Quilts to Blankets

Bettie

last year someone passed on to me two sets of striped flannelette sheets- one set unused still in packing. :money: I made the bed with the used set. Next day it had shed everywhere. I stripped bed and washed, tried again, after three washes I gave up. My house was full of fluff, clothes full of fluff, machine and vacuum full of fluff. I passed them on to someone else :rotfl:
I remember Mum tucking me in at night, I couldn't move the sheets and blankets were so tight around me. When I did eventually move the bedding would come out and turn with me, then my bum and back became exposed to the cold air.
I don't think I could go back to that in winter but summer may be ok.
My gripe with duvets is changing the covers, despite all the handy tips I still find it a pain.

thriftwizard

I have a lightweight Baavet, bought on special offer at Wonderwool, and it's fantastic. Next step is to make myself a winter-weight one, or a second layer for this one... not a difficult job, if you can lay your hands on some bouncy fleece, a drum-carder & a sewing machine with a high "instep", all of which I do happen to have! Will report back when I've had a go. But a wool duvet is the best of both worlds; properly warm, "breathes" with your own temperature and still a natural product. The only potential problem I can foresee is moths, which won't happen whilst it's in regular use.

I'm old enough to remember when duvets first became common, and still have a couple of survivors from those days. They're made of large pockets of soft feathers & down inside a very close-woven cotton casing, and are very different to modern ones; probably less hygienic, but very much more durable and warmer, too. The only problem is that they take forever to dry & shake back into shape, but they weren't meant to be washed often, if at all; that's what the cover was for. And I also have plenty of old terylene/cotton duvets covers which are as tough as old boots when it comes to washing, including the one I myself had when I was 16; I'm now 55! Since I first slept under a duvet in 1972 in Austria, I've preferred the lightness and flexibility; I also have lots of wool blankets, and some of the family prefer those, but give me a duvet any day!

I bought the Baavet when I had to throw out the cheap polyester summer duvet I bought for last summer; the non-woven cover had just about disintegrated and the polyester stuffing was pilling all over & had gone quite hard, after just one season & a couple of gentle washes. The Baavet looks completely new, after being used all summer, and is still plenty warm enough. The sheepy smell (which I have to confess to loving - was born into a house surrounded by sheep, on the western slopes of Dartmoor) is fading now & I'll miss it when it's gone!

tanith

I'll be sticking to my duvet, I can't bear sheets tucked in around me I'd have to untuck them every night ,then there is the weight of the blankets, the faffing around making the bed with sheet then various blankets then cover ,also the fluff that gets everywhere on all the surfaces under the bed etc etc. No!no! no! thankyou! there were very good reasons for switching to bottom sheet and duvet and those reasons still hold for me.

LameWolf

tanith wrote: »

I'll be sticking to my duvet, I can't bear sheets tucked in around me I'd have to untuck them every night ,then there is the weight of the blankets, the faffing around making the bed with sheet then various blankets then cover ,also the fluff that gets everywhere on all the surfaces under the bed etc etc. No!no! no! thankyou! there were very good reasons for switching to bottom sheet and duvet and those reasons still hold for me.

I agree with tanith; there's no way I'd ever go back to blankets. Also, I'm very arthritic, and just the weight of blankets would cause me a great deal of pain. I do get too hot at night, but just push the duvet off me til I cool down; DH says he's never too hot; he's under the same duvet so I guess it's just my "personal thermostat" is kaput.:D

Still, good luck, OP, I hope you quickly manage to find the right balance for your needs:o - fwiw, as a child I had a sheet, 2 blankets, an eiderdown, wore pyjamas in those days, and still shivered at night!:eek:

Grimbal

Caterina wrote: »

I have Devon Duvets Pillows, three layers, a bit too flat to my liking but DH loves them.

A while ago I bough a natural woolen quilt from Baavet, they have some seriously good special offers. I haven't put it on the bed yet as the summer has been too hot. But the drawback is that it has a very strong farmyard smell at the beginning, which vanishes in time, but for me it was a put off for a long time, I aired the quilt for weeks on the banister and will also put it through a wash before winter comes (it is washable). The appeal for me is that it was really cheap, from their seconds stock. In all honesty I could not find the fault in it. It is very well made, British wool, so no air miles attached to it (eco guilt free), king size £80. A bit of a palaver to get rid of the smell but it is practically gone.

I complained about the smell and they would have refunded even the postage, in spite of the no postage refund policy they had. But when I went to pack it to send it back, the smell had almost gone, so decided to keep it after all because it looks and feels so good. People really rave about these quilts apparently.

So if you can go through the smell palaver, you can get a good product at an excellent bargain price.

On the subject of sheets and blankets, last year I found a very good offer and I treated myself to linen sheets, two pairs, and we have had these and light blankets all summer. We love them, but come winter we will revert to quilt and blanket, plus woolen bedcover. I hate central heating in the bedroom so the radiator is permanently off here, and sometimes I even open the window for fresh air. But with all the covers and a nice hot water bottle on my feet I am nice and toasty. And DH is nice and toasty too to snuggle against. He does not appreciate the feel of my cold feet against his, though!

thankyou so much to everyone that replied & apologies to OP for pushing thread off topic!

Caterina, thanks for the heads up about the seconds section at Baavet, I've just grabbed a superking overweight-for-summer duvet - would be £146, I paid £110. I'm so excited as a heavy-for-summer could be the all-year duvet for me

I may go for a Devon Duvet pillow as I prefer a very solid, very flat pillow, so they sound perfect for me too !

maman

For those of you thinking about blankets or just throws for the winter, these have received good reviews. I just like the look of them.


http://shop.nationaltrust.org.uk/recycled-woollen-rug/p389#tdesc_2

calicocat

I love blankets to have around the house in winter.

I'm really lucky to have two fabulous ones. My family were farmers for years, the would take their fleeces up to Otterburn mill and have them made up into blankets in the colours they wanted....so mine have a lovely history to them as well, and are from my ancestors sheep.!! I don't suppose many people can say that these days. They only come out on special occasions though as I like to keep them perfect....i don't know why, it's a bit silly really and should just use them.

I am going to dig one out to use this winter.

Grimbal

Just a quick follow up to the Baavet.

I've used it for two nights now & am a complete convert ! I was previously using a 3 tog summer duvet that was still making me feel very hot, sweaty & uncomfortable. Hubby always commented on the "wall" of hot air that got released from around me when the duvet moved. The new baavet doesn't trap the heat, and I feel so much more comfortable.

I owe a huge thank you to Caterina who gave me the heads up about the seconds section - I purchased a 3 season duvet which was overweight, so should be suitable for all round use about 20% cheaper than full price. Very happy & would recommend baavet to those that have similar uncomfortably hot nights under a synthetic duvet