While remodeling certainly changes your life, it's not always an option. But there are small changes you can make to your home that will have, if not quite the same impact, a big difference in how you feel about your home. Here are eleven that I've discovered.
Swap Out Your Showerhead: Whether it's the rainshower head that suddenly makes a tiny rental bathroom feel luxurious or the filtered showerhead in your very hard water zone that leaves you with smooth skin and silky hair, swap out your old model for a new one (and, while you're at it, install a water filter on your kitchen sink for better tasting water)
One Style of Hangers: Metal hangers, wooden hangers, plastic hangers -- the jumble makes your small, cramped closet look even messier. Consider buying a set of hangers (I like the slim, flocked model) to turn your closet from unmanageable to jewelbox in no time.
Color Coordinate Your Clothes Closet: While you're changing out your hangers, take a few extra minutes to arrange your clothes by type and then by color. The visual serenity has a calming effect on a harried morning and makes it easier to get dressed.
Ban The Bar Soap: If you haven't yet made the move from bar soap to its liquid cousin, the time is now. Not only is it easier to use, there's a lot less maintenance involved (a quick rinse under hot water to unclog a nozzle vs. sopping up soap scum).
Cut Out The Old Scissors: If you do a lot of cutting, spring-action scissors are a revolution. You can cut for a longer period of time without your hands cramping and if you're not an expert with the scissor, they can make your cutting lines smoother. They're especially genius if you cut a lot of things, like fabric, along a flat surface.
Toss The Tattered Towels: In the market for new towels? Skip on over to the size known as bath sheets. They'll wrap around you with fabric to spare.
Buy Better Bulbs: Moving away from incandenscent bulbs is a change we're all making. What to replace them with? My personal choice is LED bulbs for a softer, kinder, more flattering light. While you're at it, take the time to pick appropriate bulbs, both in wattage and color, for the tasks that each lighting fixture will illuminate.
Doff Your Dryer: Do you blow out your hair daily? Consider replacing your old blower with an ionic model. It will dry your hair faster with less damage. And, if you use heat stying tools, go for the ones coated in ceramic.
Lose the top sheet: If you're a person who hates making their bed, trading in a top sheet for a duvet in a cover is a revelation. A quick flick of the wrist and the comforter settles over the bed as if cajoled there by Mary Poppins.
Set Up A Landing Strip: If you're a long time reader, you've probably got one in your house (though it may be time to clean it up). If you're not, and you're stumped, a landing strip, at its most basic, is a place to put down your stuff when you come in. Imagine not having to run around the house looking for your keys!
Buy Weekly Flowers For Your Home: Buying weekly flowers for your home is a basic part of the Apartment Therapy credo. Not only do they brighten up your home and smell good, there's something about a bouquet of flowers that feels indulgent and luxurious.
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Bar soap bad? I can't stand shower gel. I feel like I need to use twice as much gel on my washcloth than I would soap. Bar soap has less packaging (no plastic bottles) and the extra bars are great for scenting my drawers and closet.
Totally agree about using a duvet. It's a breeze to make the bed, and it's so much more comfortable than a bunch of layered covers that slide apart. I also color-order my clothes, but I thought that was just me being OCD!
There's something about Americans that don't understand that a duvet is in replace of a top sheet. I have friends that have a top sheet under their duvet. What's the point?
I really dislike shower gel... I love my Mistral Lychee Rose Bar soap. $7 lasts half a year and makes my bathroom smell wonderful. I buy 3 bars a year, and they make my whole closet AND dresser smell wonderful!
Re: duvets vs top sheets: I'd rather make the bed and wash my top sheet regularly than try to remove and wash the duvet cover as regularly.
Agree with Christab about bar soap. It's much more "green" and economical and I don't mind the upkeep of it.
I'm so with you on the flowers though!
Natural Soaps, like Dr. Bronner (which is what I use) lasts longer than those commercial perfumey bar soaps and has less of an impact on the environment. Liquid soaps? Not so much as @CHRISTAB mentioned above.
these are all great tips. I started to buy flowers monthly for our home and it makes a world of a difference! Costco has flowers for really cheap, or if you have a flower district in your city/county, or see if there's a wholesaler nearby (or even swap meets too! they get them priced like wholesalers do. look how many options we all have!) , so it's a luxury that everyone can afford, and if you know how to arrange it, it can look like an expensive arrangement!
Oh and most definitely color coordinate the closet and dressers. Makes finding and coordinating your outfits MUCH easier.
Switch from bar soap? I just switched back to it, about a year ago! I am saving money. It has less packaging and bar soap is more efficient as there is less waste (especially if you keep it in a reusable waterproof container). There are some cool bar soap products out there these days. Since I've switched, I also think my shower is easy to keep clean, though that may be me. @Christab, I also keep extra bars in my drawers.
Over time I've made almost all the other changes (not the scissors--I haven't needed new ones yet and do not use scissors often so could not justify the cost/waste). Good ideas, but I just disagree with the soap one.
I'm with you, christab...bar soap is great. why pay for a bottle of mostly water?
@pixelpersecond convinced me! I'm ordering some some of the Mistral Lychee Rose Bar soap today! Also, the landing strip idea is something I adopted when I had finally had enough of spending a crazy amount of time looking for my keys and my dogs leash. Now I have a dedicated place to ALWAYS put things when I come in and to help remind me to take certain things with me when I leave. It's amazing what a small change like this can do for your stress level.
I'm afraid i'm also in the bar soap over liquid camp, our water just DOES NOT suds with liquid soap + I make my own lye soap blends so I know exactly what is in it. I'm also a top sheet person considering I live in the hot & humid South without air conditioning 98% of the time. A duvet is too heavy to sleep in under without air conditioning so top sheet it is! Pull the top sheet up and twitch the duvet, bed's made in under 30 seconds.
Two of these posts require extra laundry, and since I'm the one doing the laundry in my house, I'll stick with my top sheet and my regular sized towels. Besides, it's summer. Who needs a duvet?
Pump soaps always remind me of being in public toilets. Bar soap has more character. Flowers are lovely, but why not get a flowering plant which will be a lot cheaper in the long run. A bowl of tangerines or fruit always looks fresh and inviting. Thank you for this post, it has inspired me to buy some geraniums this weekend and put them in a pot outside my front-door : )
Bar soaps do leave more soap scum that liquid soaps, but unless you buy very expensive liquid soaps, most liquids are harder on the skin (not to mention the hideous scent combinations). I have tried and tried using liquids, but always return to Dove for sensitive skin. And yes, bar soaps produce much less trash than liquids.
