Thursday, January 10, 2013

Dressing My Guestroom Bed

I love a romantic bed, even though I have no more romance in my life....
(good riddance, stinky lousy mushy pain in my nether regions...)
So I like to pull out all the stops when making up my guest room bed.
 A big advantage to not letting people
 (you know who you are....)
 stay in your guestroom,
 is that you can spend lots of time making the bed look pretty, and know that you
 won't have to redo it!!!!!
One trick I use,
 which works if the bed isn't used very often.....
Is to wrap a thin quilt around a down duvet.
This gives a more plush and cushy look to the quilt.
I found the quilt at the Christmas Tree Shop for 
really cheap!!!!!
(oops, I mean....for a really good price!!!!!)
I couldn't believe how the floral print went so well with my Rose Cummings fabric.
I had a vintage pink and white quilt in my Watertown home,
 but it was old,
 and I used it every day, 
and my dog and cat slept with me, 
and it got all worn out.
So, I had to find a replacement.
Who would have thought that a cheapo bargain store would have the perfect quilt?????
Sooooooo.......
As I was saying,
to create a more luxurious look and feel, wrap your well priced  quilt around a duvet, and it instantly looks thick and fabulous!!!!!
I'm not crazy about the look of a bedspread.
I like to see the bed linens.
I feel it's more interesting giving a nicely layered look.
So, I often use a blanket cover.
A blanket cover is a light weight piece of fabric that is placed over the blanket.
It's practical purpose is to keep the blanket clean.
The only reason I use one is 'cuz I think they be purty.
I like the ones that are seersucker.
The blanket cover is usually made out of three pieces of fabric, as most fabric isn't wide enough to cover the bed.
Traditionally, eyelet lace is set into the two side seams.
I grew up with blanket covers like this.....
so this is the way I like mine to be!!!
I also love monograms.
Soooooo.....
I had mine sewn onto the middle of this cover.
I am very elegant.
I am very cultured.
I am very cool.....

I also like the look of lots of different patterns, as you all have probably figured out by now.
So I piled some of my old pillows from my Watertown living room onto the guest bed.
If you tend to use the same colors throughout your home, you can just move the stuff from room to room.
Below is a picture of my old living room.....
'course, in this case, it was house to house.
One of my gentle readers
 (hunh!!
(her alias is nutbird!!!)
said the pillow in front looked like a loaf of bread.....
Well it's not!!!!! It be lace!!!!! 
So there.
She also asked about making old double beds into queens.
Well, the bed above is a double, 
but what I do when I want a queen,
 is to have someone extend the side rails from 75" to 80" in length
 and have the mattress width overhang by 3" on either side.
Another thing that I've done, 
is if the length of the bed can be the same as a double,
(the person sleeping in the bed, not being of the tall persuasion),
 then I have a custom mattress made that is the width of a queen, but the length of a double.
Custom mattresses are no more expensive then regular mattresses.
Just look in the yellow pages, or google it, or ask your mother.
So, campers.....
That's it for today!
Don't forget!!!!!
Saturday I announce the 
WINNER!!!!! of the give away.
So, till then....
Later, Gator
Photobucket

15 comments:

Nutbird said...

I used to have a few of those blanket covers when I had a queen sized bed. Then we got a dog, then the dog on the bed, then another dog, eventually two dogs on the bed, so we bought a new king sized bed. So I have a huge collection of bedcovers, quilts, etc. I haven't bought one at the Christmas tree shop, yet. They do have nice needlepoint rugs from time to time. So where do you get the seersucker blanket covers? I forgot. My favorite trick is to buy a really nice king sized bed skirt on sale, like $10, then make it fit any sized bed. I usually plan to sew it, but end up safety pinning it on. I hoard bed linens, pillow shams, and antique merino wool blankets. Ann

Decdreams said...

It's me again, the lady with the flu...........my fav fantasy during my misery was to be in your guest room with my dog and cat on the bed and some kind person bringing me chicken broth and soothing my fevered brow. What a lovely place to be ill. As soon as my body starts to function again I am searching for a blanket to dress my bed, I LOVE all your wondrous information sick or well!!!! Don't ever stop!!!

Lynne (lynnesgiftsfromtheheart) said...

