As I was washing the sheets today, I pondered bed making. Do you think, as I do, that people are divided into two groups: those who make their beds every day and those who don’t? I know people who never make their beds. They change and wash sheets, of course, and perhaps for a few hours the bed is freshly made, but for the most part it isn’t. And it doesn’t seem to concern them one bit.
I have a sneaking suspicion that Don, for example, would never make his bed if he hadn’t met me. After 17 years together, I’ve trained him well enough that even when I am out of town he will make the bed. Maybe not as early in the day as I would, but he’ll get around to it.
You can surely tell that I am a staunch and true member of the Bed Makers Club. The bed has to be made. End of discussion. I don’t necessarily like the process of bed making, but I love the end result. When Don was sick a few weeks back, he stayed in bed for 2 days. It killed me. I desperately wanted to make that bed. The only time I really don’t care about whether the bed gets made or not is when I’m really sick. When I had my surgery this past summer, for a few days I cared not a whit about the bed. Then, for a period of a month, per doctor’s orders, all I could do was pull the covers up. No lifting of the mattress. No tucking.
Didn’t like.
I’m curious about those who spend a fortune on expensive sheets and pillows and dust ruffles and never make their beds. I’d like to have a little chat with them and find out what makes them tick. They, in turn, might examine my need to make the bed and conclude that I am a wee bit anal.
I can’t help it. I love the look of a freshly made bed. It satisfies me. Even if I never get back in the bedroom until it’s time to go to bed, I know the bed looks nice. There are the rare occasions when I am so caught up in events or errands that I forget to make the bed. When I innocently walk upstairs later in the day and see it in all its unmade-ness, I gasp. I’m not kidding. Ask my husband.
So, even though I know we need a new mattress, that we need a king size rather than a queen size bed, that I’d like a new blanket, I can ignore all that if the bed looks crisp and pretty.
By the way, when I was in Wisconsin this summer, I was informed that Tempur-Pedic had donated lots of their beds to the theater and that I would have one in my apartment. I had my doubts about whether I would like it (“it’s a foam mattress” kept running through my brain) but I have doubts no longer. Oh my goodness, I loved that mattress. No more sore hip if I stayed in one position too long, no sore lower back from sleeping on my back. Hey, I’m in my fifties; I need more cushioning. The whole memory foam thing is true. It really does shape to your body. Alas, they’re pretty expensive and must remain on my ‘someday’ list. I know that mattresses are highly personal choices but if you get a chance to try a Tempur-Pedic, you should. And no, I’m not getting compensated for this, I just really miss sleeping on that mattress!
But, as usual, I digress. Back to my question. Are you a bed maker or are you a non-bed maker? Tell me. Share your thoughts on the subject. I’m conducting an unofficial poll.
Now what an interesting topic! So is it alright for a person (and I’m not saying me) does not make the bed? I know someone (and I’m not saying its me) who doesn’t make the bed unless the sheets are replaced. She just wakes up, throws back the covers, and carries on with the rest of her day. Sure she prefers the bed to be beautifully made up with all the pretty pillows she made perfectly arranged and the room neat and tidy, but she (and again I’m not saying its me) just gets tired of having to redo everything each and every morning. So, I guess its just whatever works for you. I know she loves beautiful orderly rooms and beauty is a big part of her life. Your gorgeous afghan for example makes her envious…
Maybe if she had a Poster-Pedic mattress she would jump out of bed feeling no pain and make up the bed!!!
Blessings,
Doni
I’m a bed maker. Not anal about it, it’s never perfect, but I like getting in an organized blanket bed at the end of the day. Something about getting back into an unmade bed just doesn’t seem right.
I tried those mattresses when we bought our bed last year… and it bothered me that as I moved around, it took a while for it to take my shape. So we didn’t go with it. Some people love them, and some people we’ve talked to really didnt’ like them once they spent the money. I think it’s an individual thing.
Hi Claudia,
I must admit that I am a part-time bed maker! I do have wonderful sheets on a kingsize bed. A very expensive mattress, good pillows and a lovely white duvet with matching shams. I just kind of fluff the bed and pull back the sheets. I really prefer a messed up bed look. That’s my story and I’m stickin to it!!! LOL!
hugs
Sissie
Hi Claudia,
I make my bed, but not my kids-I just shut their doors so I don’t have to see them unmade! They’re 16 and 18, a little too old for me to still do it for them.
-Lynn
Okay, I confess…if it weren’t for my husband, our bed would be made maybe once a week (after I wash the sheets of course!). There, I said it! (At least I married smar,t right?) LOL!