Re: duvet. Here's a great trick for getting the duvet on and off easily. From lifehacker: http://lifehacker.com/5914894/put-a-duvet-cover-on-with-minimum-effort-by-rolling-it-like-a-burrito
I use a duvet cover with a topsheet. It's twice as easy: you don't have to launder that big duvet cover every week, just the top sheet and mattrass sheet. And making the bed is still a breeze. (I'm Belgian by the way)
I love bar soap. You use a lot less than with shower gel.
I agree with Designclaire about the practicality of the top sheet with a duvet. A friend taught me that trick a couple of years ago. It is still very easy to make the bed, but now I don't have to wash the duvet cover so often (and wrestle with getting the damn duvet back inside the cover!). On another note, just wondering: why "swap out" the showerhead? Why not just SWAP? (just one of the things that irritates the editor in me!)
Sunnyblue: Thanks for the tip on how to put the cover on a duvet! Brilliant. You have made my life better, with that one posting!
- Love the tip on keeping bar soap in drawers to add scent - brilliant!
- Bath Sheets just take way too long to dry. I'm intrigued by Turkish hammam towels and am considering switching. http://www.lavivahome.com/textile/turkish-hammam-towels.html
- Trader Joe's has the most beautiful peonies right now (at least in San Francisco)!
- We have a landing strip which my husband uses without fail. I, on the other hand, still run around the house looking for stuff. oh well.
Most of these tips make a lot of sense but- I don't understand how changing out your scissors and blow dryer is supposed to be an awesome home upgrade. Sure, it may be handy but I don't know that many people who use scissors SO often in their homes that getting spring loaded ones would be a life changer.
A duvet without sheets and blankets NO! A. I have a queen size. The wrestling that thing takes to put on and off - I don't want to do that once a week. Plus, it takes up so much space in the washer. I'll do that only every month or so. I also like a nice cool sheet against my skin. And in the winter I add a duvet blanket and a knit blanket. I like the heaviness all of those layers add.
The duvet is the cover used to envelope a comforter, not the comforter itself. I agree with several others, it's much easier to wash a top sheet every week and less worry about the duvet fading, as the good ones are all cotton.
Bar soap goop is less of a problem in the shower if you can fold your washcloth under the soap when finished showering. The cloth captures the goop and is pre-soaped for your next shower!
Martha
I'm English and learned from my mother and grandmother that new bars of soap are always tucked into drawers - unwrapped, of course. Didn't know that everybody doesn't do this!
Best soap for your skin and the environment is Dr Bronners - it's made from organic oils. Comes unscented or in almond, peppermint. Smells good enough to eat, and so pure you could eat it. In fact, you can brush your teeth with it too! And do laundry with it, wash veggies, etc.
Read the list of ingredients in your liquid "body washes" or "shower gels" - yuck - who wants that on their skin and thus in their bloodstream? Besides, we overwash our skin (and strip it of necessary oils). How dirty do you really get? Soap the bits that get dirty enough to require some germ-killing and just rinse the rest with water. Your skin will thank you.
Who launders their duvet every week? We don't use a flat sheet because it would never stay put anyway, and we use a duvet cover because we don't have room to store a ton of comforters nor the capacity in the washing machine to wash them.
As far as soap goes, I find liquid soap far less hazardous than bar soap. I've had too many bad experiences with bar soap squirting out of my hands and bobsledding its way to the end of the tub, leaving a slick trail for me to pursue so I can retrieve the soap!
Paint? I'm surprised I didn't see paint in your list.
Meant the complete opposite of what I wrote about soap bars tucked into drawers. They go in "still wrapped", of course, not "unwrapped." Many are sold in such pretty papers that it's a treat to see them as well as smell them.
Bar soap for me in the shower: My dermatologist recommended it over liquid soap for dry skin AND I discovered that bar soap doesn't leave my washcloths with an indelible gray stain that will not come out no matter what.
I had to chuckle a bit when I read about folks washing their duvet covers weekly... growing up in Europe we changed ours out twice a month. Seriously, every two weeks. And no it was not unsanitary by any stretch of the imagination... one week the duvet was placed with the opening at the top, the next week it was turned over with the opening at the foot of the bed. Trust me, my mother is one of the cleanest, most organized people you will ever find. In fact even our dishes and towels were rotated so there would never be uneven wearing.
Don't get it. I wash my duvet cover every week. it's so simple. it takes up as much room as two flat sheets? 'cause that's basically what a duvet cover is? why have a sheet to sheild another sheet?
All you have to do is turn it inside out, grab the corners, stand on your bed and let gravity do the work.
My 60 year old tub and tile is a nightmare to clean, and switching from bar soap to the liquid was not optional. I still may not be able to get all the stains and buildup off the tub, but the whole area looks 200x better now that I've switched.
On another note: can anyone recommend fresh flowers that cat's won't find irresistably delicious? I've stopped buying fresh flowers because I'll end up coming home to a big mess and cat puke.
I was going to remodel my kitchen, but I think I will buy scissors instead.
Put me on TEAM SOAP BARS for plenty of the same reasons state above but more importantly for the waste of throwing away containers.
For those that can't give up their gel, there are plenty of health food stores where you can bring in your OWN CONTAINER and fill it from a larger container the stores sells. I keep gel soap for guest in the main bathrom in a container I constantly refill.
I bought a wire soap holder with suction cups and put it against the back shower wall where water doesn't get to it. This prevents the soap scum building up because water is not continuously running over it.
I get the CVS equivalent of Dove liquid soap for sensitive skin, and never look back. No soap scum in my shower, I use a squeegee daily and only actually scrub the shower about twice a year. Bliss! (And the liquid soap lasts me months -- I never worked it out, but I think I go through maybe one and a half bottles per year. My partner uses Ivory soap, and he has to buy a dozen bath-sized bars per year, at least, AND scrubs his identical shower maybe once a month...)
With the theme of "small changes, big impact", I got my hair cut really short. I use far less shampoo, no "product" (Mousse, gel...), no dryer... I towel it fairly dry and let the air do the rest. It's amazingly freeing, and I think the style looks fine on me. Also saves time when getting ready for work or to go out.
Going along with the closet ideas, a couple of times a year (I'm currently overdue, so maybe this weekend) I take everything out of my closet, look it over, choose things to donate to thrift shops (because they no longer fit, are less flattering than I thought, or are no longer worn), make sure nothing needs mending (buttons sewn on), and then put everything back in color order in sections of vests, T-shirts, short sleeved shirts, tank tops, long sleeved shirts, long sleeved knit tops, and jackets. (My slacks sit on the shelf. I don't own any skirts.) That way, in the morning, all I do is choose some plain slacks, pick a shirt or jacket for the "flair", and select a plain T or tank to wear under. (Today, for instance, gray slacks, grey tank, black-and-white plaid camp shirt.) Easy peasy!
