Friday, May 21, 2010

Not just an ordinary bed

People sleep differently throughout the world. When in Europe, I tend to always take pictures of beds. The pillows are usually square, very different from American pillows. It has been many years since I have slept under such a deep feather bed. Actually, it is a down comforter. The feather bed is something you lie upon. This bed was in the same B and B I talked about yesterday. The comforter had to be at least 24 inches deep. I felt like a little duck, all tucked in. Only a bottom sheet on the mattress which was comfortable, but very hard. One King sized headboard and two twin mattresses side-by-side.
I was all tucked in, feeling rather ducky and cozy. It only took about 3 hours and I woke up and the only words coming to mind were, "the goose is cooked!" I was near explosion stage, so warm. So, I opened up my down nest and immediately became cold. And so it was for the rest of the night.
We lived on the economy in 1968-69 in Germany. That means, the American government was not housing us, we were renting from German civilians. Our bedroom did not have any heat, just a bed similar to this. During that cold German winter, I never complained about how warm the down was. Getting up in the morning was another problem though.
This bed above was in the B and B in Alsace, France that we rented. I will write more about this delightful place later. Believe me, you will also want to visit this one. No down here, but a very heavy, thick comforter. Again, the square pillows.

I have slept on these sheets before. In 2005, we stayed in this B and B/gite in Burgundy, France. Veronique, our hostess, told us she had special ordered these sheets from Paris. Since these are colors I love, would you believe I have been surfacing the Internet for the last 5 years, searching for these sheets? No luck. We spent one night here again and I was actually checking the labels on the sheets again. No clues.

So, this was a quick visit through the bedrooms of Europe. The comforters are usually hung out the windows in the morning and then replaced on the beds later in the day. Since there are no screens on the windows, this is an easy way to freshen the bed.


13 comments:

  1. The wood furniture and bed sheets are so cool. Why don't I live in Europe?

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  2. I'll tell you what a great wife Schnitzel is!!

    Our germany beds while we were living on the "economy" as a GI were 2 singles put side by side - each had its own "blimmo" bed comforters!

    I worked the midnight to 6 shift so before I came home, Schnitzel would ease over to my cold bed to warm it up for me to jump into when I got home - now that is LOVE!!!

    Thanks Honey for your continued kindness!! TROUT

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  3. First, I have to tell you Susan, I agree with Dale. You are one fine woman to jump out of a warm bed to make your honey's bed warm for him. Can't be anything but love.

    As far as European beds go, that's the thing we dread the most. They are much too small for us. My husband is 6'3 and big. I get what's left over in these skinny beds. When they advertise king beds in Europe, that almost always means queen (or smaller).

    We've been in Germany with those heavy down comforters. You're hot so you push them back, you get cold and reach for them again, and this repeats all night long. Doesn't make for a restful nights sleep.

    Thanks for taking us along.
    Sam

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  4. Susan, you are one good wife! How sweet of you! Love those beds over there and I remember hanging out the comforters on the railing every morning with the rest of the locals. The sheets are beautiful and I hope you eventually fine some like them!

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  5. Hope you have time to visit another time! I love these beds .. but I am not a comforter fan ... I like beds the old way, with shees and blankets and a nice bedspread ..

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  6. I love the beds in Europe too! It seemed such a more practical way to make the bed, to have the sheets around the comforter...And now, duvets have become popular here too. When I lived in Germany in '73 and '74 we were lucky enough to have heat! Not extreme heat, but heat.

    I really like the beds you have pictured here. All the pretty duvet covers with red in them!

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  7. You made me homesick for my mom's native Bavaria. I've stayed in rooms just like that-- they're fun, but I still love my own bedwarmer... my sweet husband. How I long to visit Germany again1

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  8. I always see people here with their duvets thrown over the window sill to air them but can't figure out how they keep them clean. My window sill is filthy. My duvet isn't made of feathers but is artificial which is much lighter but not as soft.

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  9. I loved the pictures. You did not say if you were ever able to find the bedding for your home. Interestingly, beds are dressed in a similar fashion in China although the weight of the comforter is seasonally adjusted. Blessings...Mary

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  10. LOL...Pat and I are giggling here looking at all these beds, too funny! The down goose one, hysterical....Pat would of been a overdone goose for sure, he gets so hot, as for me, Mmmmmm I'd be in heaven in my goose 'nest feathers'!!

    Such a fun post Susan!

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  11. Anonymous9:36 PM

    Europe must not have the number of bus that we do to be able to live with out screens. We sleep under and old feather tick, it heavy and warm. The one you slept under put mine to shame:) Have you ever looked at The Company Store, their bedding is so nice, find them here: http://www.thecompanystore.com/

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  13. I love the pictures. They look so awesome and cute, they re fantastic!!

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