Bed maker here. Every day like clock-work. Even the dog knows that once the bed is made he is to only sleep in his own bed. ha! I even make the bed in the kitten room these days. They can really make a mess of things so it gets straightened every morning and then some. No expensive duvets on that bed, though. Anal?…who cares. Hugs
I can’t believe I am admitting this but, I don’t always make my bed. For years I did and now that it is just me it’s one of many things that I don’t do routinely. I even have a post showing my pretty bed with it’s newness (linens). Maybe I will start doing better!
Definitely a daily bedmaker – could never miss, neither will Bob when I’m away! Our master is visible downstairs, walk by the door often and it has to look neat and tidy!
I think the duvet has changed the mechanics of bed making – nothing easier than pulling it up and fluffing it smooth before piling on some nice decorative pillows. BUT, my least like household chore has to be putting that darned duvet cover back on after laundering!
Small cottage rooms don’t make it easy either – only room for queen beds here so turning mattresses are always a job and a half!
Linens? Always buy Rachel Ashwell’s Simply Shabby Chic sheets from Target – love them – and have her linen blend natural duvet covers and dust ruffles.
Off now to make up the bed – just washed everything so I can leave tomorrow knowing DH will be OK for a week or so – then it’s up to him until I return!!
Hugs – Mary
As a young girl, we had to make our bed every day. I did not know you were not allowed to not make your bed! Even when I do not feel well, I would rather make the bed and then pile up on top of it with an afghan or quilt — unless I am really, really sick. Something about a made bed makes me feel a wee bit better!
I married an even more avid bedmaker! He preferred his way of making the bed, and it is now his job. Our bed is made every day!
I’m with you! That bed has GOT to be made. I could never walk past it during the day with it unmade. I can’t even think about it being unmade. The whole room could be neat as a pin but if the bed was unmade the room would look like a disaster. Jeez this is kinda weird isn’t it? HA! And I don’t even have nice bedding! Wish I did tho!
Those are such sweet pillows.
And I’m a non-bedmaker on most days. Why? Dust mites. I heard recently that they can’t easily survive in an an unmade bed.
If only I knew THE POWER of those words when little and forced to make up my bed. Lol!
Kristin
We have a foam mattress & L.O.V.E. it. Never slept better.
I’m a non-bedmaker bedmaker. If that makes sense. I smooth the sheets and fluff up the sleeping pillows and then I flip the comforter a couple of times and that’s it. The bed is made. Part of my simple-is-beautiful life. :)
oh- I hate to admit this- but I am a “lazy” bed maker- probably closer to non bed making. We have a King Cal mattress and the thing is so heavy- plus I cannot stand to sleep with sheets tucked under the bottom of the mattress- so I usually pull up the sheets and the bedspread, etc- but nothing ever gets tucked under. So- it’s a step better than a crumpled mess but it would not pass a military inspection :) Great post Claudia- and I am in love with your crocheted afghan-gorgeous ♥
i am a bed maker. i don’t like it when my husband doesn’t get the pillow placement right on the bed! hahaha!! i have trained him pretty good though…
somedays though, the bed doesn’t get made til almost the end of the day…that’s usually a day where just about everything has gone wrong though ;)
i HATE changing/washing the bedskirt! too exhaustiing.
Your post made me smile. Count me as a member of the Bed Makers Club. First thing, the bed needs to be made.
I’m a total bed maker. Everyday first thing . Love 100 % cotton sheets too. Oh, and even worse I iron the pillow cases. Eeeeeeeks. A little ocd on the whole bed thing. So are youdoing a ripple now.yipee. Kate xoxoxox
I have to confess I’m somewhat of a neat freak so I’m in the bed maker category. The bedroom just doesn’t seem neat and tidy to me if the bed isn’t made. For many years though, when I worked, I was up and had to leave for work before my hubby was out of bed so it never got made in the morning during the work week. (He didn’t care if it was made or not.) However, since I don’t like getting into bed when it’s a rumpled mess, I would make it at night (minus the decorative pillows) and then slip into bed. (Now that’s anal! lol.)
Since I don’t work anymore, the bed gets made every day–not necessarily the minute I get out of it because I’ve read the sheets should “air out” before you cover them up–but it does get made as part of my daily chore routine.
We have a king size Sleep Number bed. One of my biggest complaints about it is that depending on the number setting, it almost always looks saggy, and the prettiest linens can’t cover that up. I’m trying to talk Hubby into a new “fluffy” bed but he loves the Sleep Number.
Did you find the TempurPedic foam mattress to be hot? I wonder about that because living here in Florida, the last thing we want to do is sleep on a mattress that retains body heat!
