When D over at G&D wrote about a few bedroom essentials she just can’t live without, well, let’s just say that we were more than intrigued. We’re no strangers to a soggy looking bed skirt that puddles on the floor instead of elegantly resting one sixteenth of an inch above it. And we’re also constantly wrestling with our duvet thanks to a shifty little comforter that refuses to stay in place. So you can imagine our surprise when D pointed out two super inexpensive products that swooped in and saved the day.
Miracle product #1: Bed skirt pins. Available everywhere from Linens N’ Things to Bed Bath & Beyond, we’d never even heard about these tiny swirly pins that can be twisted right into your box spring to hold your bed skirt perfectly in place about a centimeter off of the floor.
They take about two minutes to stick in place, and they actually make a huge difference in the overall look of your bed (read: more crisp & clean, less lame & loose). And at just $2.39 for a box of about 10, they’re really a no-brainer.
Miracle product #2: Duvet clips. Now these we’d heard of, but for some strange reason we never even considered bothering with them (even though our constantly shifting comforter annoyed us to no end). But somehow seeing them endorsed by D was just the kick in the arse that we needed to take ’em for a test drive. $4.79 later they were ours.
Turning the duvet inside out and clipping each corner to the corner of the comforter allows you to flip the duvet rightside-out again with the comforter nice and secure inside the duvet. Spending about 5 minutes clipping the comforter in place has saved us about thirty minutes per week that we formerly spent shaking, yanking and chastising the comforter for moving around and ruining our lives. Gotta love a quick fix that actually works!
Now we’d like to use some of the time that these miracle products have saved us to send a big wet kiss to G&D for sharing such fabulous bedroom essentials with the masses. I don’t know about you guys, but sleep ranks up there with eating and rearranging furniture (in that it’s pretty darn important to us) so we’re eternally grateful to have discovered such fab finds that make our bedrooms even cozier (and lower maintenance to boot). And all for under eight smackaroos!
Emily says
I love D (G is her adorable hubs – but I’m not sure he’s a Duvet and Bedskirt expert quite yet ) and her blog and ran out to try the duvet clips after she posted. It works like a charm and her tutorial was hysterical. Thanks for sharing!
Lauren says
Those duvet clips last about three weeks on my duvet. I have a husband that rolls ten times before finding his spot for the night. So, my side of the duvet never comes undone, but I have to check his side’s clips every weekend.
Meredith says
I love me some G & D! She has some absolutely fantastic organization ideas!
Gràcia says
I’ll pay 1,000$ for duvet clips. You have no idea how many times I’ve gotten out of bed after 5 minutes in just to straighten everything. It’s one of the most annoying things in the world (we,, at least it is for me, since Eric just sighs at my poor attempts of shaking the huge thing and then he stands up all 6’2″ and does it for me with a look that says “unless you say I’m a saint I’ll wrinkle it up again”)
Shannon says
Duvet clips are so important! Lauren – we have the same problem. We’ve found that four clips are just fine for our guest room comforter, but we need eight for our current comforter (very fluffy) and duvet cover (which seems a bit big, despite being queen size).
Rowan says
i don’t understand the need for duvet clips. is this for if you have layers on the bed?
after spending time in Europe, on my bed i have only a duvet. for the duvet i currently have a wonderful, thick, flannel duvet cover. the duvet fits inside said cover which has buttons on one end. nothing slips or slides.
the bed skirt pins are also known as upholstery tacks. they have many uses where fabric and stuffing are in play. if i had a bed which was made for a bed skirt, you bet i would have those babies holding it in place.
as it is i have a sleigh bed with a nine inch thick mattress and nine inch thick box spring. having only a duvet over the mattress which is covered with a fitted sheet left the bright, white box spring exposed. solution? another fitted sheet in a coordinating colour to match my drapes. i rotate the upper sheet and duvet cover in other complimentary colours. voila! no curling of upper lip in disdain when i walk into my bedroom.
