Corinne, I read about this company in interior designer Tom Scheerer's book (he ordered a piece for a house he was working on),

http://www.therajcompany.com

and have kept the website bookmarked. They sell reproductions and antiques, and also make custom pieces. Here's their selection of daybeds,

http://www.therajcompany.com/SearchProducts.aspx?key=day+bed

I haven't ordered anything because we've only just finished our new house build and I'd like to be able to replenish the coffers a bit : ) .

One thing I like is that they say they provide comprehensive shipping quotes,

http://www.therajcompany.com/content.aspx?price=Y

Please keep us posted if you decide to order a bed from overseas!

If you live anywhere that is not the tropics the furniture will never last . Those pieces require huge amounts of humidity to stand up and IMO a big mistake to order sight unseen.

Beckysharp- sjdjdj!! Yess!! This is exactly the kind of furniture I’m talking about <3 Looking into it now

Patricia- I’ve never heard of humidity being necessary to preserve furniture. Is it because of the wood type?

Anglophilia- that’s my worry : (

Worry about what insects may accompany the wood across the sea. Really. Keep your eyes on 'world travelers' downsizing home sales and resale shops. You will find something sooner than you probably think. Focus in areas for advs & garage/ or Living estate sales happen....where empty nesters move to live that active tennis and bingo and golf life, or in areas where successful retired empty nesters are moving out and downsizing to go and live that life in another state..

I'd be more concerned about insects than humidity, though depending on the seller if you live somewhere with cold winters and have a backyard, you could wrap it up well and stick it outside for a few months : ) . Considering how much stuff comes from overseas, who knows what all comes crawling out of shipping containers in North America every day. I think you take much less of a risk with a reputable company that ships overseas regularly.

Humidity can be helpful for antiques and older pieces. If a current piece is made well by a reputable company, then the wood is dried/cured properly as part of the process. As far as humidity goes, I have several pieces (mahogany, teak, cane) from Kenya and the West Indies -- a planter's chair, a rocking chair, and a server -- and have lived for more than 20 years in Alberta which is incredibly dry (it's where the saying, "yes, but it's a dry cold", comes from), and they've been fine.

As far as recourse when you buy something, check your credit card for buyer's protection provisions.

I just noticed that the Raj Company has a page of testimonials, from Tom Scheerer, Amanda Lindroth, and David Flint Wood (India Hicks's partner). These are all design professionals who I don't think would offer a testimonial if they didn't mean it.

I’m hoping it’s not super expensive- is it crazy to try to keep cost under 1,000$?

You don't have anything to lose asking for the price and also a shipping quote : ) .

Another alternative might be to look on Chairish, if you live somewhere where that's an option.

Why are they so expensive?

Shipping is a good chunk, and then too most pieces like this are made by hand, not by machine.

UPDATE!

I‘m going to make one.

mwahaha! This is gonna be awesome

Update:

So the plan to make a daybed lasted about 2 days...

I kind of went in a different direction lol. I’ll have to get a new mattress cover & some throw pillows once it arrives, but here’s what I went with:

Terrific! Please post a picture when you're finished : ) .