This was a fun topic, Claudia. It has been interesting to read everyone’s responses. :)
I’m a chronic staightener so of course the bed must be made. Mr C. gets out of bed later than me so he is almost always the one making the bed, but if he didn’t, I would. But it’s a quick and easy sraighten the sheets, quilts, cover, and tons of pillows on top. I hate getting into an unmade bed at the end of the day. It makes me cranky, and I don’t think it’s as comfortable. And a freshly made bed with clean and ironed bedding… NOTHING better in the whole world!!! I even make the bed in hotels. A good daily ritual seems like the way to start the day.
I do make the bed. Not perfectly, but it is made. It seems like since i got the pretty new quilt I am making it more. But then again I lay on it to read so it doesn’t always look great.
I get up, pull the sheets and covers back up. But, I don’t really make the bed. Not like the hotels do. Not like what the pictures show! :-)
I am a bed maker! However the decorative stuff is left in storage until company is coming ;^)
Oh I am definitely a bed maker. I need it to be made so I can slip into at night and feel like all is right with the world. Interestingly enough I have raised two non-bedmakers. Even though they were required to make their beds when living here, I notice they don’t necessarily do so now that they are on their own. I grit my teeth and say nothing – for once! Ann
I waiver… sometimes it gets made, sometimes not. Today it’s made. :-)
I’m a bed-maker. Even in a hotel.
But what’s more important to me is airing the bed before making it. I always toss the duvet and cushons. And the window is open day and night during spring, summer and autum.
My husband is a non-bed-maker …
Most of the time I make the bed, but the pets get up there and rearrange all the pillows so it doesn’t stay tucked in very long. Costco has a 12″ gelfoam mattress that was just on coupon sale for $100 off so the queen was only $400 and the king $500. Didn’t think it would make the cut, but surprise, surprise it is very comfortable and has a long warranty. Costco also has a gel foam “topper” for a reasonable price that took a terrible mattress into sleepable.
We’ve never spent a fortune on bedding. We’ve enjoyed the same quilt for over 10 years. I just purchased a handmade, vintage cabbage rose overlay blanket for $15. My husband being military, it’s routine for him to want to make the bed. I always enjoy doing it, personally.. but there’s nothing fancy about it. And there are days when it’s never made, because he’s on an opposite sleep schedule! :)
{freshly squeezed: life}
http://www.suburbantownhousecountrycottage.blogspot.com
I am a bed maker and my Hubby is a bed re-maker…(he sometimes feels i dont do a good enough job at it) I love the look of a comfy freshly made bed. Little things make me happy :O)
Blessings, Joanne
Claudia! I’m so with you on this issue! I love having my bed all neatly done up…first thing in the morning….and then I saunter over to the kitchen and make coffee, check my emails, and do a sketch in my journal. I cannot function if I glance over and see my sheets all messy. My mother raised me that way, and in turn my kids are the same. I have passed the bed making torch onto them.
Hubby is the same way. Sometimes he beats me to it, and does it for me…and we have this little game we play, corny as it may be, I’ll tell you….we artfully get creative with how we qrrange all of my handmade pillows each day. You’d be amazed at how many variations there are to pillow displays. We are both artistic, so cut us some slack here, okay!
Loved this post!
Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Ciao Bella!
CREATIVE CARMELINA
Okay, how is this? I am a bedmaker whose bed is rarely made during the work week. Why? Because my husband is still in it when I leave.
But, I love my bed when it is made.♥♥♥
Okay my dear Claudia I have a bit of a split personality here. I make the bed at one house, the yellow house and do not at our old house. Perhaps it is because I feel so defeated by the old house these days. I cannot keep it clean, straight, or spider free. The yellow house is so much easier for me to keep clean and orderly so I make the bed. I am nuts I guess. I have slept on a Tempur- Pedic mattress and I loved it too. We have an air mattress, choose your number thing and Joe loves it but I do not. He says I am the “Princess and the Pea” when it comes to mattresses. The post today and comments are fascinating-these people who make the hotel room beds are interesting to me.
What an interesting topic. I am happy to learn that there are so many other bed makers like me out there! I confess that I am in the group that *gasps* if I come across a forgotten bed unmade late in the day. My husband is the last to rise and just walks away…(cringe!)…I make it up after him. While I don’t exactly make the bed in a hotel, I give the covers a whoosh of a fluff as I pull them up so they are at least mostly smooth. If I am stuck in bed sick, I do the same thing – give things a little shake/snap/fluff motion – it just feels better!
Okay, Dr. Freud, see if you can figure this out. I love a beautiful bed in terms of great pillows, great covers, the works. I love a good mattress, and I don’t think that sheets have to be a zillion thread count to work. But I lovenice cotton sheets and some cute ones that are blends (but rarely blends). I also have to have a good looking bed itself. Stems from childhood. There is nothing I hate worse than waking up in an ugly bed.