Gràcia says
Hi Rowan. I live in Europe (Spain) and I don’t have layers (although if I was a little less lazy I would) and my duvet manages to go all up inside the buttoned up cover, or all down and then I’m covering my upper body with just the cover while I have a huge messy ball of cover+duvet on my legs. I don’t know if we move a lot (ahem… while sleeping!) or what, but it happens. The thing I like most about just having duvet+cover is that, since I need more than one cover, my bedroom gets a new look every week.
Erin says
I am overjoyed to learn about the bed skirt pins. Never heard of ’em before, but I have a feeling they will change my bed-making life. Thanks!
McGee says
We discovered the necessity of those duvet clips last summer when we purchased a duvet cover from Restoration Hardware. In our humble opinion, four duvet clips is not nearly enough. We bought several packages, and we have that sucker clipper in the corners, across the top and along the sides. It doesn’t budge!
jbhat says
I cannot believe I have lived this long without even KNOWING about these miracle products. Thank you thank you thank you. I will spread the good word amongst my friends and family, and encourage them to tell everyone they know too.
Abbie in CO says
I’m surprised you hadn’t heard of those before! We actually used a similar item to keep our old couch’s slipcover in place, too. I bet the person that invented those is making millions… it definitely gets me thinking!
Kylie says
I have a solution/suggestion if your duvet clips are coming unclipped… Just hand stich in about 8+ inches of string (something substantial like shoe laces) into the corners of your duvet when it is inside out. Stich the string in the middle so there are about 4+ inches on each side. Then you can TIE around corners of the duvet (i like doing bows b/c they are easy to untie) – this works like a charm and unlike the clips, it does not slide off.
And i just have to plug our fav home helper – Hercules Hooks for hanging pictures, mirrors, shelves, etc. They are SO easy to use and hold so much more weight than your typical nail in the wall. Pick some up at your local LNT at their clearance/store closing event…
Erin J says
We use the bed skirt pins at home…While they were great for about a month, they then kept popping out. Sadly this was discovered by my poor feet upon stepping on said miracle pins…Even after I put them back in, they never worked the same again. I suppose if you’re willing to keep replacing them they will work. Best of luck!
G&D says
Mmm…I love big wet kisses! And I’ll soon be sending one back your way, as over the weekend I purchased the World Market sea grass rug (first seen by moi on YHL!) and I love it! Gotta love the mutual inspiration, lol! And I’m so happy to hear those little must-haves are working out for you!!
Holly says
Love G&D’s blog, and have been a loyal reader of her’s for quite a while now. She has some great tips.
Cindy says
I haven’t used the upholstery tacke before, but that is such a good idea. The only time we really worry about the bedskirt moving is when we flip the matress and then have to slide that huge King-sized thing back on there.
While I haven’t tried duvet clips, I am a little leary of them.. Inserting small plastic clips inside my soft, cushy duvet, seems odd. I’ve gone the Marta Stewart way, and have sewn twill ribbon to each corner of my duvet and the inside corners of my duvet cover. All I have to do is tie the duvet to the cover and no slipping around. I also sew little snaps to the opening to keep it all in place.
Blair says
we used to have problems with the down comforter slipping around inside our queen-sized duvet cover since down comforters are typically only available in full/queen size. then, i found an “oversized” full/queen down comforter. now that the down comforter actually fits inside the duvet cover, there are absolutely no problems at all!
freckles chick says
I heart G&D. She is a wealth of info and witty posts (much like you Youngsters =)
Kate says
I got to get some of those bedskirt pins! My bedskirt (or valance as it’s called in Australia) is constantly moving around and it drives me crazy.
Like Rowan, I don’t really see the need for duvet clips. My duvet doesn’t move around much at all in it’s cover. I think it’s because it’s not a big fluffy one, it’s a sort of quilted.
Rachel says
I think someone briefly mentioned this above, but it’s worth noting again: those upholstery pins are a lifesaver when it comes to couch slipcovers. Mine was always a mess so I was constantly straightening it and as soon as someone sat down there went all my hard work! If you strategically place the pins under the arms of the couch through the slipcover and under the cushions, into the gaps — your slipcover will be secure. No more straightening, well at least not my normal 5 times a day, More like 1 a week.
