Things Mamma Didn't Teach Me

Oh for pete's sake - who knew!

Easy-Peasy Way to Put On a Duvet Cover

Remember when I had all the hassles getting the duvet covers on my quilt, LOL!  Well - I just came across this neat little article with video at Yahoo.  You know - duh - it never occurred to me to check online to see if there was actually an "easy" way to get a duvet inside a duvet cover.  So much for an advanced college education, ha!

Check out the "burrito" method of getting a cover on a duvet -- I wouldn't have believed it, but seeing is believing:  Definitive Way to Put On a Duvet Cover

Tools for Painting Without Taping and Brushing Out Corners

Here's another neat thing that I was reminded of yesterday, while perusing the posts at Wendy Hyde's The Shabby Nest Frugal Friday:  how to get into hard to reach areas with a pole and paint edgers.  Duh, Jan! Check these do-hickeys out at Little Bits of Home, How To Paint a Stairwell Without Hiring Help:  a ceiling edger and a corner edger.  I have seen edgers before, but I haven't painted in years so one forgets about such neat little tools to make the job so much easier.

Shur-Line Pro Paint Edger, under $5 at
Home Depot (online). Can be attached to pole.

I have to tell you, I was dreading, simply dreading, the idea of going up and down a ladder to tape the ceiling off in my den/library, a room that badly needs painting.  I've been dilly-dallying for months (since I moved in, in fact, last July).  But once I buy these little do-hickeys, I will have no excuse not to paint other than my own slothfulness!  I especially appreciate the frugal method for brushing out corners (hint: involves duck tape).

"Wrinkle-free" Duvet Cover

One would think that having been on the internet since 1999, I would know by now that one can find ANYTHING one wants to on the internet, including advice about how to get a "wrinkle-free" duvet cover. Now, did I do this when I bought my first duvet cover and struggled with the wrinkly look it gave me? Nope!  Never occurred to me.  Duh, Jan!  And I (used to) pride myself on my great researching skills. Ha, ha and HA!

Reminder and reminder of my great Ikea duvet adventures -- the first time I nearly strangled myself trying to get the sucker on my comforter!

This morning I decided to check online to see what I could find on dealing with wrinkly duvet covers.  Lo and behold!  There is a ginormous amount of information on people who have struggled with this, just as I have.  The wrinkly look - it kills me!  Yes, anal, I know.

Well, I found a ton of information at Apartment Therapy, Tips for a Wrinkle-Free Duvet.  Wish I would have thought of doing this BEFOREHAND.  Holy Hathor!

I answered my own question raised during my duvet struggles:  Yes, people DO iron their duvet covers -- right on their beds!

The most obvious answers, however:

(1) Get over it (or get rid of it);
(2) Buy a duvet cover that doesn't show wrinkles -- like the ruched or pin-tucked styles;
(3) Buy something that is SUPPOSED to look wrinkled, like the poster's duvet cover from Ikea.  Oh.  So, Ikea's duvet covers are made purposely to wrinkle so one gets a certain "casual ambiance?"  Okay, take me out and shoot me now -- I bought TWO OF THEM!

LOL!  Honestly, I cannot imagine whipping out my iron every morning (or a steamer, for that matter, and practically speaking, my steamer wouldn't work because I must hold it absolutely upright, otherwise the boiling hot water spills over the top) to swish away wrinkles.  One tip was using a spray mixture of water and fabric softener -- but what if you use too much and the cover doesn't dry before bed time -- I can see where this might be an issue during the summer when the air-conditioning is one.  Along a similar vein, there is evidently a product called  Downy Wrinkle Reducer that one sprays on, smooths, and then lets air-dry.

Do I really want to work that hard every morning?  Nah.

Actually, I am getting used to the slightly wrinkled look.  The current duvet cover I have on the bed has a dense floral vine pattern which helps camouflage the wrinkles, and the wrinkles that exist are not the really nasty deep ugly ones.  I'm okay with it.

Come autumn, I'll switch out to the Lyocel material Ikea duvet cover and try out some of these tricks I've learned (better late than never) -- but first I am going to stitch up the seams so it fits more snugly around my comforter.  That, I think, will help reduce the wrinkles more than anything else.  Just like with clothes, one does not want to dress in something too baggy and saggy :)