Build a Better Bed

                                                         Build a Better Bed

I think possibly the worst thing EVER is to come home tired, wanting nothing more than to slide into your bed and visit Dreamland but actually having to slip between the sheets of Something Not-so-Inviting.  Before that long awaited trip to Slumberland, you have to sort of remake it because you didn’t this morning, get the magazines and I-Pad out of it, and put your dirty clothes in the laundry hamper.  Not a great recipe for a good night’s sleep.

One thing that all sleep therapists and medical doctors tell us is beds are not our office away from the office.  Nor are they a place to eat dinner on a regular basis (not that we don’t deserve an occasional breakfast in bed….).  Actually, I can’t imagine eating dinner in bed for any reason other than illness.  Messy, ugh!!

We have all heard the expression we “eat with our eyes first.”  Well, the same can be said for jumping into bed and actually wanting to spend the next eight (hopefully) hours there.  The best way to get a bed in which one can get a good night’s sleep starts with the mattress that is right for you.  Buy the best mattress you can afford.    But if we “sleep with our eyes first,” we need to make sure that our bed not only feels great but looks inviting.

Bedroom colors vary from individual to individual, bright and sunny to dark and exotic.  Our case example is a fun and unisex navy, lime green, and white.  





 This  picture is how an inviting bed should look.  Start with some pillows in coordinating colors; ours in navy and lime green.  Layer and alternate with coordinating pillows in smaller sizes and/or shapes.  Notice I did not say “matching”; big difference between coordinating and matching.  None of the materials are matching in the bed but rather have a coordinating factor: lime green.

And the duvet cover???  Again, coordinating but not matching, Amy Butler Full Moon Polka Dot in lime green makes a fun look and gives the room a sense of individuality. Unless you have allergies, there is nothing more comfortable than a down duvet with which to stuff your duvet cover.  Down allows good air circulation, keeping you warm in winter and cool in summer. White linens always have a crisp, clean look, and most designers prefer them to colored bed linens.

Word of caution: Several years ago, I visited a longtime girlfriend for a weekend.  Came bedtime, there were so many pillows on the bed I could not get in it and nowhere to put them if I could get them off the bed.  Plus, the bed linens were tucked in so tightly I couldn’t get them out of the military corners.  Not a great night’s sleep.  Of course, I could never tell her that this bed she had spent so much time on, trying to emulate the Horchow catalog, was probably the worst bed I have ever slept in.

A small nightstand is a good thing too.  Not too big or trust me, you will end up using it for a desk, piling everything on it you are too lazy at night to put away.

Well, enough for now.  Until next time, Sweet Dreams!!!!!!