. You can find the current assembly instructions here (PDF):
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/assembly_instructions/mandal-bed-frame-with-storage__AA-261173-10_pub.pdf
Also, did you know that the bed frame also comes in full-size? Obviously you probably don’t want to buy a new one just to accommodate your too-small mattress (or vice-versa), but if you have them paired correctly (full-size mattress with full-size frame, queen-size mattress with queen-size frame) you definitely won’t have that issue with the mattress not extending as far as it should. My mattress extends at least a full inch past the slats and rests on the frame as it should.
My whole Brooklyn apartment is furnished from Ikea partly because I like it, but mostly because $59 for delivery to a fourth-floor walk up IS AMAZING. (That said, we did kind of pay for it in the fact that we were two scrawny girls pushing around literally an entire two bedroom apartment’s worth of furniture in the warehouse – we rewarded ourselves with the $1 cinnamon buns and then lunch at Hope & Anchor).
I had a terrible experience with the Brimnes bed a few years ago, where the drawers literally did not fit into the frame correctly (and it was not for lack of construction skills – the pieces where too short). The drawers ended up being thrown out, and I made do with a bed with weird open spaces in the base. That combined with an issue with the bottom panels coming out of their groves on my otherwise fantastic Hemnes dresser makes me a little wary of Ikea drawers in general, but you sure make this bed look really, really good here.
“the drawers literally did not fit into the frame correctly (and it was not for lack of construction skills – the pieces where too short)”
Crazy! I’ve never had anything like that happen with IKEA furniture. Did you try to return it? Sounds like you got a defective product for sure.
You had me at ‘enough storage to empty an entire closet’….!
p.s. You’re place is looking awesome. Those prints look rad really big.
Question for Ikea beds in general (I tried the “Ask Anna” – turns out, not so helpful)… Are slats a replacement for a box spring? So if I wanted to use my current mattress/box spring set with a new Ikea bed, I wouldn’t need slats….?
Anna says: Platform beds like these should not be used with box springs, so you’d need to ditch the box spring and just use your mattress.
I guess you could use the box spring, but it would be crazy high and the sides would show and the proportions would be very weird…
You’re such a better “Anna”…. Do you think I could use a box spring with this bed, I can’t tell…. (Would rather not have to buy a new mattress)
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/S49931618/#/S49931618
Well, you could stack the box spring and mattress on top of the slats, but I don’t personally think that would look good. Your mattress would be nearly the same height as the headboard. I’m also not sure if the slats are made to support the wood frame of a box spring.
Why couldn’t you just ditch/sell the box spring and use the mattress you have now? I don’t understand why you’d have to buy a new one…?
Currently adding a mattress to the cart……….. lol
Thanks! (You should get paid for this, the real Anna sucks)
Oh, here’s a Reddit page that might help…
http://www.reddit.com/r/malelivingspace/comments/18vvwr/are_there_any_ikea_bed_frames_that_work_with_a/
(I really don’t know anything about box springs! I’ve had platform beds my entire adult life.)
Is it hard to put a brines full size platform with draws together? We’re scared from watching the video.
That Reddit page was perfect. Between that and what I was reading about box springs in general, I’m just going to keep our mattress, toss the box spring and buy the bed with slats.
How much should I send via PayPal….?
Real talk for a second though — how do you feel about the lack of a headboard?
I feel great!
Like I said to Simone, a headboard would’ve killed the line of the ceiling, and neither of us ever really read in bed, anyway. Our former bed didn’t have a headboard, either.
Yeah, I’m actually just now reading about the real purpose/construction of a box spring. I just wasn’t sure if a regular mattress is ok without one and with the Ikea slats alone, but I think they are….
my last two beds were from ikea, and I had the mattress right on top of the wood slats (they were the cheaper flat pine ones, not the curved ones). they worked just fine.
however, ikea has a metal support beam in many of their king/queen beds — where the wood slats rest in the middle. I found that it will sag over time. I stacked up old magazines to support mine. for my new bed, I cut a piece of 2×4, which tucks really securely into the underside of the beam. I didn’t mind, both beds have otherwise been really amazing for their price.
