Posts Tagged ‘bed decor’
The Versatile Daybed Pop Up Trundle
By If you are looking to add some additional sleeping space to your room, the daybed pop up trundle combo is the way to go! You not only get sleeping space for two that only takes up space for one when not in use, but you also have options of where to sleep that second person.
The daybed pop up trundle is the easiest to use of the various trundle options. You just slide it out from under the bed, raise it to its normal height, and lock it into position. With a little bit of practice, you can probably do it with just one hand! No need to flip it all around while opening up the legs like with a lift up trundle unit. And because it is not a trundle drawer version, you can move the trundle bed wherever it is needed.
Most people think that when you set up your pop up trundle bed that you will put it alongside the daybed itself. Obviously this is an option, and probably the most preferred one if you are sleeping adults in the daybed. Simply line the two beds up together and you have the equivalent of a king-size bed. You can use either 2 twin-size sheet sets or you can use a king-size set. Then in the morning, strip the bedsheets, lower the trundle bed, slide it back under the daybed, and your room is back to normal.
But with your daybed pop up trundle, you have OPTIONS! You can slide the trundle out from under the daybed but leave it at ground level … great for when sleeping smaller children. Or you can raise the bed and put it anywhere else in the room where it fits better. Or, you can even put it in another room if you need to. Just be sure to not pop it up until you have it where you want it as the open trundle bed will be more difficult to move.
If you’re thinking about adding additional sleeping space somewhere in your house but are concerned that you really don’t have room to dedicate solely to sleeping the occasional guest, a daybed pop up trundle arrangement is by far your best bet. For the space of one bed, you get two beds … and you are not even required to sleep both those guests in the same room. Underneath the daybed is built-in storage space for your trundle bed so you won’t even have to find somewhere to store your extra bed.
Bamboo Sheets and the Benefits For Your Hotel
By While attending a bed and breakfast conference recently, I visited Inn Style in the vendor section to investigate what they had in the way of organic cotton sheets. Instead, I found organic bamboo sheets. The sheets I found are 100 percent bamboo fiber sheets, not a bamboo/cotton blend.
These sheets have all the benefits of satin, silk, and high quality Egyptian cotton bed sheets, with few of the disadvantages of any of them. The price is quite reasonable. Nothing slips off them during the night (the way you experience satin sheets). The hand (how it drapes across your hand) is heavenly. These sheets, be they knit or woven, are soft, supple, and silky to the touch.
Bamboo and silk fibers are more easily damaged by bleaching than other fabrics, so using baking soda and white vinegar in your wash and rinse cycles, respectively, are a better way of keeping sheets clean, bright and soft (and not stinking of perfumes found in fabric softeners). If the sheets get a tough stain, Stain Solver is powerful oxygen bleach you can safely use on them. Bamboo sheets also fair better with a cold-water wash, rather than a warm- or hot-water wash. Think of the comfort you create and the money you save with these laundry changes!
Bamboo sheets are a great alternative to organic cotton because bamboo grows readily much less water than cotton, and without fertilizers or pesticides. By buying natural-colored, un-dyed sheets, you have completed the cycle of natural bedding. And they feel so good you are taking care of your guests, treating them like royalty, but on a reasonable budget.
The knit bamboo sheets I bought from Inn Style to experiment with came in several, softly-hued colors; I chose natural. I later found white, 250 thread-count woven bamboo sheets at Sam’s club. They are a much better quality than any discount bed sheet I’ve ever experienced or purchased. The fabric in both sets of bamboo sheets is soft and drapes nicely. They breathe well, helping keep your guests comfortable all night.
Personally I have preferred jersey-knit sheets because I live in a cool-temperature climate and these sheets regulated my temperature year ’round. I was concerned that I was going to lose that temperature balance if I gave up my knit sheets. Neither of the bamboo sheet sets is a problem for me; I maintain the right temperature while I sleep.
The sheets were soft when we first opened the package. Each has been laundered only twice, so far, but the laundry results are positive. When I removed the knit sheets from the drier the first time, after a few hours of being crumpled, I was relieved to see they weren’t terribly wrinkled. Both sets are somewhat wrinkled after the laundry cycle, which will be a problem for some people, but a non-issue for me. I’ll report again after we’ve had them longer and washed them many more times.
Organic bamboo sheets are a natural for the lodging industry. Bamboo is ecofriendly in its growth patterns, and if you take care of your bamboo sheets naturally, they also are good for your guests with allergies and chemical sensitivities. You can buy them at several places.
Luxury Bed Linens
By What defines luxury? For everything, there is a different answer, and it’s not always clear cut. In fact, many times, luxury is different for different people. In a car, some people feel luxury is simply big, soft seats. Some people have to have a lot power at their disposal. Others want a lot of high tech gadgets. Many people feel that a luxury car is a combination of all these factors. So what is luxury bedding?
What Is A Duvet?
The traditional stuffing for the duvet is down from the Eider Duck, called Eiderdown. The duvet was not invented with luxury in mind, but rather to keep warm using something nearby. Now that duvets can be found all over the world, those still made with Eiderdown definitely fall under the category of luxurious bedding. A duvet covers generally replaces comforters and blankets, and is then itself covered since the Eiderdown is difficult to clean.