"a quick rinse under hot water to unclog a nozzle vs. sopping up soap scum"
I don't get this suggestion. Either will leave general soap scum in your tub. A bar soap could leave buildup in the soap dish, but I don't put my soap down in the dish when it's bubbly or drippy and really don't have a build up problem. Give it a wipe now and then and that's all it takes.
Another bar soap fan, for all of the reasons listed already. Ionic hair dryers are hype; I bought one thanks to all of the marketing ploys (a $200 one to boot) and it doesn't work any better or faster than my old $80 standard hair dryer.
I have been reading AT since about 2006 - and it has taken me about that long to not be shocked every time I read "Landing Strip" --- my mind always goes to the Sex and the City definition first!!
I currently use a top sheet in addition to my duvet cover because my sheets are a higher thread count (and softer) than my duvet cover. Ultimately if I get a better duvet cover then I'll stop using the top sheet as that's how I was raised by my Swedish mother.
I prefer liquid soaps to bar soap as I find it's less drying and better for my sensitive skin. I do miss the variety and fragrances of bar soap though. If I did use bar soap then I think storing new soap in drawers is a clever idea.
I'm from Spain and here everybody uses liquid gel for the shower. I have bar soap but only to wash my hands, not my body... it's strange to me... Years ago when I was in the EEUU I found very difficult to find liquid gel in the supermarket :)
I agree with the posters bemoaning the liquid soap and no top sheet idea. I like high quality bar soap that is good for my skin (I like savon de Marsailles) and far less expensive instead of expensive and chemical-laden liquid soap. You know, they have to put chemicals in it to keep it in a liquid form. Just have to. Why go there? Am I magically not going to have to clean the tub anymore? Gross. Similar problem with the duvet cover nonsense. Why wash the equivalent of two sheets instead of one? And why launder my expensive and attractive duvet cover every week, making it fade faster (and no longer match the pillow shams) when I can wash it once a season and use a sheet? Is making the bed in the morning really that hard? It only takes me about 30 seconds.
I agree with most of these, especially the shower head, who knew such a small change can equal such luxury! I do have to disagree with the flowers, two cats + fresh flowers = mess & stress!!
I grew up using a top sheet & a duvet (with cover). Never thought much of it until now! If I get hot during the night it is top sheet only and if I am cold, I pull the duvet up too. Who cares what you prefer! There is no right or wrong way in my opinion. Same goes for the soap.
Never thought I'd read so many comments on soap! For the record, I'm bi-cleanser, but currently use bar soap from Whole Foods - lasts longer and I can have 2 bars/different scents for the cost of one bottle, and use them according to my mood. But, why I wrote is to offer a couple other ideas:
- Change your the piece of furniture you sit the most on to give you the view out your window that pleases you the most (if you're lucky enough to have a view you like). I moved my sofa from being so close to my balcony doors that I really couldn't see out, to across the room, so I can see the sky and sunset better. It feels better and didn't cost anything (except maybe a visit to the chiropractor after shifting other furniture around because of it)
- If you can't seem to keep everything clean at once (like me), decide on one room where you spend most of your waking time and keep that as neat/clean as you can, and filled with interesting things you like being around. It's more practical than thinking you can keep your entire space in top shape and feeling bad if you don't.
- Use pleasing scents - scents are as much a part of the landscape as the visual, for many people. I have started invoking a ritual of burning incense in my front entry every Sunday.
Three out of five mornings my Fiance wakes me to ask "Have you seen my keys?". Yes we have a landing strip but he's apparently allergic to it and any other form of efficient practises.
As a family, we use liquid soap. The liquid soap is cheaper than it's bar soap equivalent, we need a particular one because (two out of four) have sensitive skin.
In summer I prefer top sheet. In winter we use duvets.
We prefer bath sheets, use the extra length to dry your hair instead of a seperate towel.
As an allergy sufferer, I prefer potted plants to be switched in and out every week than flowers. To each, their own.
This post was full of really weird tips.
We change our duvet cover every 3 weeks and so does every other person I know (I'm another European). No problems there. Bottom sheet and pillow cases we change every week. Most people here air out their duvet during the day so it's fresher longer. We have 3 different tog rating duvets that we change according to season and it works juuuust fine :)
I think it depends pretty greatly on your climate though - most parts of Europe aren't as muggy as, say parts of India or the se USA. I wouldn't use a duvet during monsoon season, for example. If I were living in the deltas or the bayous of N America, I'd probably have a sheet only too. I'd probably wash it more often because it would be pretty sweaty.
Bar soap is better. No contest. Less residue on you, less drying to sensitive skin and it smellllls goorgeous! Also, it actually cleans you rather than sudsing up all lovely and bubbly and then sliding right over the dirt.
My scissors are fine.
Team Top Sheet. Comforters are WAY too hot. I sleep with just a sheet most of the year, and in the cold months, a sheet with a single fleece blanket. Just the thought of sleeping under a comforter makes me claustrophobic.
Also: Team Dr. Bronner's! I love the peppermint.
I have to agree about the bar soap. No plastic, lasts longer, and can be made all natural with essential oils. I switched back a year ago- both for the shower and for hand washing. I still keep a refillable gel soap container & soap around for guests, but my friends are fine with bar soap too, so it rarely gets used
Bar soap is the way to go. We buy from a vendor at our farmer's market - local and minimally packaged. I'd hate having another bottle in the shower for me to drop. We only use a coverlet/quilt - no top sheet - year round. We wash it a bit less but wash our bottom sheet and pillowcases weekly. And bath sheets are best investment ever. I insisted on getting them when we moved and love love love them! Going to visit others and stay in hotels now seems like a step down. People who come to stay with us feel totally pampered with them.
My husband and I married for the first time at age 50, and we each have deeply engrained sleeping styles. In the four years we've been living together, sheets and blankets have been a source of wrestling. I toss off my blankets and sheets due to hot flashes, only to find when I'm chilly that he's wrapped himself like a burrito in all the bedding. We've adopted a system of two piles of blankets for each of us, and it's worked out OK. It's not pretty - it's lumpy. If they are pretty blankets then it's pretty lumpy. Whatever works for a good nights sleep, right? I suppose if we switch to duvet covers, we would go with two duvets.
I also use a top sheet with the duvet cover, for two reasons. The most important is that I don't want to wash my cover every week (huge, heavy, feathers everywhere) but also because I still want something to cover up with if it gets too hot for the duvet!
In case someone is keeping track, put me down for bar soap (less packaging, vegan options, cheaper), top sheet plus duvet in cover (wash the equivalent of one sheet rather than two, fading issues, hate to wrestle them on and off -- I'm short it's hard), regular size towels (dry faster). I try to make greener choices.