You didn’t have any problems with the delivery? I’m moving into a 4th floor walk-up in Park Slope next weekend but I’ve heard so many horror stories about the Red Hook Ikea delivery service that I’m scared to use it…
Nope, it was FLAWLESS. They even delivered the same day! The only hassle (which was expected/normal) was having to do the whole warehouse thing and then waiting on line to schedule the delivery, but that’s because we were there on a weekend when it’s a zoo. A weekday would likely be even easier. The delivery itself was on time and without issue! The guys were nice, and didn’t even complain when we showed them the tiny, twisty loft staircase they had to schlep our boxes up…
(This was the in-store ordering process, though, not online.)
TBH, I expected it to be a nightmare, because everything about the Red Hook IKEA is generally a nightmarish mess. I was pleasantly surprised!
My bed frame is on it’s way out…but I think once I move in the spring, this bed frame needs to happen. I love all of the storage!
maggie
dammit I’m so jealous! I wanted that bed so bad, but they don’t have it in king. it’s super hard to find well designed things for that size. it took me months to find decent bedding and a passable frame. :/
I suppose I should not be such a size hog and get something smaller, but we luuuuuurve our king mattress with all of our sprawled out glory.
We have that bed! Have had it for just over a year, and it’s great. We use he storage for papers, and don’t have/need a filing cabinet anymore. Only downside is that the base really only looks nice with the sheets tucked in tight, and because my husband kicks the sheets out when he sleeps, he refuses to tuck them in when he makes the bed, at least on his side. So ours always looks a little messy :/
For anyone looking for a mattress, I’m going to plug the Casper mattresses. We got one for our weekend home a few months ago and now I’m so mad we spent $4k for the Tempurpedic in our apartment, because I honestly can’t tell the difference between the two. $950 for a king size and free shipping – it’s really a great deal.
I LOVE that DALSHULT/SLÄHULT table, but they don’t seem to stock it in Germany. I hate it when they bring great pieces only to certain areas… It really upsets me. That table would be perfect for our dining nook!
I can’t wait to see the rest. Beautiful.
And a little random, but I didn’t know if you saw that season 2 of The Bridge is up on Hulu. You turned me on to it and I’m so thankful. Some of the best tv I’ve seen in years.
I did, Kate, thanks! I watched it on DailyMotion (with bad subtitles) a long time ago, but I should probably post about the new season for those who don’t know yet that it’s now widely available. 🙂
Just started watching, The Honorable Woman, on Netflix. So good.
This bed is matching many measures. Ikea have it in 160 and 140cm, Spanish main king size measures are 150 and 180. 150 is looking great into 160 frame because it is full wood all arround.
Only missing small size. I found the solution cuting the 160 into two of 80 to make a sofa-guest beds corner and is being very successfull. Don’t finished yet because it’s in my weekend house but first 80 one had been confortabily used. I will make a post at the end, but I can send you pics if send me a mail to kike2@icloud.com 😉
On your advice I snuck out at lunch today and made my purchases. They’re delivering them now! They sent one guy to my 4th floor walk up and he’s a rockstar. I probably would have passed has it not been for you. Thanks!
Woo-hoo! Yeah. I wish I’d looked at the price of delivery YEARS ago, because $65 is so, so worth it for those of us with walkups.
i can’t tell you how bummed I’ve been since IKEA discontinued the RIBBA in birch. Instead they replaced it with some cheap walnut-looking nonsense with a CREAM colored mat! Ridiculous!
Jane, I know, it’s awful. I don’t get it. :\ Luckily I have a pretty big stockpile of the old RIBBAs that I cycle art in and out of (as was the case with the two pictured here—which, by the way, are solid wood and not that fiberboard nonsense they’re using now), but going forward I’m all about STRÖMBY. I know the look isn’t the same (and there’s no mat included), but at least the materials are honest.
I’m curious about the MYRBACKA mattress: what do you love about it? How did you choose it? How long have you been sleeping on it? (maybe you should write a whole post about mattress-buying!)
I really want to upgrade us to a king size but really really don’t want to spend $1500 on one. But my husband is of the “its the place you spend half your life!” variety. So I need to make a good case…
ps. I took most of your plywood kitchen floor advice for our kitchen project so I’m very interested in your thoughts!
