Would they be more comfortable at a nearby hotel/motel? If so, treat them when they come and just make this a nice sitting area.

Will it hold twin beds? Sounds like the windows would be a problem.

There are sofa beds that are comfortable. As comfortable as beds. And good looking. Usually, you're looking at couple thousands, and modern or contemporary style. You can source them sometimes cheaper on Craigslist and such, but then you get sometimes delivery problem to solve.

They also make queen daybeds. Or maybe just full ones? I think Restoration Hardware makes them, but need to double check. Yes, also expensive. Maybe more than couple thousands.

If it's something within your budget/style, I can try and find some links for you. I was looking into many options for our guest room, so I saved some on a Pinterest board.

In the end, I bought a day bed with another roll out bed underneath. Brand: Ballard Designs. sourced on Craigslist so (very) good price-included both mattresses, slipcovers, everything.. Not my style, but gave most versatility for different guests (one guest, a couple, kids, a parent with a small kid..) Mine is inside a bedroom though. Not sure would work in a living-living space as great.

Anglophilia, I don't think they would ever stay in a hotel, and if they needed to, they'd never allow us to pay. A blessing and a curse, I guess. So that's not really an option. I think twin beds could be okay, despite the windows. But I wouldn't want them to be permanent twins, they would need to be some sort of furniture that converts.

Aprilneverends, very thoughtful comment, thank you!! I'm open to spending about 2K total on the room. I don't trust furniture from Restoration Hardware ( nor can I afford it) but I'll definitely look into it for ideas of styles. I love the idea of a daybed with trundle, but I think that means one of my parents would be stuck getting out of bed off of floor level which could be hard on their knees. Maybe some have a trundle that lifts up to a standard bed height which would be ideal. How do you like the quality of yours from Ballard Designs? That French country style is definitely my design style, I dont personally care for modern or contemporary.

What about a Murphy or wall bed? They make some very nice looking ones now.

Mary Lu, it's a good idea, but due to all the windows, I don't have enough of a run of wall space for it. Incidentally, we're a family of five and stayed at a resort in Vermont few weekends ago and it was the first time I'd actually seen a real Murphy bed pull-out from the wall. They are really neat, and a great option in the right space!

If you have an IKEA nearby, go try out their sleeper sofas. I don't know if they are comfy, but they are affordable! (Some of their mattresses are pretty good so it's possible...)

Look up "pop up trundle" on Google. I've slept in those and if the mattress is good, they're fine. Then you just need to find a nice daybed with a um...trundle hole?

A "trundle hole", ha. Fori, I'm blushing! Yes- I have an Ikea about an hour away. Great idea. Off to Google trundle pop ups. I don't mind upgrading for a good matress for my parents.

I was also going to recommend a daybed with a pop-up trundle. We used that set-up in a teen's room and it worked great. Most of the time, it was set up like a couch, but was easily convertible to two twins or one larger bed.

I have the queen-sized EZ bed. I make it a little more comfortable by adding a memory foam topper. The rest of the time, the topper lives on a guest bed, so I don't have to store the topper anywhere. My nephew who is 6 feet tall, but quite slim prefers the pull-out sofa bed to the EZ bed for reasons he is unable to articulate. I've had other shorter, single guests say the EZ bed was comfortable. It's hard to know if they mean it or are just being polite. I find it a bit jiggly, so it might not be too comfortable with two people using it.

rebecca, yes, the trundle does pop. (but I can't do it lol-need to call someone stronger)

the quality will totally depend on the mattresses you purchase..the sellers gave us their mattresses..nothing special, but I must say-much better than I expected. Guests (we had three using the bed by now) report they sleep well. I tried the bed too-not for a prolonged time, but it's comfy to me.

it is on the higher side though.

So for example I used a trundle in its low position for my mom who is petite.

And when my MIL was recuperating in our place after her hospital stay, and was frail and light headed we preferred her to be on a trundle, even though the height is ok for her when she's healthy and all.

I don't like RH either. So I'm with you here. But that's where I saw that huge daybed..I think..

Raymour and Flanagan has nice convertible sofas. My DD got one with memory foam. Very reasonable and the warranted can't be beat.

