I bought three sets of duvet covers while still in Germany, but have been unable to find them in America since returning. Not even Ikea will ship their German bedding to Ikea stores in America! How ridiculous is that?
After looking high and low for German-sized duvet covers in America (and online anywhere, with an option to ship to the States), I came up empty-handed. I finally turned to my dear friend Thomas, to whom I have shipped quite a few pairs of Levis over the years, asking him to send me some German bedding from Ikea near Nurnberg. He was kind enough to do that, so now we have five different looks for our bedroom:
White-on-white-on-white (with a touch of fluffy gray):
A yummy, soft blue and white dotted flannel. This is no ordinary flannel -- it's thinner and softer than American flannel, and has almost a slight "furry" quality to it. Delish in the winter!
This is my favorite when I'm feeling bold and colorful:
And when I'm feeling staid, proper, and mature, I put these on the bed:
And these are Tom's favorites because he likes the stark and simple look of black & white:
And added in February, 2009, after a trip to Costco, these beautiful paisley sheets, used with the stark white duvets covers mentioned above. Can you believe that the entire queen size set was $19.99?! (I gave Elisabeth, who also bought this set, the flat sheet, so she can make extra pillowcases.)
Which set is your favorite?
How often do you change the entire look of your bed -- and thereby the whole mood of your bedroom? I have a feeling this whole German bedding thing is about to catch on, not only because they're so versatile and easy (no more blanket-hogging!), but because they're an inexpensive and attractive way to give your bedroom a whole new look every time you change your sheets!
Haha- we have a standard American sized comforter with ONE cover. I "change the look" in summer when our comforter is too hot- we stuff that back in its bag and use the bedspread I bought over 20 years ago then.
ReplyDeleteBut hey- the bedspread is reversible! :)
Lynn
eum yes we change looks too when we change the sheets.
ReplyDeleteI prefer the staid, proper, and mature look!
Gosh, I like them ALL. It would be fun to change them out. I was never more comfortable than when I was in Switzerland sleeping under one of those duvets.
ReplyDeleteI guess it was unusual for that time, but growing up in Vancouver the entire family had duvets and they were great. I don't think it was a problem to get the bed linens for them either. Most likely a different size than the German ones.
ReplyDeleteI love all your different looks. The problem we have now is that my husband's duvet is longer and wider than mine so we don't always have a choice as to what pattern we want since they don't make them all in oversize. Sometimes we have to take what we can get to avoid that mix and match look.
Serious question -- if you're under separate duvets, do you ... touch underneath the covers? Wouldn't there be a gap between the duvets when you're snuggling together? maybe I just don't understand how they work? We use a super-sized down comforter and only have two covers -- flannel and cotton. And in the summer we use sheets and a lightweight quilt.
ReplyDeleteAbby
We do, in fact, touch! ;-) Sometimes under one cover, sometimes under no covers, sometimes under partial covers. We tend to sleep in our own "cocoons," but Tom always accused me of stealing the covers anyway, so I think he's fine with that -- especially since he likes to sleep with his feet out in the cold air and I like my feet all toasty warm! :-)
ReplyDeleteCarol
I like the bold & colorful. We never change our look--boring!
ReplyDeletehaha -- that question of whether you touch sounds weird now in retrospect. I just meant (as you realized) what your sleeping style is. My husband and I tend to spoon and just flip over in tandem all night. So I think that individual duvets probably wouldn't work for us. I think sleep is really important and when you find a style that works, you should stick with it! As for hogging the covers, the best thing I ever bought was a fairly expensive down comforter that was "supersized" and added enough extra on the sides that we each have enough. I love that word "cocoon!"
ReplyDeleteAbby
I'm fairly new to your blog (wish I would have found it earlier) and am also 1st generation German-American living in the Seattle area. (Grew up in Shoreline and now live in Mill Creek.) So many things you write about resonate with me and my background too. We grew up with our own individual duvets (Bettdecken) and the big square European pillows. Until recently you couldn't even get them here. My biggest complaint as a child was that I couldn't get all the kids sheet/comforter sets like everyone else because of the duvet and my mom didn't sew. Currently I'm trying to convince my husband to go over to the individual duvet system (like in Germany) especially since he gets hot easily and I'm always cold. I'm hoping that a trip to Germany (planned for next year) might change his view....we'll see.
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I also love individual duvets and changing the entire look of the room simply by changing the bedding, but doing so with big comforter sets is expensive and impractical. Love the variety of looks you have going!
And I enjoy your blog. I even met my husband while we both were working as Vendors at Microsoft!
I am, sarah, fan of all good decorating ideas :) thanks for these
ReplyDelete