I’m about to change things with my business and I’ll be working most of the time from home. I used to have a studio room in the house, but now my mom came to live with me and it became her room! So i’ll be working form my tiny bedroom, and the lack of space and storage will be an issue. I was thinking about getting a bed frame with drawers as a first quick solution, because that empty space under my bed is a true waste. This looks like a good option, if not for the color, that really do not match with my closet and floor. What do you think about painting it?
Hi Anna,
I apologize if you’ve already answered this Q.
I have a “pocketed coil” Beautyrest mattress and love it. It currently sits on a solid box spring. I’ve read that you shouldn’t place a pocketed coil mattress on slats that have more than 2″ of spacing between the slats. Sooo … just curious, how many inches between the slats on your Mandal frame? Also, any info you’ve heard regarding using a pocketed coil mattress on slats would be appreciated. Thank you!
daniel
oh jeez, i really love this bedroom.
Anna, your place is so beautiful!
I totally had that bed for 5 years. I loved it, until the bottom of the drawers would no longer stay in place since they’re just made from thin boards. Also the joins of the bed eventually give out. Then, I moved and it didn’t rebuild very well at all, we reinforced it with some metal L brackets, but alas, it’s life was over. However, the storage was amazing and it was decent looking and so affordable. I have yet to find a good storage bed.
Welp, hopefully it’ll work out better for me!
I love Ikea beds, for design, quality and price. I have Nordli, the biggest version for me and love it!
Great work Anna.
I would need a headboard since a read in a bed for hours (weekend), watsch movies, cuddle with my pets and chat hours overt the phone. And drink coffee in a bed.
I do agree that in your case it looks better without.
Hi!
Have you experienced any issues with the mattress moving around?
With the platform being so flush, I fear the mattress not staying in place.
Thanks!
The frame actually comes with grippy strips that work to keep the mattress from moving around. So far, so good! 🙂
SOLD! I actually read this post when you first published it, but I came upon it again now as I was searching for a bed. Just a quick mention, I’m in Romania, where cool beds are hard to find and expensive – talk about +1000Euro for anything remotely well built – and the only cheap-ish bed that attracted me was the Mandal. Combined with the fact that I’m an architect, renovating a 100 ys old apartment with exposed brick walls, the pictures above totally settled things for me. I know a good sturdy bed is hard to find and, based on all the opinions here, Mandal got really good reviews. I was thinking about the headboard also but maybe I’ll skip it for the moment. My bed is set against a white wall though, not the brick one, which is on one side of the bedroom. My only hesitation is that the floors are dark brown… help, Anna, what do you think, will I mess up with the light birch wood combo?
P.S. Also using Frosta stools as nightstands, for years now. :))))))
DO YOU KNOW IF THE WOOD SLATS CAN BE REPLACED? CANT FIND PART NUMBER FOR THAT….
THANKS!
A, you should contact IKEA.
Hello Anna,
You mentioned the amount of storage the drawers can fill could empty a closet. I was wondering if you wouldn’t mind elaborating on the storage those drawers can hold. I have searched all over the internet for reviews or feedback about the storage in the Mandal bed and I have yet to find one that’s thorough. If you had the time, I’d love to hear more about what you can fit into the drawers. Thank you!
The poster design is adding a touch of class to the room interior.
Great post!!
Hello:) I just recently moved into my very first apartment so sadly I’m starting from the bottom which means no furniture. I’ve started with my bedroom since that is where most of my time is spent and I just fell in love with the Mandal bed. Plus the price was great and with the drawers underneath I am able to do without a dresser. I also purchased the Stolmen system with drawers in the bottom and shelves on top along with the Mandal headboard. The furniture won’t arrive until the 26th but I can’t wait. All the reviews seemed good so I believe it will be money well spent. Sadly, because oft location the shipping is costing me $350 but the closet IKEA is a three hour drive so I guess it’s understandable. The only thing that worries me is how well the bed will be able to hold up to being moved because I’m in the military and will be moving every couple of years.
seriously considering this bed….i like the clean, simple look. My bedroom has carpet but the rest of my condo is a darker oak colored floor…do you think that would still look ok?
