So two weeks ago while moving my sister-in-law and her family in to their beautiful new home (Hi Kim!), she asked me to “teach her how to make the kid's beds” and she would watch. It dawned on me that while most people “make their beds”, not many people know how to achieve the look that’s often found in hotels or in pottery barn magazines. I actually get this question a lot- most people assume that the bedding in our home is super expensive and needs to be to achieve that look, but it doesn’t have to be!

So here’s my “Décor Formula” for making magazine-worthy looking beds:

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Comforter + Neutral Sheets + Neutral “under” blanket + tons of pillows= a pottery barn-magazine-worthy-bed. (As long as your follow the steps below on making the actual bed).

Gather the “Items” from the Formula Above:

The example I’m going to refer to today is currently in my guest room- because it’s the best looking bed and it also happens to be the cheapest.

1. Start with your bedspread- rule of thumb I follow is- if you have a pattern in your rug, stay away from a pattern in your bedspread. If the bed sits on a neutral rug with no pattern- then you can choose any pattern you want. You’ll see in the example below. I got my guest room’s bedspread in a set on clearance from Bed Bath & Beyond—and I also had a 20% coupon... and a gift card from my aunt (Thanks Aunt Kathy). This is also why I say this bedroom set was the cheapest, since I didn’t technically pay out of my own pocket for the bedspread. They also sell pretty reasonably priced sets at Homegoods, TJMaxx, and Marshalls.

2. Then move on to a neutral color sheet: White, Off-white, Crème, or Light grey (depending on your bedding) will do. In my guest room I got these sheets from Kohl’s on sale with a 30% off coupon, they are super soft and they come in a variety of neutral colors: https://www.kohls.com/product/prd-2098970/home-classics-microfiber-sheets.jsp?color=Charcoal&prdPV=8

3. Next pick a light “under blanket” that compliments a color in the bedspread. For this room I chose a light grey/blue. This is extremely important to getting the “look”. Stay away from microfiber or fleece blankets. I also got all the “under” blankets in my house from Kohl’s with coupons- It’s also great for in the hotter months- because you can use this instead of the bedspread. This blanket comes in a variety of colors as well: https://www.kohls.com/product/prd-2716225/sonoma-goods-for-life-everyday-cotton-blanket.jsp?color=Gray&prdPV=1

4. Pillows: Euro Pillows are great to line the back of the bed (2 Euros for a queen/full, and 3 for a king) followed by two regular size pillows ( I buy the cheap $5 ones from Kohls) with the shams that come from the bedspread set, then at least 3 throw pillows (which I got on clearance from Marshalls for less than $10 each): a row of 2, then one in the front.

For Euro Pillows- they can be pricey- I bought mine at Kohls ($11.99 each plus 30% off), and I bought neutral Euro Pillow covers (white is my go too regardless of sheet color). However, recently HomeGoods starting selling Euro Pillows with shams already on them for around $29.99 each, which is a good deal considering the pillow inserts usually cost around $15 each then you have to purchase the sham. To buy them individually I also got them at Kohls with coupons: https://www.kohls.com/product/prd-2943167/chaps-down-alternative-euro-pillow.jsp?prdPV=7

Euro Shams (very hard to find in stores by the way) : https://www.kohls.com/product/prd-2501952/sonoma-goods-for-life-pick-stitch-euro-sham.jsp?color=Tan&prdPV=42

Make the bed-

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Step 1: Start with the sheets, tuck the top sheet in at the base of the bed. I usually put the sheet on with the good side facing us in the sheets (you’ll see why in a minute). Sometimes you can’t even tell what the “good side is”. If it’s kids sheets, the print should be facing your child when they are in the bed, that way when you flip them over when making the bed, the print shows.

Step 2: Put on the under blanket- bring it all the way to the top of the bed.

Step 3: Fold the under blanket down about 1/2 of the way. As shown in the picture below. If you don’t fold it down far enough you’ll see the blanket hem for a later step.

Step 4: Fold the sheet down ¼ of the way over the “under blanket” and tuck everything in on the sides. (if your sheets don’t fit all the way under the mattress on both sides, I leave the side out that doesn’t face guests from the door way).

Step 5: Put your bedspread on last and fold it down past the “under blanket” so that part of the under blanket shows, but so that you are covering the hem of that blanket. Fold over once more.

Step 6-8:

Euro pillows in the back (neutral sham)

Next the pillows that have the same sham as the bedspread.

Then throw pillows. On our guest bed we have 3 throw pillows- on my bed in the master we have what some would consider an excessive amount of throw pillows. My husband says it’s way too many, but I feel you can never have too many pillows or blankets :P

(Everytime someone comments on how many pillows we have on our bed I think of Ben Stiller and the throw pillow scene in “Along Came Polly”. )

Optional: a throw blanket on top of the bedspread at one corner.

^Lots of pillows :) Patterned Rug, Neutral bedspread

^ What husbands think of lots of pillows

FAQ’s

Do you make your bed like this everyday?

Answer: On most days yes, it doesn’t take that long once you get the hang of it (maybe 1-2 minutes). I saw a study on the news a few weeks back that said people get a better night’s sleep if they get into a bed that’s been made. Occasionally if I wake up late- I’ll just pull the sheets and bedspread up and call it a morning.

What pillows do guests sleep on?

Answer: None of them if I can help it. We keep the pillows we sleep on behind the tons of pillows on our master bed. I also keep “sleeping pillows” with pillow cases on them in guest room closets. This is mainly because most guests are staying over because they have been “drinking” and I don’t want their drool or “head sweat” on my pretty pillows, haha.

What should I do if my box spring shows and I have a bedframe that doesn’t allow a bedskirt?

Answer: This hack my mom taught me- get a white fitted sheet (or one that matches the sheets you chose), and put it on the box spring mattress as if it were a regular mattress.