Choosing liquid soap over bar soap is about as non-ecofriendly as you can get. Liquid soap is largely water. It is bottled in a distant plant, in plastic bottles (manufactured at another distant plat from petrochemicals), trucked (and water is very heavy, remember) to stores, where you purchase it, take it home and use it up several times faster than you would a bar. Then you throw away or (if you are among the few) recycle the container, which gets trucked and/or shipped to a distant (often overseas) plant for recycling.
Buy a bar of natural soap wrapped in paper or cardboard and keep it dry between showers...it will last 10 times longer than your bottle of diluted soap. Recycle the packaging, compost it or use it to start your fireplace or wood stove. Save money, save fuel, reduce the presence of plastics in the environment.
Also, there was a recent study that looked for hormone disrupters in household products. The researchers tested something like 70 products, and only 11 had none. One of those was Dr. Bronner's.
I hate duvets anyway. I like a pair of nice heavy blanket in winter (more weight, less poof), and a thin blanker and bedspread in summer, so I can adjust depending on what combination of fan/AC/regular air we're using that night.
@BZZD...three weeks? Yikes! I change out my duvet cover with the bottom sheet and pillow slips, generally every three to 4 days. The duvet gets aired outside when it's warm enough. Your perspiration, shed skin cells, hairs, skin oils, bodily fluids do not just go on the bottom bed clothes.
Three weeks?
I'm guessing most people realize this, but Dr. Bronner's comes in bar form. Just for what it's worth.
When I was growing up we had a big family and bar soap meant that eventually someone's pubes would end up there. Now, that's all I can think of when I see bar soap...
I am laughing sooooo hard at TML. Thank you for that --- best laugh I've had all week.
Add me to team bar soap, although my toddler gets so much joy from a bubble bath that we also have liquid soap in the house.
I will fight you if you try to take away my bar soap! I can get a bar of non-irritating bar soap for $2, but a bottle of bodywash would be $9. I guess you should just get the products you love. Honestly, I don't have a problem with soap scum. Maybe it's just that I use one of those green kitchen scrubbies and a mix of borax, salt, and baking soda to scour with. Hardly any work at all.
Also, sheets and blankets are much more suitable if your home is not a constant temperature. I love having windows open as much of the year as possible (April-June and August-October around here) so layering is key.
I do agree about showerheads and water filters, and a good pair of kitchen shears is a glorious thing. Nice towels are great, but I don't see the point of bath sheets. They just take up more space in the washing machine. I do not need them to double as wraparound garments!
Love the landing strip tip! I've done that one for years. But I can't imagine wrestling with the duvet cover once a week. Plus the fading. I like the pattern we have and can't find many others I would want. And with my husband you would have to wash it once a week. Top sheet in this house.
We still use the bar soap at the sink in the bathroom and he uses it in the shower. He doesn't like the gel. It is a pain to clean the soap dishes.
And I've always used those shaped guest soaps in drawers. They are usually highly scented and last a long time.
Another vote for bar soap. I keep mine on top of a nail brush, and that's what I use on my feet. No scum.
scissors? how does it belong here?
i will keep my soap bars, thx
OMG my husband hates the top sheet (and I hate that he won't use it) but LOVES rolling things like a burrito. I think we have a new system!
Regarding fresh flowers and cats: please know that in addition to many plants being toxic to cats (some fatally so), commercial growers of cut flowers spray their flowers heavily and so your cat could be ingesting some serious chemicals. My cat nibbled on some cut flowers and ended up in the ER in the middle of the night. Luckily he was saved, but not before he'd spent 3 days in critical condition. Please check the plant (flower) on a toxic to cats list like the one Cornell puts out and don't let any commercial cut flowers come in contact with your cat.
Wahahaaaah: SO MUCH FUN reading al these comments about the duvet-cover stress in life! It can be a tough job, yes (it takes up to THREE minutes!!), but on the other hand: I read about big / hard / useless tasks and projects here all the time... :) Go change the sheets people!
Rachel C Brooklyn- LOL, that's exactly the reason why I don't use bar soaps. puhahaha...i am glad i am not the only one.
Why hasnt anyone suggested making your own body wash from your favorite bar soap? Then you gan get the best of both worlds. It tried this bloggers formula and it worked great! http://www.onegoodthingbyjillee.com/2012/02/make-your-own-body-wash.html
She also has tips on how to make your own laundry soap and everything. I also like that she seems to be an AVERAGE person who just would like to use more eco/dollar friendly methods of caring for her household. I hate getting tips like this from someone who's been roughing it in the forest for decades. Perspective, ya know?
I like all the tips listed here for the most part. I appreciate that they're inexpensive things a renter can easily do. Tips like "Paint an accent wall" or "retile the backsplash" aren't really helpful to those of us with iron clad DO NOT ALTER leases and a limited budget.
In Asia, most people shower at night. Being fully cleansed before going to bed, it eliminates the need to wash your duvet once a week (2 weeks even). We only use duvet. Never heard of top sheets until I moved to America.
I use a duvet in the dead of winter, but I don't use a cover. I use a king sized sheet on a queen sized duvet so that I can easily remove and wash off the kitty "crumbs" that inevitably appear. Sooooooo, I use a top and bottom sheet. In high summer, I use a top and bottom sheet with a light quilt for prettying up. It all works well.
Bar soap FOREVER!!! I don't know, there's just something about rolling around a fine, French milled bar with a delicious scent on a washcloth that makes me feel like a pampered woman.
As for laundry soap, I tried some of those recipes and my whites turned grey. One batch I made turned to cement in the detergent bottle. Win some, lose some!
Thanks everyone for helping me to solve the mystery of why my tub keeps getting gross so quickly lately. I have truly been baffled but of course, a friend gave me a huge luxury bar soap a few months ago... mystery solved. I think I'll stick to the liquid kind. I also dislike dealing with hairs stuck to bar soap. Small pet peeve.
I am surprised that paint was not a suggestion either.... not just wall paint but paint for any purpose. For example I have this huge antique-ish wooden mirror that's not too stunning, but I've been daydreaming about painting its wood a bright color and am sure it will be a "small change, serious impact".
In addition to buying fresh flowers, I find that getting all of my candles together and lighting them in one room on a nice stress-free evening is lovely. Tocca candles are my favorite... they seem to be going the way of the dinosaurs sadly (many of the scents at least). I also like to have my rugs switch rooms, colors allowing, and that makes the space feel fresh too.
Shea butter soaps bars, followed by pure coconut oil all over your clean body will make you heart sing.
Then run out and get those sharp scissors and create some serious impact. I am doing this.
i've done almost everything on this list, except for shower head.. =) think it's time to upgrade!!