Allison says
I love duvets and duvet covers but it drives me bonkers when the comforter shifts around. So I must be living under a rock, but I hadn’t heard of duvet clips but luckily there’s a Bed Bath & Beyond on the way home…Hooray!
Amy E. says
with two cats running around our house, a duvet cover became a must to keep our comforter out of the washing machine as often as it needed it. to save on water, we got the cover. it had built-in loops in the inside corners so you could tie your duvet to the corners of the cover, but our comforter didn’t have ties! an old ribbon cut to 4 pieces and a few quick (and slightly sloppy) stitches later our comforter is now attached to the duvet cover snugly. at least at the corners! there’s still some shifting within the duvet cover, so i’m thinking of adding more loops and ties, probably at the halfway mark of each side of the comforter. i think that’ll do it!
Marilyn says
I have shared the same experiences with the duvet/cover crisis as you have and so many of you have devised some great fixes. I do have an alternative to the clips on the market today.
In an attempt to resolve my problem, I created duvet clips that are both functional and decorative. I was so pleased with how they kept my duvet from shifting and how they add a great touch of embellishment that I am now offering my own line of hand made and hand painted clips. Take a look at them on http://www.duvetcoverclips.com.
- Sarah :-) says
What?! I didn’t even know something like duvet clips existed… where have I been hiding? This is amazing!
- Sarah :-) says
PS: Where can I buy them (duvet clips)??
YoungHouseLove says
We found ours at Bed Bath & Beyond. Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Amanda says
I don’t quite get it- so does that mean you have a hard plastic duvet clip in each corner of your comforter?
YoungHouseLove says
Good question! They get clipped on the outside of each corner when everything is inside-out, so when you pull everything so that it’s rightside-in, there’s no clip that’s visible (and they’re coated in soft foam so you don’t even feel them through the duvet either). Hope it helps!
xo,
s
Marilyn says
There ARE clips that remain on the outside that are decorative and functional. They come in a variety of colors. You can find them online at handyaccents.com.
Korinne says
I was actually thinking about possibly making loops inside my duvet cover and then adding buttons to my actualy comforter. I don’t know if it’ll work 100% but it sounds ok. The only problem is….I don’t sew! :)
Kathy says
One cheap and easy way I found to secure a bedskirt was to actually staple it to the box springs with a good ole stapler. It works the same as the upholstry pins, but it’s lots cheaper. I’ve done it for years and it works like a charm.
Katherine says
I hate to be a copy cat (a little), but can I ask where you guys got your duvet? I am STILL searching for something light, mod, and graphic to put in a chocolate bedroom, and I keep coming back to yours. Help?
YoungHouseLove says
It’s from West Elm but they no longer sell it- maybe try eBay?
xo,
s
Katherine says
Bummer. I’ll see what I can find though, thanks for the info! :)
My Boys' Teacher says
The stapling idea sounds good (until you need to wash the bedskirt). I used those bedskirt pins in my last home and they were awful. The bedskirt looked beautiful, but I tuck in my sheets when I make the bed each morning. The sheets tuck in on top of the bedskirt pins. Ouch. Every morning for six years I would forget those dang pins were in there and shove my hand forcefully in to tuck in the sheets. Just hitting the plastic top hurt and bloodied my hand. Every once in a while one would come out and impale me as well. Fun times.
Deanna says
Funny that they’re nicknaming upholstery tacks “bedskirt pins” these days. They’ve been around for eons. I remember how my great-grandmother used them to tack her doilies onto the arms of her chairs, hahaha. As for the duvet clips, some duvet covers come with little ties inside the corners that you wrap around and tie tightly around the corners of the duvet itself. You can also stitch in some twill tape or even shoelaces for that, too.
Eli says
Binder clips work great too.
Christine says
I sewed pieces of ribbon on the four corners of my duvet and then did the same on the inside of my duvet cover. Now we just tie all of the corners together and the duvet stays in place!