Why our sleep experts loved it
I have rarely tested a bed that so obviously wants to be in such a narrow corner of the bedroom market. The Sophie Conran Celeste divan and headboard is a fully upholstered base with a high, winged headboard, sold in a small selection of very distinctive fabrics with the optional addition of a detachable box pleat skirt. Sold as a design statement first and a practical bed frame second, that really shows in both the overall look and in the price tag which sits around the £3,000 mark without a mattress included.
For the vast majority of people, this is going to read as wildly indulgent. The patterned fabrics in particular make the whole thing look like a very chic ice cream parlour, which can be charming if you are in the right space but very hard to blend into a normal UK bedroom. Add in the cost, the lack of built in storage, and the fact that you are still on your own when it comes to choosing a mattress to go with it, and it becomes hard to sell to anyone who isn’t a complete style chaser or who is not designing the room as a complete concept.
Design and build The basic frame is an upholstered divan base with a tall, winged headboard. The headboard sweeps in a little at the pillow area, which does create a sense of cocooning and also gives a very boutique hotel silhouette overall. The height and footprint of the headboard are generous, so visually it overwhelms the wall it is sitting against. This is 100% a focal point and not at all a quiet backdrop.
There are three sizes on offer, ranging from a 4 ft 6 in double to a 6 ft super king so you can scale up the look if you have the space to do so. For such a design led piece I also like that they have not bothered with anything smaller than a double. The proportions only make sense once you have a decent width of mattress sitting in the frame.
The fabrics are where Dreams and Sophie Conran are clearly putting their budget and their marketing energy. Snowdrop is a soft linen blend in a pale, milky neutral, while Wildwood Floral and the Blush and Marine stripes are organic cotton prints that are all made in the UK. The Wildwood option is a dense floral that is quite cottagecore on close inspection. The striped options are bolder, wider bands that instantly slot the bed into coastal or deckchair territory.
You can have the upholstered base with or without the detachable box pleat skirt. The version with the skirt on has a very traditional, tailored country house feel. Without it the divan base looks crisper and more modern. In real life though, the boldness of the patterns means that even the plainer version is still fairly loud compared with more typical upholstered beds.
Assembly and setup The Celeste comes in multiple packages, with the heaviest box tipping the scales at just under 50 kg. This is a solid and substantial piece of furniture that will need at least two people to manoeuvre into place. The other boxes are lighter and more manageable to get upstairs, but this is not a case of shifting it around in the same room on your own.
As is the way with most divans, assembly is more a case of positioning than full flat pack construction. You are essentially linking up the base sections, levelling the feet, and then either bolting or slotting the headboard onto the back. The box pleat skirt, if you choose it, then attaches around the base. It is the kind of job a reasonably confident household can do in under an hour, but it is bulky enough that I would seriously consider paying for assembly if you are on your own or have tight stairways.
Lead times are also about what you would expect for a made to order upholstered piece. It is not something you can impulse buy as a quick fix for a spare room or rental. You need to be sure you really want it before ordering, because it is not the kind of impulse buy you can tuck away out of sight somewhere else if you change your mind.
Comfort and practicality Because the Celeste is a divan base and headboard only, comfort is entirely down to whichever mattress you choose to pair it with. There is no flexy sprung slat system to give extra bounce here. If you pick a firm pocket sprung or memory foam option, then you are looking at a fairly firm and supportive overall feel which some will love and others may find a bit uncompromising.
The tall winged headboard is very comfortable for reading or watching television in bed. The wings do a nice job of blocking draughts and create a feeling of enclosure around the pillow area. They also slightly narrow the width of the bed right at the head end, so it is worth bearing in mind if you share a double and already feel a bit short on elbow room.
In day to day use, upholstered beds live or die based on how forgiving the fabric is. The Snowdrop linen blend will likely conceal light wear better than the printed cottons, which feel more like a fashion choice. Beautiful in styled photography, both the florals and stripes are patterns that fight quite hard with everything else on the bed in a real bedroom with everyday bedding and cushions. You either have to commit fully to a calm plain duvet and let the bed do all the talking, or accept things may look visually busy most of the time.