Bar soap is awesome and I love LUSH has one for your hair!
i love my duvet but we still use a top sheet as it means less washing of the duvet cover -colour lasts longer! gotta get me a landing strIp as i am forever misplacing keys and wallet etc. as for the flowers..i only buy them occasionally for my wife and when my mother comes to visit! Bar soap is still king in our house and we wont be changing! give me the Dove anyday!
Good Post - I would also suggest - give the place a really good cleaning. Clean or update throw rugs and keep them clean. Take down all weird curtains and put up plain white sheers - very affordable. Focus on your bed and make it just the way you want it to be. Make the bed - easy habit to get in to. Clean the windows! Make or buy new throw pillows for the sofa. Do a wall gallery somewhere. Get rid of anything that you don't like and start again - fresh.
Bar soap!! I never used bar soap til I got married (I often would forego any soap since even the "sensitive" ones make me break out in rashes) but we just buy plain old bar soap and it's great.
@DEZINE Yes! I have always showered at night and people think I'm crazy. I finally got my husband to do it and now I can wash the sheets less. WHO in their right mind wants to get cozy in bed with the grime of the outside world stuck to them?? Plus extra sleep in the morning!
Different strokes for different people. I change my rather heavy duvet cover about every three months and change the bottom and top sheets and pillow cases weekly or more often if needed. In summer I use a light weight duvet inner and follow the same routine, for winter it's a goose down inner. Bar soap for me, too but not in the shower. There are some really skin friendly albeit pricey bar soaps around. For use in the shower I buy an Australian product called Natural Instinct with absolutely nothing nasty in it. I get a huge refill bottle and decant into a smaller one. Works for my household.
@sunnyblue that link is awesome, thank you! Provided it works as shown in the video I may never again have to shimmy inside of my duvet cover and sprawl out on top of the comforter within (think duvet angel pose here) to ensure it aligns with all those corners:)
As someone who makes and sells all natural bar soap www.ElixirSoap.etsy.com, I have to completely disagree with "banning the bar", Provided it is organic, bar soap is better for the environment, has less packaging waste, has WAY fewer chemicals than liquid, and, contrary to the previous statement, is just as easy to clean up.
@ Sunnyblue: Apparently we are very different people. Of the many bath and body products to which I have extreme allergic reactions, all Dove products are the worst. While I get red eyes, burning skin, and coughing by merely entering a bathroom containing regular Dove soap, my reaction to the one for sensitive skin isn't any better. And while it lacks the famous Dove scent, it just replaces it with a different one that is less prominent but also less pleasant to me.
As for your belief that liquid soap is harder on the skin, that is not true for some people. Those of us with prone-to-reddening-and-breaking-out skin are often more allergic to the hardening ingredients in commercial soap than we are to the cleansing ingredients. I offer the following from skincare expert Paula Begoun: "Avoid Soap: Soap or bar cleanser is almost always drying and the ingredients that keep bar cleansers solid are not the best for skin. Whenever possible, especially if your skin is dry, your body will feel and look much better using a gentle body cleanser (also known as shower gel or body wash). And this doesn’t have to be expensive—it is shocking how similar these products are regardless of the price tag or claim on the label."
Link: http://www.cosmeticscop.com/bulletin/012909-full.htm
Cindy,
I live in an actual apartment, in an apartment complex, on the ground floor. Remove curtains and put up sheers? WHITE sheers? I don't think so. I'd rather not be on display to all my neighbors, and white is not in my vocabulary. Besides, it clashes horribly with the regulation builder beige.
And to all the folks who are grossed out by hair on your bar soap--ur doin it rong. Soap up your wash cloth, scrubby, loofah, hands, or whatever. Don't put the bar directly on your body. (I had no idea hairy bar soap was A Thing.)
bar soap...blah blah....scissors...blah...duvet? blah
I'm with 'ClickChick' on this one! Pour me some wine, turn on Sex in the City and forget about the other stuff.
Ummm. I launder my duvet cover every week along with the bottom sheet and pillowcases. I don't get why this seems difficult. As for fading all my linens are white, ergo no fading. If only I lived in NM and could hang the sheets out in the bright sun to dry.
"Re: duvets vs top sheets: I'd rather make the bed and wash my top sheet regularly than try to remove and wash the duvet cover as regularly."
Agreed. I bet folks wash their duvet covers less frequently than they do their sheets.
The top sheet also acts as an extra barrier to dirt and bugs getting into the duvet itself.
"Yes! I have always showered at night and people think I'm crazy. I finally got my husband to do it and now I can wash the sheets less. WHO in their right mind wants to get cozy in bed with the grime of the outside world stuck to them?? "
Agree. Less skin in the bed, less breeding ground for bed lice and other bugs. Fewer allergens brought to bed for a more restful night. Relaxation from the shower or bath helps with sleep. Keeps bedding cleaner longer.
I have a feeling showers in the morning are more for waking up than cleanliness.
"My cat nibbled on some cut flowers and ended up in the ER in the middle of the night. "
How did you trace the cause to the flowers as opposed to anything else the cat may have come into contact with?
I have a top sheet because my duvet cover (and matching pillowcases) is coloured, and expensive, and has a delicate edging on it. No way do I want to be washing that as often as I wash my (plain white) sheets.
Which, by the way, is at least once a week. Every couple of weeks might be fine, if you live in Europe. I live in Australia; I shower twice every day, but it's hot and sweaty here and there's no way I'm sleeping with the same fabric against my skin for 2+ weeks!
I also LOVE bar soap. Most important - no excess packaging. I only use Kirk's Castile Soap. It's great and the price is very reasonable. Sometimes I splurge on homemade soaps. Forget the liquid soaps.
JUKESGRRL - Agreed!
I also think that a shower before bedtime lessens the need to wash bedding everyday. If one is sweaty during the night, as is the case in warmer climates esp Australia, shower again in the morning. It took me years to convince my Fiance to shower before bedtime he only just realised recently how great he feels slipping into bed scrubbed + refreshed.
Liquid soap is great for the hand basin where everyone including guests can use it (Aesop 'Resurrection' handwash is seriously addictive) but I like bar soap in the shower it's just lather-ier.
Agree that all matching hangers is ideal for the wardrobe but find a duvet instead of a top sheet? Bizarre. The duvet (we call it a doona in Australia) is ia substitute for blankets and just like a blanket it goes on top of the top sheet!
I'm a liquid soap kind of person. Not because of the reason given in the article (unclogging the nozzle is not really a concern). A major concern, for me, is the soap scum that bar soaps leave when you're done washing. A bar-soap-user's bathroom takes a lot more elbow grease (not fun) to clean than a liquid soap user's bathroom. You would still have to clean your bathroom if you use liquid soap but the job is easier.