What Makes Luxury Bed Sheets?
Bed sheets are normal, but not all are luxury bed sheets. There are several different ways to measure quality in bed sheets, though only a few are used everywhere. This is thread count, as well as the threads’ country of origin. Choosing your luxury bedding should involve more research than just those terms, but they’re the two you’ll see most often advertised. The best, softest luxury bed linens don’t necessarily have the highest thread count, or come from Egypt.
Matelass
Although sometimes marketed as a luxury bed linen all its own, it’s traditionally not. In fact, this French word actually means “padded”. When referring to luxury bedding sets, it generally means a hand quilted, thick luxury bed linen which, ironically, has no padding within it at all. Sometimes there are designs quilted into the linen, but sometimes it’s just a generic quilted pattern. They’re usually 100% cotton, though some Matelass is made of other things.
Coverlet
For the most part, the coverlet is purely decorative, and often sits atop a duvet or other thick covers. Besides being used on a luxury bed, the coverlet can also be found being used a throw blanket, or even a picnic blanket. They are generally quite thin, and are rarely suitable for keeping warm. Although coverlets have been around for a while, they have been largely replaced by duvet covers in most luxury bedding ensembles. The coverlet is still used by some, though, and can be found in a wide variety of designs and patterns. They can be purchased individually, or found in a luxury bedding set.
The Beginning of Bedding Bedspreads in America
By Early bedding bedspreads and coverlets in America were produced by hand or woven on a loom just as other textile products were. The complexity of the woven bedspread patterns were limited only by the talent of the person hand weaving them or the limitations of the early type textile looms in existence at the time.. The patterns woven into these products could also be influenced many different cultures from around the world. This would depend upon the ethnicity of the person making the bedspread or coverlet.. They quite often were given as gifts and were kept as heirlooms by many families.
In the earliest years of American History these bedspreads and coverlet were woven by hand on basic looms at home or could be embroidered by hand. By approximately the early eighteenth century, professional male weavers took over most of the textile production in America due to the popularity of these items. The development of more advanced technology used in textile looms allowed mass production that was not possible before..
The Colorado Springs Museum has on display over forty early American coverlets. Among those featured include examples of the most common weaving patterns.. They include examples woven at home by women as well as professional woven patterns produced on textile looms. They vary from simple to complex in pattern design..
Prior to the nineteenth century industrial revolution, textiles were among the most expensive household items possessed by early Americans. They became cheaper after the development of textile looms that could produce products in larger quantities. Textile products were immensely popular among early Americans. Bedspreads were no exception and demand increased as the price moderated.
Commercial textile products became a symbol of status and wealth among early Americans. Woven bedspreads, table cloths and other items such as clothing were extremely popular and quite expensive for the time period. It was not until the nineteenth century that ordinary people could afford store bought textile products. Many of the patterns from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries are still being produced in America. Modernization has not changed the popularity of well designed patterns used in bedspreads and other textiles. Explore these pattern designs and I think you would agree.
Staying in a 3 Star Hotel
Last week I had the opportunity to stay at a 3 star hotel. I was going to a small conference in a city not far from home but knowing it would be late at night to drive home I decided to book a room. I book the hotel on line and some times you wonder if the rooms are as nice as the pictures.
When I walk into the hotel it was every bright and clean and well kept. The room I had was just like the picture on the website.
It had a mini kitchen with full frig, 2 electric burners to cook on, a microwave oven and a dish washer all the amenities of home. There was chesterfield on one side of the room and the bed on the other.
The bed was made up with nice white cotton sheets and lots of pillows. The comforter was a chocolate color with a white design through it. There was also a matching pillow to go with the down comforter.
This room was all that I hope it would be well maintain ,clean, bright and with all the luxuries you look for when you book a hotel room away from home.
This hotel was to me a 3 + more and I would look to stay at this hotel again if it was in the area I was going to in the future.
Cold Winter Nights
Summer has passed, fall is upon us and soon it will be the cold winter nights. This is when we look for the warmth and comfort of a down comforter that it gives us on a cold winter’s night.
We must look to see if there are different types to choice from when it comes to down alternative comforters for those who may be allergic to goose down. Down alternative comforters can be found in hypo allergenic comforters and other made out of synthetic materials.
Most of these alternatives will not be as warm as goose or duck down. The benefit is that you will eliminate the allergy risk.
If you or someone in your family suffers from allergies you’re not out of luck when it comes to comforters. With a little searching you will find the perfect down alternative cover.
Don’t Forget the Bottom of the Bed
So you’ve furnished your bed with a comfortable downy comforter, smooth satin sheets and a comely cotton duvet. You might think that you’ve created the softest, most satisfying sleep experience around – and you’re not far off the mark. All that remains to be settled are the final few aesthetic flourishes that can take your bed to the next level. It might be fit for a prince now, but soon it will be worthy of a king.
Attention is typically lavished on the bedspread, and the lower part of the bed is neglected. No one wants to see the unsightly dust and debris that accumulate under a bed; bed skirts can obscure those unpleasantries entirely. Skirts come in both ruffled and pleated varieties, both of which are suitable for upper-scale bedrooms and should be selected based on the room’s style and theme.