Whether you’re running a three-room bed and breakfast from your quaint seaside cottage or a bustling 50-room boutique hotel in a trendy urban locale, making the perfect bed is one of your most important tasks.
Large hotels understand the importance most travelers place on getting a good night’s rest in a comfortable and luxurious bed, so much so that hotel chains have spent millions of dollars in recent years in what industry insiders have dubbed “the bed wars”.
Thanks to research conducted by large hotel chains, one thing we do know is that by and large, guests tend to associate white bedding as being the most comfortable, luxurious and calming. Do remember, though, that such a simple color palette need not be boring. You can really let your creativity shine by mixing up multiple layers and textures, and by accessorizing with tasteful pops of color.
Here, we’ll show you not only how to protect one of your most important investments — your mattresses — but also how to make your bed in the manner that will be most appealing to your guests.
1. Select Your Mattress
A comfortable, indulgent sleep experience is an integral key to the success of your establishment, and is often the first thing guests remember about their stay. Our new Stearns & Foster Airedale Luxury Mattresses set the standard in unsurpassed comfort and support.
While Stearns & Fosters’ plush mattresses may be ideal for most guests, the line’s firm mattresses will provide a slightly longer life, and are ideal for sufferers of back or other body pains. Opting for the line’s Luxury Euro Pillow Top is a great way to bridge the difference between firm and plush.
2. Protect Your Mattress & Box Spring
Good mattresses are an investment and should be treated as such. Start by selecting a high-quality mattress and box spring protector.
Our Bed Care Encasements are both waterproof and breathable, and they fully protect your mattresses from dust mites, bed bugs, and other allergens. They are also machine washable in hot water, which makes cleaning a breeze.
After encasing your mattress and box spring, we recommend taking a simple approach with the bed skirt by going with a model in a polished style that stretches over your box spring much like a fitted sheet. Our Fresh Ideas BedSkirt is a clean and elegant style featuring crisp tailored box pleats, while our new Lattice Bed Skirt adds both a rich texture and clean line to the bed.
Designer’s Tip:
Before you begin selecting and purchasing your bed linens, put together a mood board. You can do this by taking photos of the existing room, and then finding pictures of finished beds and bedrooms online, or in your favorite decor magazines.
Pinterest and Go Moodboard are both free and useful tools for creating boards very quickly online. A physical mood board with printed images, paint swatches and material samples, however, can be a more useful tool for comparing colors and textures. It can even be later framed and made into a unique piece of art to display in your establishment.
Moodboards can also be created in sketch or scrapbooks, which can later be used as your guestbook or recommendations book.
3. Pad Your Mattress
Once you’ve applied your bed skirt you’ll want to apply your mattress pad, as well as a featherbed or fiber bed to add both an extra layer of comfort and a little extra grip to prevent your sheets from slipping.
Our Bordered Baffle Box Feather Bed offers a “sleeping on clouds” experience, as well as an appealing sculpted appearance.
4. Select and Lay Your Sheets
As guests today are more quality savvy than ever, you simply can’t afford to skimp when it comes to your sheets.
Our signature Innstyle 600 Wrinkle Free Sheets — boasting a 600 thread count in 100% pima cotton with beautiful sateen weave — are so popular they’ve even been raved about in The New York Times!
These sheets are so beloved by guests that many innkeepers place a set on display in their lobbies or gift shops to allow for orders. If you’d like to do something similar, simply place your order, and we’ll ship the respective sheets directly to your guest’s home address.
For more eco-friendly establishments, we also carry a full range of organic cotton, bamboo, and Tencel sheets, as well as other “green” products.
5. Select, Cover and Lay Your Duvet or Comforter
When selecting a duvet and cover, you’ll want to keep in mind the average temperature of the room, as well as the overall look of the style you want to put together. Your duvet or comforter will be a main focal point of the bed, and this is an area in which you can really let your unique style shine.
While down and down-alternative duvet inserts are excellent options, and duvet covers make for much easier washing, innkeepers in warmer climates may wish to forgo the duvet insert and duvet cover and use a top sheet, blanket and quilt or coverlet (which will be lighter weight). If an innkeeper is doing a turn-down service, the top sheet and blanket can be used after turn down of the quilt.
For example, depending on your needs and budget, you may want to combine a top cover — such as Comfort Block, which is a little heavier than a third sheet — with an Alice Coverlet or a Hampstead Toile Quilt. There are any number of styles from which to choose for your particular establishment.
If you prefer old world charm as opposed to a more modern look, take a look at our Coronova Duvet by Sferra, a sheenless Egyptian cotton duvet with gorgeous Italian lace details and trim. It fits well with any number of styles, from classic Victorian to European rustic.
6. Select, Protect, and Place Your Pillows
Look no further than our new Arcadia Pillow Collection by Sferra to exceed the needs of even your choosiest guest. These gems combine the thermal properties of featherweight down with the same easy care as more modern fillers. Best yet, they come in three different weights to provide the optimum level of comfort for back, side, and stomach sleepers, and are available in five different sizes to meet the needs of most any arrangement.
And don’t forget to protect your pillows as well. Just like with your mattress, you’ll want to select an encasement that is both waterproof and breathable, yet still capable of guarding your pillows against bed bugs, dust mites, bacteria, and other allergens.
You can then cover your pillows with a mix of both traditional pillowcases and decorative shams (available with all our sheets and duvet covers) to achieve your desired look.
7. Accessorize Your Bed with Additional Pillows, Throws, and Scarves
Now you can finally get around to the fun part: finishing your bed by selecting from a range of bed scarves, blanket throws and decorative pillows. Here you’ll want to focus on adding in extra texture and even little pops of color to tie your dream bed into the overall design of your room.
Once you’ve made the choice to invest in high-quality basic bed linens, decorative pillows and throws are also a great way to change the look of your room on a seasonal or even regular basis without breaking the bank.
Our new Tantini Throw by Sferra in 100% Merino wool makes an excellent choice for chilly winter months, while Sferra’s Burke Throw in a Moroccan-inspired geometrical weave adds a splash of tropical color fun.
We also offer decorative pillows in unique shapes, styles, and textures that will help you add that final finishing touch to your bed. Decorative pillows with rounded shapes, pleated textures and geometrical prints coordinate perfectly with more modern looks, while pillows with lace accents and embroidered details work best for more eclectic and period-oriented styles.