Advice on Bedding

Hi Everyone -

Ms Newbie here - started my ‘air’ business on a whim, using old bedding - I have 15 reviews with 5 stars so so far no one has minded a faded comforter that I purchased in 1986…

But now I’m investing more in the business and wonder if anyone has advice about bedding - what to avoid (like solid colors) and what to seek out (duvet covers a benefit??). I just purchased a beautiful set I found at Marshalls that is a gray and white print, it will fit my queen. Looks great but we haven’t made the final decision yet. I paid $90 and it is on sale on Amazon for $220!!! I have 1 queen and 1 twin extra long in the room, so now I have/want to find something to coordinate with the beautiful set that fits the queen.

I’ve got guests coming tomorrow - now that I have new lamps (to replace the Ikea ones I scavenged from my kids’ bedrooms) I’m eager to get it all looking nice.

What have you all learned?

Many Thanks

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I’ve had good luck with overstock.com for bedding and I’m planning to buy a couple of cotton duvet covers from them soon. I use white sheets, towels, and cotton blankets…white looks fresh and clean…plus, I can use bleach on them as a disinfectant.

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After several tries, have settled on good quality white sheets and towels that I can interchange. The prints and colors are nice, but they often don’t wear well, and if one gets a stain, it can be hard to remove or the set is ruined. Target has some excellent white Egyptian cotton. As for duvets, I’ve used them in the winter, but cotton or quilted blankets with an additional throw at the end of the bed, (and another in the closet) seems to suit both the hot and cold sleepers.

I only buy queen quilts; never comforters. Comforters do NOT fit in my washer; I would have to take to the laundromat(I wished I had realized that before I bought comforters!). Also, I do NOT like duvets for comforters;I feel it is not sanitary enough as fluids can easily pass through the thin cover.I launder all quilts after every use( a lot of hotels dont do that every time). I buy where ever I can get a quality comforter for a reasonable price;I buy quilt sets(mostly cotton) with quilted matching shams for about 25 to 59 max. I buy from TJ Max, Kohls, Ross, ebay etc. I invested A LOT in bedding.If I get a single man the quilt will have a more masculine look;(he will also get male shower gel) a single women will get a more feminine look. I have been able to get any stain out of bedding with that Oxy spray its really good. I let the guest layer his own bed(its warm here).There is one quilt on the bed, one folded at the end of the bed and there are 3 other extra blankets in cabinets. I have LOTS of sheet sets; I shouldve stuck with white;it goes with any bedspread.Be sure to use your lint roller on all linen .You would be surprised how much hair you pick up that you cant see.

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white white and more white . it always looks fresh and its easy to bleach… I add throw pillows and throws for colour

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Thanks, everyone!! Very helpful - thanks for the comment about people putting suitcases on top of the bedding - when I showed the room to new guests yesterday I asked them to not put their suitcases on top of the bedding (which was brand new). So we’ll see how many guests remember that. ; )

We did find a Tahari set at Marshalls for less than $80 that sells for $220 on Amazon. We love it - it’s super nice cotton, beautiful gray & white print - I hope it holds up. For the twin we settled on a white comforter that is microfiber - I love cotton but it’s tough to find anything for a twin, and it was $25 - so while it may not last I can keep my eyes open for something better. My husband had a strong preference for the two beds to NOT match as that is to much like a hotel, so they coordinate.

Towels - yeah, I see the bright colored towels available and regret buying white for just second - I just think white is what looks clean and will stick with that - and yes, they can be bleached. I did buy a print sheet for the twin, again because of price - the sheets have to be cotton and the price (TJ Maxx) was to good to pass up.

Thanks again, everyone, I’m very thankful to have this forum.enter link description here

I just tried to put a link to my listing but I’m not sure it works. Any advice on the listing is appreciated. I did add a grey throw at the end of the white twin so to cut down on the white and tie it all together.

…I have to add some photos of the bathroom available - we just finished painting it, and I took the photos portrait (they are tiny spaces) but the listing doesn’t seem to allow for portrait photos.

dcmooney. Love the listing and the way you’ve got pictures of all the nearby sites to let the guests have a feel for the surroundings.
You have great reviews too! Lovely!

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I wrote a blog piece on vacation rental sheets that goes into the why and how of white sheets, as well as some sheet recommendations.
http://1chicretreat.com/2014/04/03/my-quest-for-the-perfect-white-vacation-rental-sheets/

I’m a huge advocate of white sheets and duvet covers and nothing synthetic. I’m all about spending a little more on quality bedding and watching the rave reviews come in. Good luck!

