I'm not sure I'd rule out the white twill. (I love that Restoration Hardware bed, too!)

Because for a bed--or any piece of furniture that will be heavily used, really--I'd want that extra fabric strength that you'd get from twill rather than shantung. Especially in white. Because although I'm sure there's some fabric protection substance applied to it, you just know that someday you will get a mark on it and have to try to get it out. You're not gonna be able to do too much with the shantung.

I would go through your Yellow Pages and find a specialty fabric store--one that sells bridal/evening fabrics--and see what shantung looks like up close. Granted, what Spiegel's manufacturers use for their headboards may not be the same as in the store, but at least you'll be able to get a feel for the look and for what I recall is the nubbiness of it.

I'm not sure what your budget is (the Spiegel and RH headboards vs beds are priced so differently), but another place you might want to check is Room & Board. They have stores and a catalog, and they will send free swatches. Currently I'm trying to pick between some swatches for the Ella upholstered bed.

One last idea--you don't want to make your own? Especially for the Spiegel types. There are so many how-to pages on the Web for doing it. And even the button tufting doesn't look horribly difficult. Then you'd be sure you're getting the fabric you want.

That's a very good point about cleaning it, I hadn't thought of that. I did find this bed at the Room and Board store, so now I can't decide between this and the RH piece.
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