There are liquid soaps that are also environmentally-friendly but maybe not as widely-available as bar soaps. I use Human Nature products since they are cheaper than most organic soaps. Plus, I reuse the bottles or recycle them. I have suggested to the company if they will considering refilling stations. I am still awaiting their response.
Also, if I have guests, I'd rather have them use liquid soaps. With bar soaps, I don't think they would be able to finish one bar even if they stay a whole week and when they leave, what do I do with the leftover? Let the next guest use it? I wouldn't do to a guest what I wouldn't want to do to me either. I don't want to share my bar soap with another unless they are family. (Come to think of it, no, not with my brother nor my mother. No way. Yuck. Hahaha.) Maybe I could use them to handwash delicates but that would still be like sharing bar soaps and still leave soap scum in the sink.
but what if you ar too hot for a duvet, sometimes all you want is the top sheet. But then you want the duvet later in the night. It's all about temperature options!
I'm English and the standard for bedding over here is bottom sheet, duvet cover and pillowcases. The sheet on the mattress, the pillows in the pillowcases and the duvet in the duvet cover. I have a down duvet (or quilt, or comforter or whatever else it may be called) and that gets a trip to the cleaner once a year, and an air on the clothes line once a month. If I had a bigger washer/dryer, I would wash it every couple of months. The duvet cover, sheet, and pillowcases get changed and laundered every 2 weeks. I also have padded pillowcase protectors and a quilted mattress topper that get laundered a couple of times a year. I think that is pretty much standard here in Blighty. As for temperature, it rarely is an issue in the UK, but some folks change their duvets for different togs (heavier or lighter) in the summer or winter, and others keep a blanket thrown over the end of the bed.
As for soap, I like a bit of everything. I like bar soap in the shower and use l'occitaine, and my husband uses shower gel. I have liquid soap by sinks in the bathroom, but provide a fresh new bar soap to guests. As for cleaning, where I live we have very hard water, so I'd be scrubbing the shower due to this before the 'soap scum' (what a horrid phrase) ever became a problem. Incidentally, I use a 'daily shower spray' made by Method after each shower, so neither has really ever caused me problems!
Re: Friendly flowers for cats... My cat has serious chewing habits and once tried to polish off a vase of chrysanthemums. (She also peeled an entire decal off my bedroom wall and chewed through that too, but that's another story.)
Roses. Only roses. The flower industry is ironically not very environmentally friendly - (especially in the UK as most of ours are flown in), so best to grow them in your garden (or if you're lucky like me your neighbour's rambling roses spill over your fence). You'd think you'd get bored of them, but you get creative with displays and colours.
PS) Duvet ftw.
I agree with avoiding store-bought flowers. The flower industry is unethical as well as being ecologically harmful. Go for a walk in the forest and cut some pretty branches, or grow flowers in your garden (which you won't even want to pick, believe me, given how hard it is to grow some varieties!!).
Also: go bar soap team!!!
Good ideas here, and I'll put some into action, but never liquid soap. I use bars of Guerlain for washing myself, and bars from Mrs. Meyer's brand to handwash lingerie. Dr. Bronner's also makes a good bar soap. Recently a friend gave me a bar of shampoo-soap, and it works great ! There's less waste, too. As for bedding, I was always taught to get into bed clean, a nice bath before bed also helps me sleep. Wake up more refreshed.
Great Ideas! I just bought new shelf paper and a silverware organizer for my kitchen. It will be a small change but will make me feel better about my kitchen.
Am I the only one that refuses to buy CFL's? I'm an artist and the light quality is terrible. Not only that, I can see the flicker of every fluorescent bulb with which I come in contact which is cause for a near instant headache.
NO CFL's for me - ever.
@mosaicwench - No, I dislike CFLs as well. A lot of them take a while to turn to full light and the last thing I need is to walk into a dark house and wait for the lights to warm up so I can see where I'm going.
I buy my bar soap from Monkey Boy products - cold processed goats milk soap. From the Dollar Store I also picked up a suction cup soap holder for the shower. It has a nylon net surface and my goats milk bar has lasted me over a year! Green, Cheap and my skin has never felt better!
I don't get why people feel they can speak for a whole country when they describe their habits. -MRS ELLIOTT -"The duvet cover, sheet, and pillowcases get changed and laundered every 2 weeks. I also have padded pillowcase protectors and a quilted mattress topper that get laundered a couple of times a year. I think that is pretty much standard here in Blighty."
I change the bed linen every week. I'm sure plenty of others do. The mattress/pillow protectors get washed at the same time. Otherwise you are putting clean on top of used. Not suggesting for one minute that you're a grubby, but each to their own. ;-)
Great ideas!
Weekly flowers - sigh. Wouldn't that be nice ... one day ... one day, when I'm out of school, and actually have a salary!
Bar soap? Hmm ... not a fan of the excess plastic waste from liquid soap, PLUS, I've recently discovered the wonders of hand-crafted soaps. I buy soap from the farmer's market, from a little old lady who learned how to make it from her grandmother. She adds olive and coconut oils - so it leaves your hands deliciously soft. (which is saying something - I'm a varsity rower!) My favourite variant, at the moment, is rhubarb ... it smells like summer!!!
I use a down/feather duvet all year round with no top sheet and no duvet cover. I have several duvets in different thicknesses, for every season. Duvet covers impede air circulation, and the duvet becomes too hot. Top sheets + duvet is also too hot. Without a cover, even a summer duvet remains fresh and comfortable. It breathes. Good duvet shells are made of percale cotton which is so nice on the skin. I wash my duvet around two of three times a month because I like it to be crisp and smell good. I have tried different brands of duvets, a lot of them too pricey or uncomfortable because of the polyester blend shell, some of them too much down, others too much feathers. I like IKEA's top line that has a good down/feather ratio and 100% cotton shell. They wash well and are affordable for the quality. A good duvet needs down + feathers in order to stay fluffy. The Swedes know their duvets.
Seems like the Japanese know their duvets too: check the movie Lost in translation: deluxe Tokyo hotel, duvets, no duvet covers, no top sheets.
Liquid soap for me. I change often, I like the scent to match my mood. Citrus, lavender, melon, etc. Liquid soap stores well until the next mood change whereas a semi-used bar of soap just doesn't appeal to me. I like a new bar of soap. I use Dove in the shower because it leaves no residue on shower walls, making it easier to clean.
Could we just call a truce on this top sheet debate? Can't we just accept that Americans like the convenience of being able to quickly wash a top sheet rather than stripping a comforter and washing a duvet which takes twice as long to dry?
