Bed Spreads Tips
Read these 5 Bed Spreads Tips tips to make your life smarter, better, faster and wiser. Each tip is approved by our Editors and created by expert writers so great we call them Gurus. LifeTips is the place to go when you need to know about Bedding tips and hundreds of other topics.
Buying a Discount Chenille Bedspread
Think that a chenille bed spread, like a fine cashmere sweater, is beyond your budget? Chenille sounds so French and expensive--in fact, it is French for "caterpillar." But it's not expensive if you know how to look. And you needn't sacrifice chenille quality or cashmere quality while you're bargain shopping.
A chenille bed spread is cotton-tufted and delicate, so if you want a higher-quality bed spread that's luxurious to the touch, it may be worth skipping that cashmere sweater from Ann Taylor. On the other hand, you just got word of an Ann Taylor sale, so you can probably buy that chenille bed spread for $50 from a wholesale bedding and bed spread store. A chenille bed spread, like a chenille throw, easily settles into place when you're making the bed in the morning. It's light and perfect with a down comforter.
You once thought a good quality down comforter was too expensive. Like cashmere, chenille and down are affordable luxuries. The exception is a vintage cashmere bed spread, which is worth skipping the cashmere. Discount bed spread in chenille, discounted cashmere swear...what's next, discount champagne? Maybe you'd better draw the line, especially if it's French champagne.
Down Comforter vs. Bed Spreads
The blogger Skrocki humorously writes that when shopping with her grandmother, "The bedspread vs comforter debate felt much like a licensed software vs open source debate." She considers bedspreads obsolete and prefers to stick with her down comforter, whereas her grandmother insists on a quilted bed spread.
Unlike software, you can actually have both a bed spread and a down comforter if you so desire. The reasonable price of a discount bed spread makes it easy to invest in a high-quality down comforter too. The latest trend in bedding is layers. Just make sure the bedspread isn't too heavy, such as a quilted bed spread. Instead, opt for a chenille bed spread, especially if you're sleeping with someone who is always too hot while you're too cold. That heated debate never gets resolved, even in cars with climate-controlled seats!
If you love a down comforter, hate a bed spread, but want the jazzy colors or intricate quilting of that discount bed spread or wholesale bed spread you've been admiring, choose a down comforter duvet cover in those same colors or elaborate patterns. You should opt for a duvet cover anyway. The advantage of having a down comforter is that all you do is fluff in the morning if you want to make the bed! You and Sprocki may never get your relatives to agree with you about your down comforter versus a discount chenille bed spread, but luckily, unlike the open source vs. licensing debate, you have alternatives.
Pre-Shrunk Bed Spreads
The ice caps have shrunk. Your free time has shrunk because you're leading rallies to prevent global warming. Shrinkage is a bad thing, right? Not if you're searching for a discount bed spread. When you're shopping at that environmentally friendly co-op where they make an African-patterned bed spread on which the price certainly hasn't been reduced, ask if your hand-quilted bed spread is pre-shrunk. If it's not, you might want to consider a wholesale bed spread--even though you're boycotting big retailers.
A pre-shrunk bed spread won't shrink in the wash when you're using your Energy Star appliance. If your discount bed spread or that African-patterned bed spread isn't pre-shrunk, you can lose two to three percent of the bed spread length and width when the bed spread dries. The spread won't fit properly, causing you to turn up the thermostat in the winter. You don't want to contribute to the energy crisis and to over-drilling! Do something great for the environment. Buy a pre-shrunk discount bed spread--retailers care about the planet too.
Tufted Cotton Bed Spread
You're surfing for bargains, and you see that Overstock.com has a tufted cotton discount bed spread for $39.99--was $120.00. Your first thought is, "Wow, what a great buy." Your second thought is, "Look at the stitching detail. It's got to be monstrous to care for if it's discounted that badly!" Granted, retailers will try to sell you a seemingly luxurious wholesale bed spread--but the big O has never been an outrageous fraud.
The product description proclaims, "Machine washable." You might be afraid of the cotton unraveling when you make the bed for the 100th time. Take the product description with you to your local bedding store. Scrape a similar discount bed spread with your fingernail. If the cotton doesn't tear or pill (show those inconvenient little fuzz balls), you have a high-quality cotton bed spread, whether it's a high-price luxury bed spread or a luxury wholesale bed spread. Usually, a tufted cotton bed spread will have fringe.
Make sure the fringe doesn't pill or fray. If possible, use bed lifters to keep the fringe out of the way of vacuum cleaners. This works well if you have a long bed spread or bed skirt. As always, check the label or description to make sure any quilted bed spread, chenille bed spread, or tufted cotton bed spread, is pre-shrunk. Ask Overstock if the bed spread is pre-shrunk. Now you can get back to bargain hunting and wondering whetehr you should buy that flat-screen TV.
Bedspreads and Kids
Kids. You love 'em, but sometimes they can remind you of the joys of being single...like shopping in the bedding store and not buying a wholesale bed spread that's easily cleanable or one that wouldn't cause you to go ballistic if it were ruined. Still, life in that bed would be pretty empty without bedtime stories and pajama parties.
You don't have to stow away your embroidered and quilted bedspreads or pass up that luxurious chenille bed spread on sale. Chenille is actually easy to clean. Wash it on the gentle slow cycle and let it dry on the line. As for a quilted bed spread, let your dry cleaner worry about the grape juice stain. Besides stains, you have to worry about normal kid physical activity. If your kids are jumping on your down discount bed spread, make sure that it's just the price that's discounted, and not the quality.
A well-quilted down bed spread has stitches eight to ten inches apart, so the down won't lose loft and get too lumpy or scattered when your eight-year-old does a Superman dive onto it. Ask your kids to help you fluff after they jump. If this is "Mom's good quilted bed spread," they'll probably leap even faster to help you shake that bed spread! If you've taught your kids to respect your bedroom, they might surprise you and make the bed themselves just when you've reached your boiling point. The joys of parenthood!
| Guru Spotlight |
| Candi Wingate |