To me, even if a day bed is made up nicely, it is still a bed and not really comfortable to sit on during the day.

I have always loved these sleeper chairs from Ballard Designs.

http://www.ballarddesigns.com/ProductSearch2#w=sleeper%20chair

Pop up trundles are nice as well although are hard to pop sometimes. But they are not as comfy as a sitting surface as they are so deep.

I have a hi-riser with popup trundle. It is very useful. Because it is deep, it is not the most comfortable seating surface, but with firm wedge bolsters and lots of pillows it makes a cozy reading nook. I inherited it from my parents and have moved it to 5 houses, the fact that I keep moving it speaks to its worth.

It's like this

IKEA Hemnes daybed, currently on sale (Last Chance). It converts to the size of two twin beds.

Or a sleeper sofa, e.g. Holmsund. Too bad, they don't have the Ektorp anymore.

Cleo, Love those sleeper chairs from Ballard. I would love to do those with a small coffee table between them, and that's it in the room. I'd have to measure up and see if there will be enough space to fit them and have them opened with enough remaining walk space to get around the room. I think it would be very tight.

Nosoccermom, great find with the Hemnes, thank you!

Much to my embarrassment I am sharing pictures of the space to give a better sense of what might look right. Please ignore clutter, it will all be cleared out. The sofa in there now is a queen sleeper and fits just exactly right. However, the matress is shot. I wonder if I get a similar sofa but don't use the Ottoman (it's too big for the room) and just do a very small coffee table if it could achieve the look I want once all the other clutter is out.

Here's the room. Its open off the dining area. To achieve a proper guest space we should probably hang some sort of window treatment over the French doors for privacy when doors are closed.

Hi Rebecca --

What a pretty room! Since the sofa looks like it's still in good shape and works well with the wall color and adjoining DR, can't you just replace the mattress?

ETA -- random well-reviewed mattress under $150

[And optionally add a memory foam/latex topper that lives elsewhere? We opted for a sleeper with MF "upgrade" when we purchased our pullout, and it's not bad -- but the extra topper is better.]

One thing I appreciate as a guest is a spot to unpack some of my essentials that I don't necessarily want out in shared spaces due to privacy or forgetfulness -- thinking meds, vitamins etc. It's tough with all those beautiful windows but maybe there's a spot to tuck a shelf or another corner cab like you have.

Ditto for a hook or 2.

Good luck!

House Vixen, your name suits you ....Because I just discovered after opening the sofa, that you're absolutely right!!! I can just replace the mattress!! Don't I feel stupid now! And super excited that I just saved a lot of $$ on replacing just a mattress not the whole sofa. It will need a good shampoo, and that Ottoman still needs to go but this just opened up a new world for me! Maybe instead of the Ottoman a very small coffee table that has some sort of baskets or drawers for my guests belongings could work? The ottoman in there now opens and is a great spot for storage of blankets and sheets so I will miss that, but it just takes up too much space in the room.

Hi again Rebecca --

Thanks much -- but please don't feel stupid!

Since I came along after you posted photos my mind naturally went to "replacement mattress" first.

It probably helps that I have both a small TV room with pullout *and* a daybed elsewhere; I feel the latter works better when its use is more for one person (or let's face it: any pets!) to lounge.

One thing to think about with the ottoman's successor is whether you'll keep it in the room once the bed is extended. If so, a bench or bench-style might fit under the windows on the left.

You could also think about pulling the sofa out from the wall and storing your bedding behind it. I'm sure Ikea and others have clever solutions, but a couple of stackable lidded tubs would probably get the job done while remaining hidden.

What a beautiful room and great idea to just replace the mattress --- also way more comfortable to sit on a sofa than on a daybed.

Could you just add he same kind of Roman shades on the inside of your French doors?

Not sure about your budget, but DD bought theIKEA Vittsjo nesting tables

and spray painted them a slightly rose brass color. They are inexpensive (60.00/pair) and quite sturdy. She gets lots of compliments.

They also have a round version and a cute laptop table.

