Making the Bed: 3 Must-Have Bedding Accessories

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Having the right bedding can make or break a bedroom. Many of us want our beds to resemble a hotel room or a magazine cover, but adding each of those layers can get rather expensive rather quickly. That doesn’t mean you can’t get on the path to a more luxurious bed setting. Here are 3 must haves if you want to have a designer worthy look.

 

The Bed Scarf: A Fun Accessory

 

One thing that I love to see in a hotel room is the bed scarves. A bed scarf is the band of fabric that is placed at the end of a hotel bed. When I am decorating a bed for a client, I like to put a colorful throw or quilt at the end of the bed. Bed scarves are a good alternate because they run the entire width of the bed and they allow you to introduce an accent color into the space.

The only thing is that unless you moonlight as a seamstress or know one, getting a bed scarf is next to impossible. Etsy and Horchow.com are two of the only places I have found this item.

 

The Duvet vs. the Comforter

 

When it comes to duvets and comforters, I have to say that I use both of them with my clients. However, my personal preference (along with most designers) is the duvet. A duvet is a decorative bed cover that holds a down comforter insert inside of it. This warm insert is removable so that you can easily throw the duvet in the wash. Another benefit of using a duvet is that they are much easier to store in a linen closet.

One drawback of the duvet is that it is prone to the overhead baggage syndrome – contents WILL shift during the flight. Since the down comforter insert has that propensity to shift inside of the duvet, making the bed can turn into a real chore. In order to minimize this, I recommend purchasing duvets with tie-backs. The down comforter insert should also have loops in them to attach the tie-backs to them. Both duvets with tie-backs and down comforter inserts with loops can be found at merchants such as Lands’ End and Pottery Barn.

In contrast to the duvet, comforters take up a lot of square footage in storage. In addition, some comforters have to be professionally dry cleaned, which can get pretty pricey. Still, I use comforters with young children who would most like have trouble adjusting the down insert or for teenagers who probably don’t want to make the bed anyway.

 

The Bed Skirt: The Final Touch

 

Bed skirts give your bed a finished off look. Bed skirts work well with beds that do not have a footboard, although sometimes you will still need one in spite of having a footboard. I consider the bed skirt to be an incredible money saver because you can simply invest in a quality headboard and use a bed skirt to hide all of the framing underneath. Bed skirts also allow you to mix and match colors or introduce another pattern. You can really have fun with them.

Getting your bed to look like a designer put it together is all about layering. If you start with these 3 must haves – a bed scarf, a duvet and the insert, and a bed skirt, your bedroom will be looking picture worthy in no time.