Oh right, smugness. What a shocker.
Funny, I thought that was the Canadian national attitude. Looks like it’s a multi-national thing.
Enjoying that Brexit are you?
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Some of my visitors weren’t sleeping under the top sheet either, so now I pull it back and tuck it under the duvet cover so they see it.
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+1 for Spain. We just got slammed in a review by a group of Americans for not having a ‘top’ sheet. Facepalm. It was 37 so I could see why they would want an extra cover to sleep with!
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I am of the ones who don’t get that top sheet under duvet cover thing. Duvet covers are meant to be used on their own. If you get European guests, it’s very likely that they won’t notice/understand the top sheet and sleep between the duvet cover and the top sheet.
Just switch to a summer duvet or skip the duvet for warmer months 
The “smell test” somewhat puzzles me, I am not a neat freak but I am with @Lucy_R, each linen item that comes into contact with one’s skin should be washed between each guest…
Otherwise I would keep the same sheets for several guests, they still have that softener smell 
after a few nights.
Re. the ability to “see” if a guest has slept “full euro mode” 
after 42 stays and +150 guests, I have yet to see a stain from bodily fluids on my pure white linens.
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I am a big believer in, “When in Rome; do as the Romans”. You host in Europe. If I stayed in your place; I wouldn’t dream of criticizing you for not having a top sheet as you are following European norms. Lucy is hosting and apparently living in the U.S. I don’t think it’s fair to belittle people for following their cultural norms in their country as long as the cultural norms are harmless.
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Oh, I wash all linens that come into contact with skin, just some people leave a lingering odor. It gets in the pillows and on the duvet (with covers on them I’m guessing they sweat through it?) I sniff test those things because my soap has no scent (or very light scent which is barely noticeable) so if they smell they go in too.
Oh and smugness isn’t the Canadian national attitude, that’s passive aggressiveness. I should know I’m born and raised.
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Europeans to not understand the top sheet, most of them even find them annoying and pull them out.
There is even a difference within the “duvet culture” within Europe. Some countries use 1 large duvet in a double bed, some countries use 2 single duvets in a double bed.
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Yeah I mean if you have a top sheet between the duvet and person then you probably don’t need to wash it between every guest.
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I wash all bedding including duvet covers between guests.
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Agreed 100%. When I first started reading this topic I was appalled at the thought of sleeping in a bed where the duvet cover hadn’t been washed. Revolting thought.
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No, I only wash duvet covers after a pet. Otherwise my cleaning lady gives them a shake and a vacuum. Oh, and I have not only a top sheet but an additional blanket under the duvet. The duvet is not meant to be slept against in my case. It is a rough denim. And sorry, Lucy, but I would just accept that we don’t all host in Europe.
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There seems to be such a lot of confusion here. Well, I’m confused for one!
Why would anyone use a top sheet and a blanket with a duvet? The whole point of a duvet it that it replaces those things. If people don’t even launder the duvet cover after each guest, how often do they launder the duvet itself?
I can’t imagine ever staying at a place where the duvet cover hadn’t been washed.
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Yes, it’s a totally different system. In the states, we view the duvet cover as a slip cover for the bed-spread. We wash it regularly on an as-needed basis, but this would not be in contact with people’s skin regularly, that’s what our system’s top sheet prevents.
I don’t use a duvet and cover, but a quilt. I wash it on average monthly.
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I have several comforters and duvet covers for different seasons. I also use my oldest comforter and shams and oldest duvet with people with pets. I also now provide an old sheet for people to put on the bed if they have a pet. Then everything gets washed.
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I am wondering what do Europeans do with wool blankets do they take them to the dry cleaners every day or hand wash them several times a week???
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I completely understand why Europeans think duvet covers should be washed because they aren’t used to top sheets. I think there is an assumption that the things on the bed will come into contact with skin. I assume all the Europeans also have covers on all the pillows, even the decorative ones and wash those after each guest. I would also expect all the floor rugs to be washed after each guest. Because the same principle applies: humans came into contact with those things so they should be washed.
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This entire thread is cracking me up…lol!
I actually thought Lucy’s comment about the top sheet was funny, and in no way took it to be an insult to Amercians.
I don’t think the top sheet with duvet thing is an “American” culture thing - it’s just that many Americans do not understand how to use a duvet.
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Indeed, many Americans, including me, don’t really understand how to use a duvet.
Just like Sarah, I view a duvet as a slipcover for a comforter, which is not designed to come in contact with skin. It’s a fluffy top layer designed to trap body warmth and keep you cozy. If you don’t need it for warmth, you just sleep under the sheet and blanket. And, as another poster mentioned, it’s a royal pain in the ass to wrestle a comforter into a duvet cover.
Our guest bed is made up as follows: mattress cover, fitted sheet, flat sheet, light weight cotton blanket in the summer, comforter. The sheets and blanket (and pillow cases) get washed after every guest. The mattress cover and comforter, once a month or after every 3 guests, whichever comes first.
We have decorative pillow shams also. If I find them stored in the closet I assume they have not been slept upon (as they shouldn’t be) and lint roll them. If they appear to have been slept on they get washed after every guest. Otherwise they get the 3 guest/1 month washing.
Where we live it’s really difficult to even FIND a duvet. The most common bedding options are complete “bed in a bag” sets, which include fitted and flat sheet, pillow cases, a comforter and matching pillow shams.
I don’t live in an area where European guests come, thank goodness. Nothing at all against Europeans or their customs, I just clearly wouldn’t know how to provide them with the bedding they expect.
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Of course we wash, and iron 
our duvet covers as well as fitted sheets and pillowcases after every guest visit. We also place a fresh top sheet in the bottom drawer of the dresser in bedrooms.
If a guest is unused to sleeping with duvets, or simply prefers to use a top sheet, then they can choose to use it or not. Guest comfort and satisfaction is what matters most to us rather than 2-3 minutes extra ironing.
I’d guess that about one in twenty or less actually use the top sheet.
As for placing the downie inside a cover, one you have a system it’s not that much of an effort.
The very thought of checking-in somewhere and finding unwashed linens on a bed is, to me, gross.
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Honestly I have not seen a blanket on a bed since the 1980s, but I can’t see why you couldn’t wash a wool blanket in a washer using the wool cycle :). I wash feather duvets in the washer, so blankets must fit.
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