Storage Unusually for a divan, there are no drawer or ottoman options here. This is not a hybrid storage solution, it is a purely decorative base and headboard combination. For a bed at this price point, that feels like a missed opportunity. In many UK homes the divan base is where the out of season bedding and clothes live, and forgoing that space to have a skirt and some pretty fabric is not going to work for everyone.
The box pleat skirt at least hides whatever you slide underneath, so you could tuck low storage boxes or vacuum bags in there as long as the frame clearance allows. It will not be as convenient as proper drawers and you will be on your knees fishing things out, but it is something at least if you need the floor space in small rooms.
Everyday use Once in place, the Celeste acts like a standard upholstered divan for day to day use. There are no moving parts to break or worry about, no lift up mechanism to maintain, and nothing much that can rattle or squeak if assembled correctly. The solid footprint also means it is much kinder to flooring compared with ultra slim metal legs that can dent carpets or mark vinyl.
Cleaning is the trade off. The very thing that makes the bed feel soft and luxurious, that full fabric wrap from floor to headboard wings is what collects dust and the odd scuff. You will be vacuuming the lower edge of the skirt and the sides of the base fairly regularly if you like things pristine. Spot cleaning patterned cotton requires some care to avoid water marks, and an all over professional clean would be a very expensive undertaking on something this size.
One other practical point. This is such a characterful design that it will dictate paint colours, curtains and even the art you choose. If you ever tire of the pattern you cannot simply throw a new duvet set on and switch the mood. Reupholstering a headboard and divan of this size in a new fabric would cost a considerable amount, so you have to treat this almost like built in joinery when you are planning the rest of the room around it.
Who it suits I can see the Celeste being a great option for anyone who adores Sophie Conran style and has a bedroom scheme already planned out. If you are creating a country house inspired guest suite, a romantic floral master bedroom or a seaside themed room and you want the bed to be the star of the show, then this fits the bill. The UK made fabrics, organic cotton prints, and the link to a well known designer are all positives if those details appeal to you.
It also makes sense for anyone who is not short on storage elsewhere and doesn’t need their bed to work double duty. If you have fitted wardrobes, a large dressing room, or plenty of under eaves cupboards then losing built in bed storage to have a bold upholstered showpiece in its place may feel like a reasonable trade off.
Who it does not suit For the majority of people, I think this is simply too niche. The patterned versions in particular are super specific. Unless you have near interior designer level confidence with colour and pattern, you risk your bedroom looking theme park rather than a timeless sanctuary. Once it is in place you are living with that look every day for years.
The price is the other big strike against it. You are paying several thousand pounds for the base and headboard only. There is no mattress included, no ottoman lift, no integrated drawers, and no clever tech such as lighting or charging. It is hard to ignore that you could buy a good quality upholstered bed frame plus an excellent mattress for the same money and in many cases still have change left over.
If you are in a smaller home, or if this would be your main bed in a typical UK bedroom, then I would struggle to recommend it. The lack of storage, the visually demanding fabrics and the commitment it requires in terms of room scheme all make it a risky choice. It feels far better suited to a carefully designed guest room or a show home than a real, multi purpose bedroom that has to work hard every day.
Final verdict The Sophie Conran Celeste divan bed base and headboard is a confident, design led collaboration with lovely fabric quality and a pleasingly cocooning headboard shape. On paper, the ingredients are good. In reality, the very brave colour and pattern choices, the lack of practical storage, and a very steep price tag without a mattress included make this a hard bed to recommend to the average buyer.
If you have completely fallen in love with one of the fabrics, have the budget and are building a complete room concept around this bed, then it may still be worth considering as a centrepiece. For everyone else, including those who are trying to squeeze good value and everyday practicality out of their bedroom spend, I would point you towards a simpler upholstered bed with either drawers or an ottoman base and put the money saved into a high quality mattress and bedding instead.
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