How to Layer Bedding Like a Designer

A beautifully layered bed is one of those design details that elevates an entire bedroom. The difference between a hotel-quality bed and an average one is rarely the quality of the mattress — it is the way the bedding is layered. The good news is that the designer approach to bedding layering follows a simple formula that anyone can replicate.

Start With a Fitted Sheet, Then a Flat Sheet

Many people skip the flat sheet, but it serves an important function: it keeps the duvet clean longer and allows you to adjust warmth by sleeping under just the sheet or under the full duvet. A crisp white flat sheet is the most versatile and creates that hotel-bed feeling when folded crisply over the top of the duvet.

The Duvet is the Foundation

Choose a duvet that is slightly larger than your mattress — a queen duvet on a full bed, or a king duvet on a queen bed. The extra material creates the lush, plump look of a hotel bed rather than a flat, barely-there duvet that looks deflated.

Pillow Arrangement

A standard arrangement for a queen or king bed: two sleeping pillows in cases that match the sheets, two Euro pillows in shams standing upright behind them, and two to three decorative throw pillows in front. The Euro pillows make the headboard look taller and more substantial.