I used to be a die-hard what’s-the-point-of-making-a-bed-when-you’re-going-to-get-back-in-it-that-night advocate. I could argue my point, and feel completely justified.
But when I started this deslobification process over a year ago, I began by making my bed. (Almost) every morning. I didn’t know why, other than . . . that was what normal people did.
With the state my home was in, I needed to accept that I had no room to argue about anything housekeeping-related.
And now that I’ve been sleeping in a made bed almost every night for more than a year?
I love it. And there are quite a few reasons.
First, it makes the room look better. Even when you have to bring your knees up to your chin just to walk through clutter to get to the bed, somehow the sight of a made bed with pretty pillows on it soothes the soul.
Second, it feels good. You know that feeling when you sleep at someone else’s house, or in a hotel, and the bed has been made up beautifully? It looks inviting, and then you crawl in and the sheets feel soooo good?
The sheets.
Not the scratchy underside of the bedspread because the top sheet disappeared long ago between the foot board and the end of the mattress.
Third, it helps your marriage. Seriously. And I’m not talking about your husband being glad that his wife has finally started making the bed (though that’s a good thing too). And I’m not talking about you making the bed look more inviting for, well . . . you know (though that’s a good thing, too).
I’m talking about cover-stealing. Yep. No more claims that “I don’t have any over here either!” You start out the night even-steven, so it’s crystal clear who the culprit is.
Fourth, it’s a really easy task that makes you feel like you’ve accomplished something in your home in the first 2 minutes after you wake up. Now, if you’re like I used to be, you’re probably thinking, “It’s not easy! It takes me forever to make my bed!” I used to have to search for, and then yank and pull that top sheet out of its hiding spot. Then I had to pull all blankets off of the bed, shake them out, and put them on one by one.
Guess what? Sheets and blankets don’t get THAT messed up in one night. Slight tugging to straighten things up, a little smoothing, throwing on the pretty pillows (which are on top of the clutter, not buried underneath), and you have a made bed.
And if you’ve already made your bed before you head to the kitchen for your coffee, you are well on your way to getting into your Homemaker Character for the day. Preparation, people!!!
And last, but definitely not least . . . the thing I love most about a made bed . . . homework time.
What?
Homework time.
My middle child, who is in first grade, has mostly reading homework. Reading aloud. Not really conducive to a homework table with his brother. He also resists homework more than my oldest ever did. So, early on in the school year, we developed the habit of doing his reading on my bed.
My made bed.
My comfy made bed.
For this mama, it’s glorious. Being off in a different room gives us some special one-on-one time together. He’s more relaxed and reads better. Lying there reading together lends itself well to snuggling (an increasingly rare treat with my boys). And I am not going to complain about being forced to stop and rest for a while in the middle of the afternoon.
Love it.
I’m also linking up to Finer Things Friday over at The Finer Things in Life, because that last reason is most definitely a finer thing.
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A made bed does make me happier but why is it such a chore in my mind.
Hi there;
Very much enjoyed your post about making the bed. I carry the bed making way too far, though. You have lots of good reasons for making the bed, but I'm just OCD about it, or so my friends say. LOL I blogged about it back in Sept. Check it out if you have some time.
http://tsonodablog.wordpress.com/2010/09/19/obsessive-compulsive-much/
Nice Blog! Terri
Love this post, Nony. (Love them all, actually!) You *may* have motivated me to start making my bed in a more… consistent… manner. Maybe.
Great! I love it. I think I'll go make my bed now.
my excuse was always "a made bed is easier for bed bugs and dust mites to live in". I prefer a made bed but it hardly ever happens 🙁
I make the bed by folding the duvet in half so the top half of the bottom sheet is displayed. It cools that half of the bed down (where the majority of the body, and therefore the majority of the dead skin, is), makes a person resist putting ‘stuff’ on the bed during other tidying projects so the dust/whatever doesn’t get in (lessening the number of piles that get put on the floor at bedtime), and if a person is on the bed reading or whatever in the evening, and then decides to go to sleep, they just need to sit up and grab the duvet and pull it up, rather than have to get off the bed in order to get back in to it. YMMV, of course, but if bed bugs are the real concern, there is a way round that 🙂 Anyway, it works for me.
Awesome! 🙂 I am a lifelong bed maker. I cannot stand to sleep in an unmade bed, but sometimes I have to make it just before I get in it! 🙂 Great post!
Hilarious, as usual! I just pull the covers up – I have never bothered with going over the pillows.
Yes! The last one is definitely worth it all by itself! I found you through WFMW.
I can not get into an unmade bed. Usually I am up and out of the house while the hubby is still in bed (he is lucky he goes to work later than me) and I can't get him into the bed making kick. Sounds weird, but I have to make the bed before bedtime.
Found your blog (and I like it!) through Amy's Finer Things. I will be back. 🙂
I saw the title of this post in my twitter feed and initially thought "I don't think I'll ever love making my bed." But for some reason just seeing it made me make the effort to do it. I didn't love it but I do love seeing a made bed, for so many of the same reasons as you shared.
You shared some great points, and "homework time" seems like such a special reason.
My funny story about bed-making:
I have always been one of those “the bed should be made everyday” kind of people. But since we moved into this house (a yr & a 1/2 ago) my master BR has looked like yours pre-blog. It was the dumping ground for idk where this goes-throw it in the master BR-people are coming-throw it in the master BR-kids don’t know what to do w/it-we’ll throw it in mom’s room-etc.etc.
A little insight to dh’s personality:
My husband loves a made bed. And if it hasn’t been made by bedtime, he will actually MAKE THE BED before he gets in it. (I know…he’s a weirdo) My husband & I have fought for the last 20 yrs about my house-keeping ways. He can’t stand my “piles” and he can clean the entire house in 2 hrs. (It takes me 2 weeks to make it look like his 2 hr job) Our brains just work VERY differently. But thankfully he loves me more than a clean house so he puts up with me 🙂 Note: DH doesn’t clean often. He works a LOT of overtime & coaches our daughter’s softball team and I am a SAHM so I truly feel that the house is “my job” and actually feel kind of guilty when he does end up cleaning the whole house!
So….I was at the point of….WHY bother making the bed when the whole room is a disaster?!? Then I found your blog. So I started making the bed everyday. Even though the rest was STILL a disaster. I just made the bed. Everyday. For like, a week and a 1/2 straight. (And I did the same as you….didn’t warn the family of my “new me-the house is going to be in order from NOW ON-b/c this 347th house cleaning strategy I’m trying is going to solve all our problems) I just did it.
So one evening my teenage daughter walks in the LR w/tennis shoes on & her earbuds in so my husband asks her “where are you going?” She says, “I’m going to run” (We have a treadmill in our bedroom) And here is how my hubby responded. Ready? It’s great!
He said, (in a louder than normal, STERN tone):
“Ok. BUT YOU BETTER PUT EVERYTHING BACK THE WAY IT WAS BEFORE YOU WENT IN THERE!!!”
I about died laughing! (In my head) Because honestly…the room was a DISASTER! Except for the made bed! But apparently…making the bed tricked him into THINKING the room was clean??? Or maybe he just saw I was making an effort?? I don’t know. But for some reason…I found it hilarious! And even though neither one of us had said a word about the “new me”….he obviously noticed! 😀
Nice that your children are “reclaiming” the house 🙂
My sister and I also did homework on our bed… maybe up to mid-way in secondary school. My mother wondered why she had build us desks because we only used it to put stuff in it (and on it, and under it^^)
Even as an adult I did one whole year of home office on my living room table until I thought “wait I have a beautiful desk here and it’s only collecting dust and papers?”