I just saw this in a friend's house! What she did was put the mattresses horizontal and put memory foam topper on top of it.

If you like to cuddle with your honey, go with a king mattress rather than try to create a king out of two twins.

We once rented a condo where the owner had connected twins to create a king and had put the "bridge" thing on top specifically made to cover the gap. However, it kept caving in and was uncomfortable to lie on. It was awful.

I disagree! I have always had two twins stuffed together to make a king. I believe the "formula" is two extra long twins = Eastern King as opposed to a California King size. The sheets work great. And there are different styles of "bridges", some work better than others. But putting a topper on works well for sure.

My bed of the past 15 years is be design two Xlong twins to make a King and it was $$$$. It's the same kind I grew up with and needed to send to Germany for it, I think. They maky be easier to come by now. It's called a lattoflex -- I had thought, growing up, it was Scandinavian, but when I went to buy one I think I learned otherwise. It's unbelievably comfortable. Best $$$$ I ever spent. And I have never once felt the twins pushed together were a problem.

OTOH, YMMV for sure depending on how you "use" the bed and where you and yours wind up being. I can't answer that for you, but I can offer that for some many long years I've been very happy with two twins together. Also it might matter that (a) my beds are not big thick overstuffed mattresses on a box spring -- though I have slept on them that way and they're fine (my Dad was very tall and my whole life my parents had Xlong twins pushed together too to accommodate him). But what I have has a metal frame with special foam mattresses that are thin-ish on top of it. These set inside a platform that was made especially for the bed, though I think they're readily available too.

Personally, I like the flexibility of the two twins. I would opt for this arrangement again.

we've always used two extra long twins. the king sheets fit perfectly. we originally did it this way since we couldn't fit a king mattress up the staircase landing in our old house, so it also helps when moving since the two twins are easier to handle.
i've been looking to buy two custom twins and putting each of them on an adjustable base. we've never even thought of using any kind of bridge. completely unnecessary.

yaya - yes, I forgot about that point regarding sagging because ... it just isn't a problem any longer! dh is considerably heftier than me and with our old queen I used to always roll into him. That got old pretty quick (as we did). Honestly, I think there are lots of advantages (moving is another very real one, thanks for that reminder too, Kate), and the disadvantages don't seem to be a problem. Sometimes I even use twin sheets on the bottom and a single over the top, if everything's dirty or something. Plus, should you ever need to replace just one side, you're saving money there too.

But.......why?

What a great idea, wish I'd thought of it!

Could not fit a king up my staircase, so bought a queen with a split box spring. The guys delivering it struggled for quite awhile getting the mattress around the turns.

My parents have two twins on a king platform. They use twin sheets and comforters with them. My dad has always kicked in his sleep, and many years ago they switched from a full size mattress to the two twins, for that reason.

DH and I got a new king mattress a few years ago (no box spring, we have a platform bed as well). We figured we had one more king size mattress "in us" before needing to switch to two twins (or twin XL's--thanks for that tip guys!). We prefer flippable mattresses, and realize there will come a time when we can no longer (physically) flip a king mattress.

We actually kinda regret this most recent king-sized purchase. If we thought our old matress was heavy, this one has it beat hands down. It is very dense and so freakin' heavy, we can barely flip it now (we're both in our early 50's). That is why we will eventually make the switch.

I have 2 regular twins instead of a king because we could not get a king up our angled stairs. Since Dh and I are on the short size, we didn't need the twin Xlong.

Tip re Xlong sheets: College dorms, apparently, usually have this size beds so in Big Box Back-To-School season is the best time to find these sheets.

Thank you for your responses. I still have a twin mattress in one of my daughters old bedrooms and am happy to say DH said it was fine. The extra 5 inches will be nice to have in front of our bed. Knowing I can use my sheets is a plus, now all I have to do is find a good mattress.

Do try hard to find a mattress that's the same height. If you care about appearance, check at the edge when not compressed. If you care about "cuddling" in the middle, then try to get a thickness for when compressed. That may be harder!

I got a set of these a while ago because a health doctor friend of mine suggested it. http://shufusilk.com/?product=handmade-silk
Twin definitely goes best but you need to get them together at the same time. I had some issues finding the right covers at first.

Here is a link that might be useful: silk matress and quilk

anyone know the standard size for king mattress?

We've used a pair of extra long twins as a king for 50 years without any problems -- marital or otherwise! The bed frames are hooked together. We can still flip these mattresses.

I think a pair of regular twins is going to look very odd. You'd have to have bottom sheets made unless you want to use twin bottoms.

If you want a specific size mattress, look up companies that manufacture them to your specs. We've liked Verlo here in the Chicago area.

(I'm wondering if Jewel654 is a former guest at our Maui condo. In over a dozen years of renting the place, there has been only one couple who complained that they couldn't cuddle.)