Not a bed for sleeping in — a bed for sitting on

The day bed is one of the most useful pieces in an Indian house and one of the least understood. It is a seat with the depth of a bed: somewhere to read through an afternoon, seat four people at a party, or put a guest for the night. This one is built on the frame of a four poster, with the posts and canopy carried over from the bedroom into the living room.

Turned spindle back and end. The long back and the closed end are filled with close-set spindles turned individually on the lathe, set between teak rails. The result is a piece that screens without blocking — you see through it, and the light and the room behind it stay part of the view. That openness is why a day bed works in the middle of a floor where a sofa would feel like a wall.

Four posts and an open canopy. Tall turned posts rise from vase-turned feet to spired finials, joined overhead by a plain teak frame. The canopy is left bare here, which keeps the piece light in a room with height and glass.

Dark-finished Indian teak, with a loose seat. Kiln-dried, responsibly sourced solid teak in a deep finish. The seat is a loose upholstered cushion with bolsters, so the covers can be changed with the room rather than committing the frame to one fabric for its lifetime.

Where it goes

Living rooms and verandahs first; also a landing, a wide hallway, a study, or a guest room where a full bed would be too much. Made as a single size.

Making and delivery

• Handcrafted to order in Temple Town's own workshop in Thrissur, Kerala
• Dispatch in 4 to 8 weeks depending on availability
• Arrives largely assembled; instructions included for any remaining assembly
• Slight variation in colour, grain and dimension is inherent to handmade work
• Covered by a 1-year warranty against manufacturing defects, termite and borer. Normal wear, accidental damage, improper use or cleaning, and natural wood movement are excluded
• As each piece is made to order, cancellations and refunds cannot be accepted once the order is placed

Temple Town builds in the Heirloom Modernism idiom: Indian craft held to the standard of the world's finest furniture, made to be inherited rather than replaced.