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Thanks, 1chic - I appreciate you sharing the knowledge.

The linen and towel questions. We could talk about them until we’re blue in the face. I actually wrote a blog post about it. My reco are Target Threshold brand. They hold well. And Target usually has a sale in January and August.

http://www.evelynbadia.com/blog/2014/9/29/something-soft-against-their-skin?rq=something%20soft

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The real housekeeping trick (used in a lot of hotels) is to get large white sheets and use a technique called “Triple Sheeting”. (YouTube it). It basically cocoons the duvet in between the sheets. Sheets are easier to launder and replace than a duvet cover…there also cheaper. You can even get a “premium” top sheet, with three regular sheets so that it looks amazing.

You want to get sheets that are bigger than your bed. e.g if you have a queen bed buy king size sheets.

I would still recommend getting a duvet protector which you can launder once every few months.

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Briliant, rogchap - I do love that feeling when I’ve had them in a hotel - thanks so much for writing!!

I am all about the bed, but my bedding practices are not necessarily practical, just something I love to share with guests, and that suits our home. I resisted piping up because of this, but I still have a few things that could be taken from what I do, I suppose.

I use antique linen sheets, mostly French, some Italian and some Irish, many beautifully hand embroidered, with huge detailed dowry initials, most with gorgeous detailing like hemstitch borders that look stunning on the turndown. I buy the biggest sheets I can get (most I procured in markets in France), as most antique beds were not as big as modern beds. All my linen sheets are gently washed and line dried (even in the winter I dry them on my indoor line in the basement). less electricity! The sleep in antique linen is like nothing else you have ever felt.

I also use all highest quality down pillows, cushions and duvets. I collect antique linen or Metis pillow and cushion covers, but my duvet covers are all white Egyptian cotton. Egyptian cotton is the softest, and because the threads are the longest, the fabric is resistant to pilling, and is strongest despite being incredibly light and floaty.

Sleeping in a bed made up of glorious linens and high quality down (at least 700 fill power) is quite cloud like and incredibly cool. In the summer I forgo the down duvet and use French made light covers, either light crocheted cotton, or a Marseille with a beautiful pattern. I also have some Italian pique style cotton coverlets with amazing details such as cherubs etc. As the bedding is all in white and off white, it matches beautifully, and I can use some throw pillows for a splash of color.

The collection took time to build, and was my passion before airbnb. I already had many more antique linen sheets than I could use, and with care, they last and last, despite being 100 years old already! In fact, they improve with time. I do worry about the more delicate pieces, and in fact have a Marseille on the bed of a guest right now, which really shouldn’t be used, as it is a museum piece at this point. But so far things are surviving fine (since quitting the pet thing!).

The down handles washing beautifully, and a queen duvet fits in a standard washer and dryer with ease, in fact, I have a very large king duvet with the highest fill power making it exceptionally fluffy, and even it fits into our front loader no problem. To dry down, you just need to throw it in the dryer with a tennis ball or other kind of laundry ‘fluffer’. Down never clumps like synthetic pillows and duvets do, so long as you buy properly baffled duvets. They come out perfect every time!

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Hi Sandy,

Wow, your linens sound heavenly. I’m getting relaxed just reading about them. The only thing I would add is that many people (my husband included) are allergic to down, so I would advise any Airbnb hosts who use down pillows and comforters to have an alternative on hand. I do think that Airbnb guests should let you know of any allergies when they book, but most do not. I have photos of my dogs (pit bull mix and German shorthair pointer, not low dander) on my listing and we’ve still had guests who are allergic to dogs.

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I agree, EllenN, I almost wouldn’t want to experience it because I’d have to go back to my regular cotton sheets!!!

Sounds dreamy!

Hi EllenN,

Thanks so much for the kind words. In response to the allergy questions, due to being someone who has suffered with terrible allergies since birth, I have taken the issue very seriously. A down allergy is very rare, but allergies to dust mites and mold on the other hand, are exceedingly common. With down pillows, some people have bad memories from sleeping on one of Grandma’s old pillows, or a hand me down to the kids that had been exposed to damp conditions (or lots of dribble!), and thus susceptible to mold spores.

