Italian leather is one of those terms synonymous with sexy. Leather is associated with style and luxury and leather bed furniture is at the top of the line. Leather beds come in a wide variety of styles and colours and may feature all leather surfaces or a leather headboard or leather base frame only.

Leather comes from any animal skin or hide, most commonly from cattle, sheep, goat and pigskins. The final sleek quality of the best leather is achieved in its treatment and dyeing processes.

Particularly popular designs for leather beds include the Chesterfield-style with its studded, tufted or buttoned headboards and base boards. This style is plush and striking and sometimes also features a winged headboard. The popular sleigh bed resembles an old-fashioned horse drawn sleigh with high distinctive outward-curving headboard and footboard, a very beautiful and sensuous look for a leather upholstered bed. Another interesting look is the juxtaposition of soft intimate leather padding with the hardness of chrome or timber legs.

A crisp design detail can be topstitching along the edges of the frame and white stitching on black leather is super sharp. If you have the room, you can leave a space behind the bed board and this space between the bed and wall adds to the sumptuous effect.

A leather bed is showcased by adding wallpaper or a feature such as a large mirror to the wall behind the bed. You could also paint the bed head wall and ceiling in a bold or darker colour to create intimacy. Sconce lamps too showcase the smooth leather when they are installed either side of the bed.

Bolster cushions behind the pillows look especially opulent against leather and provide more comfort options for those languorous lie-ins. To consolidate the style of the bedroom and integrate the leather bed with your decor, you might choose an ottoman, chest or day bed for the foot of bed or an armchair in matching or complementary leather. This idea works well too with cowhide which is a great look for ottomans and for area rugs.

Although we first might associate a king bed with leather, it is a suitable option for a single bed too. If you have a smaller room, consider an ottoman-style leather bed with storage area under the mattress, accessible by easy gas lift.

Genuine leather beds are worth taking care of. As a final note please remember that they need to be properly cleaned and maintained with a water-based protective cream. Leather can be easily damaged by silicon- and oil-based products that dry and crack the material.