I was going to suggest the day bed from IKEA that nosoccermom posted - we have that bed in my dd's room as a regular bed. Her room is small and we needed something that had storage underneath but could also be extended if she had a friend sleepover or we needed a larger bed for guests. What makes it unique from a typical trundle bed is that most trundle beds take up that storage space so either you have drawers underneath the bed, or you have a pull out trundle. The IKEA bed is designed so that the mattress sits on top of those drawers. You can either store the extra mattress on top of the twin bed (so the two mattresses are stacked sort of like a bedspring then mattress though they are not nearly as deep), or you can actually roll up the spare mattress and store elsewhere. Even with just one mattress on the daybed, it is comfortable to sit on. The other thing I will add is that the bed is VERY sturdy and heavy, unlike some of the IKEA furniture. it is very well made for IKEA.

You can keep pillows and bedding stored in the drawers which is handy.

4kids4us (fun username) thank you for the thoughtful comment, I have decided to go a different direction since it will allow me to save quite a bit of money by just replacing the mattress in my existing sofa pull out. Glad to know that is it comfortable option though, since I am considering adding a daybed to my Dad's bedroom for sleepovers, ect.

Nosoccermom, those nesting tables are awesome I love how creative you can get with Ikea furniture. I think you're onto something with the idea of using nesting tables, as a space saving option. I will look for something that doesn't incorporate glass, since my DS had a terrible accident in our house with a glass table... Since then, we've removed all furniture from our home that has glass in it.

For temporary storage for guests, you could put a couple hooks in the ceiling and hang a closet organizer in a corner...they fold flat when you need them to go away. (The organizer, not your parents.)
There are more attractive options, but this is the general idea.

My only plea is to take a good long sleep on the pull out and make SURE it is comfortable. In laws have a pretty good sleeper sofa and it is sheer torture because of that benighted center bar.

If you keep the dead mattress and add a new mattress on top (there are some great air mattresses for sofabeds these days, which would avoid any problems with folding the thing up again) you may find that totally eliminates awareness of the center bar.

A piece of paneling under the mattress can help with the bar too. But Robo is right: you must sleep on it once before sticking your parents on it!

Thanks, all. Great points. The mattress we had before was a spring mattress with about four inches of air mattress on top that could be inflated to their preference. Problem is my Dear Dad is obsessed with the inflation and had over-inflated it so many times that there are now giant air bubbles that have ripped through the stitching of the mattress. So, I'm thinking a regular matress and then purchasing a quality memory foam topper or egg crate for the top. That, plus a nice down mattress pad which I already own, should do the trick.

I like the makeshift closet, Fori! When they leave I could take it down and replace it with a hanging plant.

Also, I'd invest in a quality foam mattress topper. In my bonus room I have a run of the mill queen sofa bed. I had a period where I had frequent guests and decided it needed to be more comfy. I bought a really nice 3" thick foam topper. I keep it rolled up and and stored in a big Rubbermaid container in an attic space when not in use. When I know I've got company coming I get it out and lay it out to poof back up, it only needs a few hours. Then I got some really great jersey sheets from The Company Store and some really high quality pillows, I have a set of down and a set of polyfilled and I put all 4 pillows out so people can use the type they like. Those also go in a bin in the attic. I toss some dryer sheets in the bin as well. I got so many compliments on how comfy the sofa bed is. Make sure there is a good reading lamp on a side table within easy reach.

Great advice, Annette! Yes, I will plan to do something similar. Do you find that the foam topper is really heavy to lug up and down? That is my only concern, but I will give it a try. I love the Company Store, their quality can't be beat! Yes, a reading lamp and an outlet for cell phone charging is a must for any guest space. I discovered these at a hotel and love them for that purpose!

Rebecca, I don't have trouble moving the topper around but then again we own a dog training kennel and I spend all day moving heavy stuff. One option is to buy a new ottoman with storage in it and keep the topper right in the room. Pillows and sheets are easier to move around for sure. There are also wood coffee tables with flip up lids if you're tired of the fabric option.

You could maybe mount a curtain rod over the French doors on the sunroom side and the keep drapes way to each side and then whomever is staying in the room pulls them closed when they are in the room. Then you maintain the glass option.