One more reason why I insist on a top sheet: it's hot where I live. A top sheet allows me to sleep under the lightest possible thing. Doesn't mean I think those who eschew top sheets are "wrong."
I like the thought of new flowers every week. We just moved in to an aparment after 21 years living in our own home. I try to be positive; the loss of approx 1000sq ft. really does not bother me too badly. (it is driving my husband nuts)However; we had just redecorated three years ago. Had everything just the way I had invisioned it when we bought the house. Of course the apartment walls are "stark" white and the galley kitchen while big enough for us..it has the typical formica cupboards. Landlord says we can paint. Any ideas on how to paint formica cupboards..that have to be "primed" before we move out (if we do)
@Katlia No we can't agree to disagree, because then we'd have to recognize that people come from many cultures and practices that are equal but different, and then we'd lose the chance to feel superior to someone based on whether they use a top sheet or not. /sarcasm
I agree. Years of reading AT posts have taught me that some people are judgmental on very very minute things. Still boggles the mind when I see it though.
Top sheet under the duvet:
1) easier to wash a sheet than to take the cover off the duvet and get it back on;
2) you can kick off the duvet in the middle of the night and still have a light cover
If you don't use a top sheet then your duvet cover will have to be washed more often and it will not last as long. 10 years ago my husband and I had this discussion. We decided to try an experiment. We bought 2 identical duvet covers, of which I refused to mend as part of the experiment. The first cover lasted not quite 3 years. It developed little tears at the foot level and the top corners, especially my husband's side, quickly became thin and then proceeded to disappear. The second one is still being used today but I plan on replacing it this coming year because its top edge is begining to fray in places. The top sheet? Still using it to. The bed linen's are washed 2 times a week.
@Sauveteur - Well, washing things twice per week will do it!
I've had three douvet covers my entire life ... washing every 3 weeks or so (showering, always, before bed) ... And, the sole reason I've abandoned two is because I outgrew them. No mending required -- no tears or rips.
Clearly AT should do one of its poll thingies on duvet with or without top sheet. Then we can see who's in the majority! ...and also a post on how much some people like bar soap.
Team bar soap! So much more economical and eco-friendly.
@Skidou - thanks for the recommendation to set the duvet free! I think that might work for me as I've always liked the idea of a duvet, but found the reality swelteringly hot.
Switch curtains between rooms (i.e., switch the living room curtains with the bedroom curtains) providing this is feasible. I did it about 2 weeks ago and it has made a big difference in my apartment (home). I also got rid of several silk plants, I took a rug from one room and put it in my tv room. Now my apartment (home) feels fresh and I love the results.
I love going topsheetless! I have no excuse not to make my bed. It takes literally seconds!
Put me down for bar soap, top sheet, regular size towels, and fresh flowers. :)
Definitely liquid soap (St. Ives; inexpensive and great for my sensitive skin). Bar soap gets slimey. And Dr. Bronners leaves my skin dry and scratchy although I love the way it smells and really want to use more of it. But it even leaves film when I use it for cleaning.
Love the look of a fluffy duvet but I'd roast if that was my only option. I often sleep with just a top sheet and pull a blanket up if I get cold. And unless I am doing something really wrong my duvet cover needs to be ironed if I wash it so I drop it off at the cleaners to be cleaned and pressed a few times a season.
the point of a topsheet under a duvet is that if you have a very expensive duvet comforter (i.e like mine that costs $100 to is dry clean only), your body is actually in contact with the topsheet and not the duvet... and therefore reduces frequency of washing the duvet, you just wash the sheet. also , some people like the feel of a crisp cotton sheet on them
@Lozzab - that's what I thought.
Some people must rely heavily on their tumble dryers. I don't own one, so washing the entire duvet every couple of weeks in winter is not realistic.
The point of a top sheet is that you wash the sheet and just air the duvet.
not everyone remembers to unclogg the liquid soap....until it squirts them in the eye
My husband and I use different blankets because we run at different temperatures. (key to a happy marriage bed!). Because I'm lazy, I like to drape a big thick comforter over the end of the bed, even if we don't use it at night. I just flip it up and over the bed in the morning. The comforter is thick enough to hide any lumps from the mismatched sheets underneath, and that way I don't have to make the sheets tidy.
Count me in among the group who like a top sheet. I usually run too hot for the duvet at night whereas my husband is rolled up like a burrito (to loosely quote a previous post).
But I do like the idea of new hangers, and in fact was thinking of replacing my mismatched hangers just the other day. I hate the wire hangers that are bent of shape, etc. I may just be doing that this weekend.
Ok, for all of you living in a hot climate: I'm from central Israel (born and raised), which gets super hot in the summer with very high humidity (I belive the tempreture is much higher than Tenesee...).
The bedding culture (Haha! Though it seems every country has one) is very much european - we use duvet+duvet cover and that's it. Each person choose their duvet according to his prefrence - personally I prefer a medium weight duvet in winter, so I never get too hot (a lot of couples use 2 duvet. My boyfriend has a heavier duvet).
In summer, however, it gets way too hot to use a duvet, so we either use a top sheet by itself, or like mose people do - use the duvet cover as a top sheet! Yes, you've heared right - and it's not that strange because if you'll think about it, a duvet cover is basically 2 top sheets combined. It's just enough for me, but if you'll like, you can add a thin blanket (though not necessary in most areas).
Oh, and the sheets are changed every 8 days (2 days for every side of the pillowcase), the duvet gets aired outside every 2 monthes or so and get washed once a year before going into storage.
@1danielle1
Thank you! I was wondering at everyone complaining about how "hot" a duvet is, and how they use a sheet + blanket in the summer. I was so confused as to why they just didn't leave the duvet-filling in a closet and use the cover by itself!!!
Disclaimer: that is what I do. I have a chest at the bottom of the bed where the duvet goes during hot months, and in the winter it goes inside the duvet cover.
For me, the presence of pets means that a top sheet under the duvet cover would not reduce the # of duvet washings... tho the sheet protects the duvet from me, the kitty hair is all over the duvet. :)
LOL, I"m so surprised to hear AT readers defend bar soap. I won't argue with the "green" aspect of it, they're probably right. But I'd have expected many MANY more to have my perspective, same as yours - bar soap becomes icky almost immediately. It cracks, dirt gets in the cracks (at least if you do any gardening at ALL!) and I've made to move to liquids. The Pro-barsoapers may well be right; I'm just saying this to cast at least one vote on the other side!
I look forward to trying some spring-scissors, which I hadn't heard of till this article!
Small suggestion: rather than "toss" your towels, they make the best rags; and if you don't want them, the humane society and others definitely do!
