Communicate, navigate, aviate.
It all began with, 'My son would like a helicopter bed, is this something Dragons can do?'
At this moment a child's dream started to be fulfilled and our machine cogs turned full throttle in delivering the reality.
The Dynamic Team
In early 2018 Lucinda Croft, Creative Director gathered her team of six for Dragons' most technical venture yet. With the help of our specialist craftsman who we call Q - to us he is gold dust, a wizard of gadgets and we are James Bond on a mission! Along with his right hand man, our two Senior Mante plus Head of Logistics, Alex, we had a strong crew. We also just happened to have an eye-in-the-sky. Lucinda's eldest brother, Roo Fisher, a helicopter pilot, who was involved at the start of phase one, the most crucial of all phases; the design process. If you're designing a helicopter bed, a person who flies them might come in handy?!
"There was lots to evaluate; absorbing the list my brother gave us plus the research and perspective of our mastermind, Q , we developed the concept and added in some more realistic details. It was a lot of back and forth; craftsman to designer, designer to craftsman"
~ Lucinda Croft, Creative Director ~
Helicopter Hangar
Designing the themed bed took a couple of months as Carrie's creative ideas needed to encompass the client's full vision, which was for the helicopter to house both a bed and a desk. Carrie and Q also managed to design it in such a way that it could travel the miles. How could a helicopter bed that has a built-in study unit be transported overseas to the client's home? This is where Alex came in with his shipping fundamentals and Q commandeered the build in segments so that each piece could be accommodated inside special boxes we use for international shipments. Of course, we did consider adding a rotor mechanism and fly it out to the client, but then we thought, maybe not this time!
Whilst designing continued, Q 'casually' built another workshop behind his old studio so that he could accommodate the height of a helicopter bed. Essentially when the bed started to take shape, it was like he had his very own aircraft hangar!
Come Fly With Me
We are so lucky to have Q. This dream aviation bed started with a robust steel support structure, them moved on to a hand-sculpted high density foam and resin mould and then finally to a bespoke high-gloss painted fibreglass finish. The hours of craftsmanship, to achieve this glass-smooth shiny appearance with an upholstered faux leather and lit interior is why this bed is like no other. Handmade at its finest and most exclusive!
We haven't even told you about the playful control panel! This is where the beauty becomes an exhilarating experience for your mini first officer in the making! Taking reference from real life; the LED lighting on the exterior of either side of the bed are different colours because that's the signal that tells the ground crew, the direction it is flying in. Your little pilot can create a real atmosphere with flash lighting on the tail and also feel comforted by the night light on the inside. Did we mention the walkie-talkie and USB port?! How about the personalised dashboard, complete with joystick. "Officer? Come in. Zulu-Alpha-Charlie-Kilo, reporting for duty."
Just Landed
"The most rewarding part for me was the install. We assembled on site and so for the first time I was a part of seeing the reaction from the parents and the child. Zack was so happy, sitting on the bed, climbing up the ladder to the top deck, playing with all the controls. It made all the hard work worth it and why it became such a personal project."
~ Q, Specialist Craftsman ~
"It was quite nerve-racking during production, but from seeing it as a mould to then all in one piece within Zack's room - that we completely interior designed, it took my breath away. It's a work of art and I've never seen anything like it. I was so proud of our team - it was as epic as we had hoped it would be."
~ Lucinda Croft ~
"The bed is the talk of the town!"
~ Zack's Parents ~
Imagine the extraordinary helicopter bed in your little boy or girl's bedroom. Explore our bespoke beds collection and embrace our motto that anything is possible! View the Interior Design gallery of Zack's room here.
Follow the story on Instagram with #TheHelicopterBed @dragonsofwaltonstreet and @dragonsinteriors