Duvet Covers - Making the Right Decision

Duvet covers come in many different fabrics, textures, sizes and colors, so choosing the right one for your bed can be quite a task. There are thousands of options to choose from and these choices determine how we will look and feel for the 8 hours a day we are in bed. Quite an important decision wouldn't you say?

Now, a duvet cover is like a big pillowcase for your comforter. Duvet covers can be changed as often as you want to wash them or whenever you change the look and style of your bedding and bedroom. You'll find duvet covers in sizes to fit all comforters. They are sold in similar sizes as all other bedding: twin duvet covers, full/queen size duvet covers and king size duvet covers. They are normally made with a fair amount of room for error to accommodate comforters that might be a bit larger than the standard. The approximate sizes duvet covers come in are:

• Twin: 63-68 inches x 85-88 inches
• Full/Queen: 85-90 inches x 91-92
• King: 104-106 inches x 92 inches
• California King: 102 inches x 99 inches

The next step in choosing the right duvet cover for you is the closure. The open end of the duvet cover will generally be closed with either buttons, snaps, ties, hook-n-loop strips or a zipper. Make sure that you choose one of a high-quality as you do not want to be repairing it yourself after only a few washes.

The main fabrics used to manufacture duvet covers are:

Cotton: Cotton is the most common material for duvet covers. Cotton can be made into an amazing amount of different patterns/textures. It is easily dyed, easy to wash and care for, soft and breathes very well.

Blends: Cotton-polyester blends combine natural and synthetic fibers. These blends --durable polyesters with soft, breathable cottons - are great for easy to care for, no-iron bedding.

Silk: Silk is luxurious, extremely soft and is most of time washable. Silk can take amazing dyes and produces the most beautiful colors and is a wonderful duvet cover choice.

Velvet: Velvets are usually polyester blends and can be washed. Velvet may suits winter months better due to it's heavy look.

Now that your comfort is taken care of there is the issue of choosing the right style to suit your particular bedroom. This mostly comes down to personal taste but you should still follow a couple of simple rules. Make sure your duvet cover goes well with the rest of your furniture and your flooring. The duvet covers should also work well with any other decorations you may have in the room such as art or window hangings. Try to match your duvet cover to the current season; for example a darker color for winter and a more upbeat, light color for summer.

A lot of companies sell their duvet covers with a set of sheets. This is the easiest option when you are trying to co-ordinate your bedroom as all of it is done for you!

So good luck choosing the right duvet covers for your comforter, I think i might head to bed!