@1DANIELLE1
Perfectly stated! I am in Australia and that's exactly what I do. A person can also save on manchester by (re)using the duvet cover as a top sheet in warmer weather. I air my duvet a few times in colder months but wash professionally before storing during warmer months. I wash my duvet cover weekly + have several others to switch.
@Lunawhite - I get what everyone is saying, but I guess it depends what kind of duvet covers you have.
Most duvet covers, in my experience, are not made to stand up to frequent washings. And if you have 'several others to switch', then you're not really saving on manchester. I have two duvet covers and two sets of summer sheets. The sheets are thick, 1000-thread count Egyptian cotton; the more I wash them, the softer they get. The duvet covers are coloured, delicately-edged, and expensive. The more I wash them, the quicker they're going to be faded and tatty.
I don't think it's a 'right or wrong' thing, just an interesting discussion - but I think we might be comparing apples and oranges!
Bath sheets? I've never even heard of such things..They totally exist though. Super weird
@1DANIELLE1, I started doing the same thing, using the duvet covers in the summer, mainly because my roommates insist on using the AC. I'm comfortable at 80 degree F, anything below that is too cool. I thought having roommates from Iraq and Phillipines mean *this time* they won't freeze me out like my German roommate tried to. Nope, they're seriously allergic to anything above 70 degree F. We've compromised at 79 degree F (because I'm a jackass) and I use the duvet covers, sometimes add a quilt, instead of a single topsheet.
Like many others, I prefer soap bars, because I find gels smell too strong and to reduce packaging. I buy Aleppo soap and put it in a soap holder out of the water stream so that it lasts long rand doesn't leave a trail of soap scum down the wall. It works for us. Interesting to read everyone's opinion on the matter.
I am also in the top sheet camp. I'm surprised some people don't use a top sheet, I would never have considered it before. Not because I think it's wrong but because that's just not what I'm used to. I live in a place where the weather varies widely during the year. In the summer, we only sleep with a top sheet most nights. In the winter, we use a top sheet, a blanket and a duvet because it gets quite cold.
I haven't read any suggestions yet for foaming soap. That's what we use for hand soap in my house. I buy Dr. Bronners in bulk and cut it with water into my reusable foaming soap dispensers. It makes liquid soap last 2-3 times longer, and is no mess at all, and of course if you reuse containers, there is no wasted plastic stuff. Easy peasy!
I'm also in camp duvet. With kids, I'd be washing entire comforters weekly if they weren't enveloped in duvet covers. Fresh fitted and pillow case weekly. A 3 year old can make a bed without a top sheet, which is a win in my book!
Sheet wars aside, this post made me think about my own very favorite home indulgences for "Small Changes, Serious Impact"
- A good pair of kitchen sheers (Just dont let the kids know )
- Natalie Merchant's Lose Your Sleep cd takes my work stress away
- A boot tray or pretty throw rug for leaving shoes at the door keeps the house so much cleaner
- A Jo Malone candle is such an indulgence on my budget, but WOW
- The retractable (pull out) sink faucet for the kitchen sink. I'll never live without one again!
- Wooden hangers
- A Magnetic soap holder in the shower limits soap scum (Attn bar lovers!)
- One set of 100% Egyptian cotton sateen sheets with a good thread count= LOVE
- Moving our "landing strip" to the garage side of the door has really minimized our chaos: shoes, coats, dog leash, shopping bags, etc.
- Installing an under cabinet radio/cd player brought music to my meal prep
Thanks for letting me share my list.....just listing all of the little things that I appreciate has brought a smile to my face today:-)
Here in the frozen North, flowers are pricey. A bouquet that would cost $3.99 in New York is about $20 here in the winter. So I set out bowls tropical fruit instead. When they start to wilt a bit, we eat them!
Flowering plants would probably be an even better economical option if I didn't always manage to kill them.
Soap: you can buy one foaming soap and then reuse the dispenser. Liquid soap is mixed in a ration to water 10:1, which is super economical PLUS kids can actually wash the suds off quickly and keeps the bathroom tidy. This is for hand soap only. For bath/shower it varies, but lately kids use liquid and adults use bar, which seems the most economical/tidy for all.
Top sheet. We've had our pretty duvet for 10 years bc we don't wash it much. The covers are more expensive than sheets, so we wash the thing that's cheaper to replace!
Count me on team bar soap. Much easier on the skin and not difficult to clean up if you choose a good one with natural ingredients.
As for the duvet, I have a queen and don't really find it difficult to replace the cover. I wash it weekly because I sweat like a pig at night and have pets. I have two covers and rotate them. I bought attractive but inexpensive ones so that I don't have to worry about them fading or what-have-you. Top sheets are a useless pain in the arse, in my humble opinion.
As for color coding the clothing, I prefer to sort by type rather than color. I also like to have a simple, coordinated wardrobe that doesn't take so much space and thought as to require color-coding.
@TML - too funny!
@Sonje - agree with you about top sheets. I got rid of all my flat sheets. Quilt cover, fitted sheet and pillow cases all get washed at the same time, which is monthly in winter and fortnightly in summer. I don't perspire much, have partner or pets or do anything but sleep in my bed. I alternate between a "summer" quilt and a "winter" one and these get professionally laundered annually.
@clickchick - me too... me too. makes this whole thing pretty entertaining though.
OK let me see if I have this straight... I am putting my bar soap in the bed so my unwashed duvet cover will smell nice... I am putting the fresh flowers in the liquid soap to deter the cat... I'm pouring another glass of wine and watching Sex in the City to learn about landing strips... but for the life of me I can't remember what I was meant to do with the scissors!!!
I am one of those strange top sheet AND duvet people, mostly because I like the way it looks when my bed is made. Also, when it gets hot out I put the duvet in storage and use the cover as a nice light summer blanket. My bed still looks nice and I don't sweat my booty off in DC heat.
I'm in camp duvet, but sadly my boyfriend is uncompromisingly in camp top sheets. Thankfully, he also is willing to make the bed most days. :) The bar soap/liquid soap debate is easier, since we just both buy what we like.
@Pippolata--hilarious!
@pippolata, obviously the scissors are to help with your dryer upgrade -- just cut your hair off, and who needs ions NOW?
I'm another top-sheet-with-duvet girl, for the temperature optionality and the fact that I don't have to take the cover off and on. But I also have a slightly ridiculous California king size comforter on a queen size bed, because... I just like having a lot of blanket. The only way I've successfully been able to get the cover on is to lay it out on my bed and crawl inside. Not the fastest method, and definitely not for the claustrophobic, but it works...
@Joco, silly me! Now why didn't I remember that!
I love using specialty bars of soap and putting them into netting to make foaming bars. It lessens the soap scum and is just seems so much better than shower gel. Usually i use all natural lavender or sandalwood soaps for them.