Summer Nights
Anyone who knows me from back in “the day” knows my obsession with bedding. As a young teen, I poured over the Laura Ashley catalog, decorating bedrooms of future imaginary children. (Lots of ticking stripes…) During summers in college, I worked in the home department of the Ralph Lauren outlet. I learned how to fold blankets, towels and comforters. I obsessed over pattern names and tracking down discontinued favorites at West Point Pepperell/Stevens stores across the southeast. Constance sheets and a Garden Gate sham (which you’ll see in a sec…) were my biggest scores.
And when I got my first apartment, I changed my bedding constantly. We’re talking the whole nine—dust ruffle, shams, the works. I even had red flannel Christmas bedding. Sexy, no?
In recent years, I’ve cooled my jets a bit. Or maybe I’ve just refocused my efforts. But since last summer when we traded in our ceiling fan for a chandelier and used a dinky table fan wedged onto a shelf in the closet for air, I knew that when the temps heated back up, our bedding would have to adjust.
Here’s what we had–which I love and will definitely be making a return in the fall.
The brown quatrefoil duvet and shams are from Dillards. The floral sham is the afformentioned Garden Gate RL sham, also from Dillard’s, now that I think about it, circa 2000. The down comforter says “seasonless,” but it’s really not. And I’ll use any excuse to pimp out the plate wall.
Another view:
So, I’d been eager to switch things up, but then when I saw Amanda’s master bedroom via Urban Grace, I knew what I wanted to do.
How much do you want to wake up every morning in this bedroom? That giant window is so amazing. I don’t think I’d ever close the curtains.
Well, I don’t have the window or the giant floorplan, and our brown accent wall and green headboard ain’t goin’ nowhere, but the bed? The bed I can do.
I decided to go with ivory over white because our dust ruffle is ivory and, along with shotgunning Bud Lights and eating at Waffle House, I believe my wild and crazy impulse dust ruffle changing days are behind me. Also, fabric I had picked out several months ago for a bedroom chair is ivory too. I bought really ridiculously soft, no-name sheets, a King blanket (even though our bed is a Queen, I’ve found it better to go big so you have enough fabric to tuck securely despite the fact that my husband is an untucker), and the throw pillow (Ralph Lauren AND ticking stripe–dreams do come true!) at Homegoods. I already had the matelasse shams and coverlet, so hooray for hoarding!
As for the bedroom chair, it was my grandmother’s (drink!) and had some nondescript cream damask on it, which was stained.
I found a 1 yard remnant of this fab ikat (? I like to throw around big decorator words for bonus points.) for 10 bucks at Lewis & Sheron. I had originally seen it in October during the dining room chair fabric hunt for $30 a yard and it made its way to the bargain bin by the time I came back for it in February-ish.
And I used the same recovering strategy I used on our dining room chairs. This was a little trickier because of the curved front, but I managed to stick the front folds where the arm of the chair meets the seat.
A moment of Keeping It Real: 6 days out of 7 this chair is covered in clothes, 85% of which are not mine.
And finally, to solve the fan issue, I picked up this antiqued bronze Hunter table fan at Target and a $15 plant stand to set it on.
It does the job, but it’s still May.
What about you? Do you change up your bedding with the seasons? Other decor like throw pillows and stuff? Well-uh-well-uh-well-uh–huh? Tell me more, tell me more.

I like both sets of bedding! And the striped pillow is adorable. I don’t change the look, I just start removing blankets when the weather gets hotter… maybe one day I’ll do just like you! It keeps things interesting and fresh.
i like your headboard!!
Thanks, dear! It’s Urban Outfitters from a few years back.
Love the chair fabric, nothing gets me more excited than a funky ethnic print. Great choices any time of year. Sadly, having a cat that sheds his body weight every 2 weeks takes the joie d vivre out of bedding since it really should be covered 99% of the time by a crappy washable blanket. Sad.
I’m with Ainhoa – the flannel (sexy) sheets and blanket get put away for lighter sheets when spring rolls around (or “if” spring rolls around, as we are beginning to say).
I’m desperately in need of an accent pillow, though. Maybe I should hit up Homegoods.
Love both of your looks! And the new chair fabric is totes fun.
Thanks! I have a few good etsy throw pillow sources for ya too:
http://www.etsy.com/shop/giardino?section_id=7655800
http://www.etsy.com/shop/kassapanola
http://www.etsy.com/shop/Kainkain
Used a R.L. Garden Gate sham as an accent pillow several years ago – mixed and matched several patterns. You may have sold me the linens at the outlet store!
Now – in the Florida weather – am into the R L blue and white ticking and plaid. In the guest room use a similar design in Nautica found at Bed, Bath and Beyond – cool feeling.
Learned from Kerri, my decorator daughter in law, to use quilts or cotton comforters – easy to throw in washer since we have Gator, our beloved Vizsla.
Love your new look. Now if you can just teach your roommate to keep the chair empty!
I love the Florida decor vibe! I tell Taylor that if we ever moved back we’d have to start all over.
LOVING the fabric on the chair. Gorg!
Here from Apartment Therapy. Yay, another fan of cream and of Ralph Lauren linens! The ruffled floral shams in various collections are my fave.
Love the plates, too.
Thanks, Valerie! You should have seen my collection when I was working at RL. Had the best dressed twin bed on all of campus.