It is a pretty room for sure so am looking forward to seeing how it turns out.

I was also thinking of a trunk as a coffee table for extra blankets/pillows, or whatever, You could also use a smaller square trunk/trunks as side tables instead. You can never have enough storage, guest room or not.

I have one of Frontgate's EZ Inflatable guest beds for my study/occasional guest room. With a mattress topper, it's very comfortable, as the mattress is adjustable to suit the person sleeping on it. That said, I would have much preferred a good sofa bed. I didn't go that way because the other furniture in the room (large old roll-top desk that I love and use, antique credenza, built-in bookcases with tv, big to-die-for comfy leather easy chair), made adding a sofa in there impossible. I just loved the furniture in there too much to replace it. I tried reconfiguring, but it just wouldn't work for me. But, my room is large enough to fit the bed in there comfortably, with all the other pieces. For you, though, I'd look for a sofa bed. I store our inflatable bed in the room's walk-in closet, but you still need room around it when it's inflated to walk, nightstands/tables to put things on, etc. Moving furniture that's already in there can be a logistical PIA.

Annette, great suggestions, looks like you and patty-cake had the same suggestion for a trunk or table with storage.

Lynn, good to know the EX bed is comfortable, but I've decided to keep my existing sofa/bed and just replace the mattress. Sounds like you landed on the best choice for your space, and were able to keep the furniture you love. Thanks for weighing in!

Well, it only took me 7+ months, but, I've finally made my sunroom/guestroom, guest-ready! Here are the changes: I removed the old air mattress from the sofa bed and added a new 7" memory foam foldable mattress which is extremely comfortable! I removed a lot of the clutter, and took out the bulky ottoman. I'm still looking for some sort of small trunk or garden seat to use as a coffee table, but for now I'm enjoying the openness of the space. I found an old stool that I'm using as an end table to the right of the couch which can be pulled out and used as a luggage rack when guests arrive. I also stocked the luttle shelf cubbie with towels, linens, a universal charger and an alarm clock that includes 2 USB ports for charging, and an extra extension cord. The final touch, which I will add photos of later, are these cool magnetic curtain rods that I can add to the french doors with black curtain panels, so gusts can have complete privacy. The best part is, the hardware & curtains can be removed when guests are not here for a more open airy look. I'm open to any other ideas and suggestions to make this a nice welcome space. It helps that we properly landscaped the terrace and patio for beautiful views out the surrounding windows. Overall, I'm really happy with it and appreciate all the great advice I got from this thread! It saved me from needing to purchase a whole new couch/bed!

Wow, it looks beautiful! So nice that you didn't have to get a new sofa! I'd love to stay in that room!

Thanks, Gail!

And, here's the removeable magnetic curtains. I used command strips to add magnetic disks (which I painted white to blend with the doors) to each corner so the rods can go on/off whenever I want. Pretty nifty.

It looks great! Such a welcoming guest room. I'm sure your parents (and other guests) will enjoy it!

Well it looks welcoming to me!!

What time would you like me to come over?

What a beautiful room! Great sitting room- welcoming guest room.

Good work, so nicely done! Thanks for taking the time to share.

Thank you for coming back and updating-- looks great!! And I am most intrigued about the command.magnet.curtain rod brilliance. ( I was saying to myself while reading wow your doors must be metal how strange:). It works beautifully together so inviting.!

It's just charming, nicely done! Your magnetic window treatment idea is truly inspired. When the curtains aren't up, where/how do you store them? I'm imagining a magnetic mount in a closet somewhere where they stay on their rods, hanging straight till needed?

Really nice! Your guests and you must be excited.

Thank you for reporting back. Well done!!

Bpathome, the rods separate from the middle (because they are expandable) so I slip off the curtains and neatly fold them, and store them with my linens and lay the rods along the drawer edge when they are not in use. I have a handheld laundry steamer, so when I want to pop them back on, I just give them a quick steam to look neatly pressed. The only sign of them when not in use, is a small (postage stamp size) magnet square that I permanently adhered to the doors top corners (because my doors are not metal). But I painted them white and they lay almost flush to the door (less than 1/8 thick) so they really do just blend right into the door.