Cover Me Up: Duvet Covers – More Than Just a “ Pillow Case” For Your Comforter
What Is A Duvet Cover?
"Duvet" is the French word for the down of birds, the under-feathers that have no spine. Duvet is also the name of a bag filled with down, feathers, wool or other natural stuffing to help keep people warm while they sleep. Thus, a duvet cover is just another term for comforter cover. Essentially, a duvet cover is like a giant pillow case for your duvet/comforter.
Why Do I Need a Duvet Cover? What Is The Benefit?
There are a several reasons from functional, practical and decorative perspectives why a duvet cover comes in handy.
Protect Your Comforter: First of all, duvet covers can help protect your cozy comforter. Frequently washing your comforter can cause the rich fill to flatten out and disperse over time. Most duvet covers, on the other hand, are machine washable and won't cause your comforter to lose its fill power. Wrapped in a durable duvet cover, your favorite comforter will be also protected from any dirt or grime. And when it comes time to wash the bed linens, simply change the dirty duvet cover for a clean one.
Change Your Mood, Change Your Duvet Cover: When you tire of your bed's color scheme, you can easily stuff your duvet into a different duvet cover to match whatever color bedding you happen to be in the mood for. Duvet and comforter covers make the process of transforming your bedroom fun, easy and stylish. Besides, they make it easier and more cost-effective than purchasing a new comforter.
What You Should Consider When Purchasing a Duvet Cover
- Size: You'll find duvet covers in sizes to fit all comforters. They are sold in similar sizes as all other bedding. You can buy comforter covers available for twin, full, queen, king or California king comforters. However, just like some manufacturer comforter sizing, some duvet covers are sized full/queen or king/California king.
- Thread count: Duvet covers come in thread counts just as sheets do. Thread count indicates the number of threads in each square inch the fabric. You can find duvet covers with thread counts from 100 to 1000 and even higher. A 300 thread count is good for a quality duvet cover, but the higher the thread count you buy, the softer the material will be. However, higher thread counts usually come with higher price tags and can wrinkle easily. Well made quality fabrics (such as soft, combed long thread cotton vs. cotton with shorter threads) even if they have lower thread count than some higher thread counts with lesser quality fabric, when taken care of properly, should last for years if not decades.
- Closures: Duvet covers are usually fastened across the open end with buttons, snaps, ties, hook-n-loop strips or a zipper. This makes the covers easy to remove for washing. To put the duvet cover on, turn it inside out, place it at one end of your comforter, then pull it up over the comforter, turning it right-side out as you go.
Look for duvet covers with a quality zipper, strong snaps, color-matched hook-n-loop strips or buttons that are sewn tightly and reinforced at the stitching. Make sure that the buttonholes are well-stitched so they won't unravel in the laundry. These are signs of quality that will add to the longevity of your duvet cover.
Your comforter may be a costly investment, especially if it is filled with luxurious down and you really don’ t want to stain it or wear it out. Covering it throughout the year will keep it in good shape and is the prudent, if not stylish, thing to do.
Furthermore, accessorizing your duvet cover with shams, pillowcases,
sheets,
decorative pillows, dust ruffles and
window treatments will help to create the look you want.