The results of studies show that contrary to popular beliefs, down pillows have tightly woven covers that don’t allow the dust mites in, and as such produce far less allergic reactions than synthetic pillows, which are a breeding ground for mites. I know it has certainly been true for myself. I (and my husband!) grew up with synthetics and suffered terribly. We have had no problems since using high quality properly cleaned down (good down companies wash the down with good safe surfactants at least 14 times to remove every kind of impurity).

http://www.livescience.com/46172-busting-allergy-myths.html

Washing and drying on high heat is imperative to kill the dustmites that will end up attracted to bedding due to the millions of shed skin cells every day. Down takes to this wonderfully, but unfortunately synthetics not so much - another issue. I have a couple of beautiful soft fluffy down duvets that are 15 years old that stand up to regular washing. A synthetic could never do that without clumping or losing its softness.

Nonetheless, for guests that may not like down pillows or duvets, or feel they have an allergy, I do have synthetic pillows, and vintage handmade cotton batted quilts, which I keep in the closets of the room for easy access for the guests. No one has yet used them! And everyone claims they never sleep in, except at our home :). It’s the one thing that makes me really happy, when guests enjoy the special sheets, hand-embroidered and even handwoven on a loom from homegrown linen for a long fantasized about wedding. Pretty pillowcases, handmade and soft.

Regarding pets, we keep our cat and dog totally separate from the part of the home the guests stay in. They never get to go in there, except the dog through the front door sometimes on walks (which is a different floor to the bedrooms, and she doesn’t hang about in the other rooms or on furniture). The cat lives on the top floor with us, and has free reign of our back stairwell too. It’s about the size of any decent apartment, so he’s pretty happy, being a lazy ol’ Himalayan :slight_smile: That way no one need sorry about a cat allergy as it has been years since he was in the main part of the home, and many cleanings ago.

Some people are surprised to learn we have a dog, if they happen to see her going on a walk. Some people really love it, and others are clearly not animal people at all, so I feel irregardless of allergies, it is a good idea to keep pets separate if possible.

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i happened to luck into a street vendor who was selling 800 count egyptian cotton sheet sets for $25. i bought a bunch of lily white ones and i LOVE them! they probably fell off a truck somewhere but oh well… i found a wonderful bed in a bag at a linen store that was going out of business. i have old chest of drawers and end tables in my room but i’m thinking i’ll paint them soon to jazz them up.

as to pets, i have three big dogs and my profile stresses this fact, through and through. i even go so far as to state “if you have ANY problems with dogs please do not request to book with me.” i’m sure i lose bookings but my guests have no surprises. my dogs are my family and i refuse to restrict them. so far, only one person who stayed has given any indication of problem with the dogs and he was a weird one from the git.

I checked out how to do “triple sheeting” on YouTube…looks like a great idea! Thanks, rogchap!

On thread count, I personally find that around 400 is the sweet spot. Many places will count the ply’s in the thread rather the waft and weft thus inflating the count (a double ply thread that is actually 400 count becomes 800 count and so on. Too high of a count and you essentially get parachute fabric - so tightly woven it doesn’t breathe. You want it fine enough that it is light but strong, but not so many threads per inch that it won’t breathe.

In regards to pricing, aside from the falling off the truck incidents, you will be hard pressed to find real Egyptian sheets for less than $400 a set, but Pima cotton which is the next longest fiber and also nice (but quite a step down if you are used to the former), can be had for around the $200+. Of course there are always great sales… I love Sferra, and use their Giza percale on my own bed (when I am not using linen). It is abominably priced, but like nothing you have ever experienced. I try to find great sales of the best I can find for the guest rooms, without breaking the bank. High quality linens just last beautifully.

BTW, I always choose percale, I don’t like a slippery sheet, I love a crisp sheet, and again, a weave that breathes (sateens rather than a simple over under weave have three threads over and just one under, so that you get all the threads over the top creating a smooth shiny surface. This also creates a less breathable fabric). Those preferring easy care might like sateens as they are less prone to wrinkling. A Percale if put in the dryer (I use a line) will need to be taken out of the dryer immediately and spread on the bed or folded smoothly to prevent wrinkles setting in (which is the best way to treat all your linens anyway. Never dry till totally dry, only to slightly damp. You don’t fry your fabrics and set in wrinkles. Let the final evaporation take place as the fabric is smoothed out. A percale is also stronger, and lasts better. Of course preference comes into it, and what you can find for a price that works.

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