Now, with all of that in mind, do I always make my bed? Sometimes. Sometimes I don’t. But I don’t like to leave the house for an extended period with an unmade bed left behind. That type of thing makes me crazy. What if someone would accidentally wander in during an emergency??? But I think, for the most part, I fall on the side of those who do make their beds. But if someone doesn’t, I don’t mind.
XO,
Sheila
I thought I should post to keep the tally balanced – sort of. I make the bed every day, but only because my husband wants it made. He has two rules for me: make the bed, and no clothes on the floor. I figure if that’s all it takes to make him happy I can handle it (: Don’t tell, but when he’s out of town, I never make the bed.
Oops, I forgot to mention another reason why I don’t always make up my bed.
It’s the cat’s fault. Wendy Kitty gives me the evil eye when I toss her off, and then she just stubbornly leaps back up on the bed anyway. I give up after that.
I pick my battles. ;o)
Kristin
My dream would be to have new, freshly washed cotton sheets on my bed every day! The sheets would be dried outside on a clothesline, of course. I LOVE the smell of clean sheets! I like Laura Ashley’s sheets best. I have one set that is completely worn out but I won’t throw them away. I do make my bed every day. Perfect corners too. :D
Most assuredly a bed maker! I am not happy and ready to go about my day until the bed is made. I am very OCD about this, as well as lining up glasses and such in the cabinets. Don’t know why. The bed must be made. I could not get into a bed that had not been made, unless I was deathly ill, I’m afraid!
Brenda
Okay, I’m giggling because I have this visual of you pacing around the bed, wringing your hands, while Don is laying there sick. Sooo funny! (Not funny that he’s sick, but funny that you’re wanting so badly to make the bed. You know what I mean!)
Well, I have to say, I’m a mixed bag. I go through phases. I love getting into a well-made bed. Especially freshly laundered… pure heaven! I love crispy cotton sheets in the summer, and cozy flannel in the winter. I’m funny about the corners, and I know that I get that from my mom. They’ve got to have that perfect fold. Sooo, regardless of whether the bed is made or not, those corners are in place.
Okay, and then there’s the duvet scenario. If I have a flannel cover on it, I keep it simple– no sheets. I just wash the cover as I would the sheets. It makes for easy bed making– flip and fluff. Sometimes I’ll arrange the pillows pretty, sometimes not. I sleep with a minimum of four pillows. I make a little nest… and I add a soft minkie blanket around my shoulders and head… so soft…
Okay, back to bed making. Today: unmade, but cozy and squishy (the blankets, not the mattress) and ready to be snuggled into.
Yaaawn… is it bedtime yet?
Hugs,
Jill
define bed-making. I define it as pulling up the sheets and tucking sleeping clothes underneath the pillow.
my husband calls it: everything tucked in, super-straight and hospital corners and what do you mean you want to stick your foot out of the bed? you’re messing up my nicely tucked in bed!
:)
I make the bed most days. On occasion I get busy doing something and it will not get made (and it bugs me when that happens) but I prefer the bed to be made daily!
I am a bed maker (at a hotel too). An unmade bed is like going thru your day never washing your face or combing your hair. If the bed is unmade you might as well empty all your dresser drawers and throw every thing in the air….it would fit with the unmade bed.
Proud card-carrying member of the Bed Makers Club. In fact, may I be your VP?
Dawn
Oh yes, I am a staunch bed maker! I laughed when I read about your gasp, because if for some reason our bed has come unmade (usually because of napping on the part of the non-bed-makers in the house), and I walk to the end of the wall and happen upon said unmade bed, I totally gasp!! Usually my husband knows what it is and rushes in to fix it. Ha.
Also — I LOVED my TempurPedic. LOVED. I didn’t think I could sleep on anything else. I had to sell it when we switched to a King, and I haven’t re-invested yet, but I will. Someday.
That picture is so charming! Love the vintage linens. Is that background wallpaper or a headboard? Either way, it’s so cozy!
~Angela~
Definately a bed maker! I make my bed the minute my feet hit the floor. I understand what you mean about gasping when you enter the room with your unmade bed! The whole house feels cleaner if the bed is made. Life just feels better – more organized!!! ~ Barbara
Wow. There certainly seem to be a lot more bedmakers here than non-bedmakers! I wonder if that is a true representative sample or if the nons don’t want to own up. Okay, I’ll take one for the team… Non here! ;)
Interesting to read the comments. Regretfully I am not a bed maker. Does it help that I have always considered this a character flaw on my part? I bought a good bed and several sets of good quality sheets. I have the best intentions but no follow through. Maybe when I redecorate my bedroom??? (Probably not – oh well)