Thanks again for all the great responses here. I'm happy to report that just tonight I finally made my decision and ordered a king! I went with the Novaform memory foam from Costco (they're on sale this week). I'm a bit nervous -- a bed seems like such a crucial purchase and it's so easy to get wrong -- but I feel like anything will be better than our tired old mattress. I need to decide what sort of actual bed to get with it. Since we previously had a queen I can't use the same box springs with the new mattress. I realize no box spring is necessary, but we don't even have a bed frame of any kind. We may buy a really nice bed sometime in the future, but for now I just want to sleep comfortably! I suppose it will be okay on the floor for a while, but I'll need to think of something pretty quickly. I don't think my poor old knees could take getting out a bed on the floor for too long! Thanks again for your input -- it really helped our decision-making process.

If the head and footboard have slots where metal parts of the side rails "hook" in, you can get converter rails that hook into the existing slots. They are long enough and angle out to make room for the extra length and width of a queen mattress. I have used the converter rails on two different beds, and they work very well. If they won't work on your head and footboard, you may have to purchase a queen sized metal bed frame and bolt them on. You may also want to ask for advice at an antique store.

Well hi again, Thanks for the congrats, yes, I'm, VERY excited & scared. As one can see, I'VE GOT A LOT TO LEARN -- here I thought it was asking a lot for the 20% deposit (since I haven't worked in months, I need it for materials). Well, I calculated it based on a projected approx. of 15 yds. total (7.5 front & back); all the cottons I buy at LQS are running average $9.50/yd., so $10/yd x 15 yds = $150 fabrics, then of course, there's batting & thread to add in. OK, next time I'll ask at least 40% (& probably write a contract too, which I declined to do since he offered a cash deposit & has just met me.) Lots of design freedom, all the patron expressed was a desire for very masculine, & very soft. He's specified the colors Navy & Khaki (OK by me), his girlfreind added in gray, I later realized gray & khaki are likely to be too close in value; so I'll need to ask him to eliminate one of those & pick another color. He told me I have carte blanche on the design & has asked for a plain reverse side (the baby blanket I showed him had deisgn work on back as well). I got this commission from showing the baby quilt & when the patron asked for something specifically masculine, I brought along the quilt I was making for Dad when he died (coffee-themed, featured mostly various browns, tans, cremes, bit of burgundy, mustard, gray & black. I showed a third one (smallish) mostly analogous blues/greens/purples which he felt to "purply" for him). Hope to get to LQS tonite for preliminary inquiries, am hoping to look around for some swatches & take them to my patron later this wk. The design prospects seem wide open other than QAYG which in my case was framed squares of novely fabrics (Dad's quilt). The mind boggles ........ More later & cross yr. fingers!!! (PG) Karen

Nutsaboutplants, I barely notice that the mattress hangs out on bit on either side! (And your bed is really pretty too). I figure that I usually keep a bulky comforter folded at the bottom of our bed anyways & that always hangs out beyond the footboard of our current King and I can 'mask' the headboard overhang w/ strategically placed pillows. Thanks for posting the pic it really helped a lot! The pineapple finial is missing from the headboard and 3 of the wheels are missing. DH is getting a finial for me & sorting through his piles of furniture junk leftovers at the shop for 3 wheels but we probably won't use the wheels. As much as I love to see old wheels on furniture it just doesn't seem sturdy enough for a bed that sleeps 2 adults. I think that I'm going to paint it a high gloss white. Mr. Fox said that I can't swap out the king for the queen until we're closer to getting the house on the market but I don't know..........I'm very excited about the prospect now!!!!! Thank you!