Also wanted to know how the mattress has held up? i have been a bit skeptical on buying a good quality mattress from ikea. I definitely like the price but didn’t want to jeopardize my back….are you still happy with it along with the mandal?
thanks:)
Hi Sarah, it’s only been about 6 months (so not really enough time to assess the long-term quality of a mattress), but it’s still great—just like the day we bought it. Our other two IKEA mattresses are close to a decade old, and they’ve held up great. No complaints!
And yes, I’m still happy with the MANDAL bed. It’s really hard for me to say whether or not it would look good in your bedroom since I’m not actually there, but I think it’s a pretty forgiving style and color of wood.
Thank you for that fantastic review. You have a very keen attention to detail and design. Love it!
We’re considering buying the same model, but we’re worried since the mattress is not held in place, it might shift and slide with relation to the bed frame.
Have you had any issues with the mattress moving around?
Hi John, the bed comes with grippy strips that keep the mattress from shifting. It moves mayyyybe 1/4″ over the course of a week—nothing you’d notice until it’s time to change the sheets.
Hello! I read through almost all of the comments but lost a little steam toward the end (it’s late, would put forth better effort in the daylight hours)… So hopefully you have not already addressed this. I am in love with the bed but have never had a platform bed before. Does this particular one have a lip so the mattress does not slide around? I cannot tell from their stock photos and am hoping you can advise. If there is no lip, have you ever that issue? I would hate to have to straighten it all the time. Thanks! Your photos are fantastic, btw!
Please see the comment directly above yours.
Hi, do you know what is the distance between each slat?
No, I’m sorry. I’m not able to check.
Just came to say that I am also mourning the solid wood ribba 🙁
As of Feb 2016, is the Mandal Bed and Storage still solid wood or is it MDF with foil? Also, are the drawers self- closing? I am trying to decide between this bed and the Urban Basics Storage Bed –
http://www.urbangreenfurniture.com/bedroom/queen-beds/urban-basics-queen-bed.html?SSAID=314743#.UulJ73ddWTp
Any advice would be helpful. Thank you.
Hi David, the link you posted doesn’t work for me (I’m getting a script error and the page doesn’t load), but according to the IKEA website, the MANDAL bed still has a solid birch frame. The drawer fronts are fiberboard with acrylic paint. You can see all of the details here:
http://m.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/art/90280483/
(The drawers are not self-closing.)
Thanks for this post. Was thinking of getting this one (between the Hemnes daybed or this and I think this one is going to win for sheer sturdiness) so your post helped a LOT. Love the whole apartment, really, and gotta admit, those sheets are a shame to no longer be in production.
Can’t find the Mandal bed/series at any IKEA! Like it never existed.
We love it. Where’d it go??? Help please….
This is the most detailed review of this bed on the internet! GREAT!! Could you please tell me the width, depth and height of the drawers? I live in New Zealand and we don’t have Ikea but i’m looking at buying one online!! 🙂 Thanks, your place is beautiful.
I don’t have any way of checking that for you, sorry.
I’ve had this bed since it first came out and love it. So hard to get something simple,beautiful and functional. And perfect with the mixture of white and birch. Went to buy another two for my holiday shack…and they’ve been discontinued. I cannot believe it!!!..Looked on gumtree and ebay and it’s full off Mandal beds wanted..good business opportunity for any carpenters out there!!! For all it’s worth will contact IKEA.
THANK YOU, THANK YOU, THANK YOU Anna
Fabulous site, great information, love your apartment… and sooooo pleased we just purchased the Mandal bedframe and funky Mandal headboard for our new home in Aireys Inlet, Victoria, Australia. When I went to IKEA last month they advised they only had a few left in stock as they had discontinued this line (as Sandra mentions above)
Hi there! I’m curious what you used for the inset to lift your bed frame up? I just bought the manual frame and was looking for a way to give it a lift to break up the space.
Hi Michelle, I’m not sure what you mean about an “inset.” I no longer own this bed, but I didn’t use any parts other than what comes with the bed.