Oh my goodness, love, love, love this idea..thanks so much for sharing. hugs ~lynne~

sweet violets said...

I think the square pillow in front looks like a Lorna Doone cookie!!!! It's the right color too!!! Love the quilt no matter where it came from. Ya know, if the room were ugly and nasty then nobody would want to stay there so you wouldn't have to worry about unwanted guests.....just sayin.....

I have linen pillow covers, not pillow cases, but large rectangles to cover the pillow case to keep it clean.......they were part of my mother's dowry of linens when she got married. The matching top sheet is seamed in the middle because they didn't have a loom wide enough for a double bed. My grandmother wove the linens and my mom did the drawn work.

Love your blog and your humor.....carry on...Cleo

The Quintessential Magpie said...

Well, I can't see the pillow in front because my eyes are still asleep. But anyonne, even with their glasses off, can tell it's too little to be a loaf of bread. No, it's clearly a sandwich!

From what I CAN see it's all very nice, Betsy, and I like your seersucker coverlet (is that the same thing as a blanket cover?) and your monogram. I just had a long conversation about monograms with a friend who is a graphic designer. Yours looks good and is well balanced like my maiden name used to be. My married surname kind of throws a monkey wrench in there when it comes to block letters. Script is fine, but I am limited with block.

I typically use a matlaesse (sp) spread and a quilt at the foot. I'm a big lover of quits and am always on the lookout to find ones I like. Love the way you made that one look so lush, and I'm glad you got a great deal on it. I can't wait for the Christmas Tree Shop to come here if it ever does!

Oh, and mattresses? I had the neatest antique French bed someone wanted me to babysit for them. The catch was that I had to get a mattress made, and the mattress man (I had used years ago) quoted me some astronomical price, so much so that I went out and bought a bed to replace that one. Of course the one I bought ALSO needs a matress, but at least I get to keep it! And it was a good excuse to go shopping at Antiques on Holiday in Destin and buy a faux bamboo bed from France I'd been ogling until the pirce was right. ;-)

XO,

Sheila

The Quintessential Magpie said...

I just noticed I spelled "anyone" wrong. I hope your father isn't reading this today, Betsy! If he is, I just want to say, "Dr. Speert, I really can spell. Just so you know, Betsy's fans/friends are not a bunch of hopeless illiterates. It's just that I can't figure out how to use spellcheck on this IPAD. It is also limiting in what I can see. Illiterate, no. Techno-klutz, guilty as charged."

Ann at the Handley Bungalow said...

What a great idea! I enjoy your blog and your beautiful decorating. Thanks for sharing!

Unknown said...

Thanks for sharing this amazing information with us, blankets do play an important role when it comes to dressing your bed, choosing good fabric and colors which combine perfectly with the setting of the room is necessary.

laney said...

...i want to crawl into that picture of your old living room and live...i don't think you will let me...blessings laney

Babs said...

Your guest room is so pretty...too bad you don't like having guests. Just look at what they miss. Thanks for telling where you shop. I'm amazed you found the quilt at the Christmas Tree Shop. Way to shop!
Babs

Denise Marie said...

Ur so fancy! I've never had a blanket cover. I just ordered ur bath book. Can't wait to see it.

Debi Jaynes said...

Seersucker blanket covers are in all colors at Gattles in Naples Fl. When my house is finished in April, I'm heading there to get several. After all, the beadboard wall deserves a new look

Anonymous said...

Christmas Tree Shop!! Oh how I miss thee. They ain't got none down in the DC area where I've been for the last twelve years. (Transplant from MA, North Shore). Sigh. I've got tons of crap, er, I mean neat stuff from there. We just completed construction on our retirement home on the west coast of Fleridida (yes, my hubs and I have always added an extra syllable). A Christmas Tree Shop sure would come in handy right about now. Cheers! Beth C.

Pondside said...

I think a guest bedroom with nary a guest, but that always looks pretty is a very good idea. I'd be dressing the bed up too!
Years ago we rented the gate house of a fabulously wealthy lady on the Main Line. During the winter she'd invite us to stay at her house on Jupiter Island where we had a pretty room in which the blankets had monogrammed covers. I had never seen anything like them, but fell in love with the idea.

Graham said...

I love the designs. What bed do you use & did you get it from any of the mainstream big name bed shops?

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