How to Dress Your Bed For Summer

Having just celebrated the official first day of summer, we are in full-on seasonal transition mode and getting ready for a constant stream of house guests. To help us prepare our bedrooms for maximum comfort we asked Kendall Jackson of Suite Dreams in Birmingham, Alabama, to share her advice for dressing a bed. Here are her recommendations:

• Keep it simple! Less is more with pillow options these days. I love to hotel stack my sleeping pillows. (Four pillows per bed.) Two pillows per guest is perfect. Mix the firmness options in pillows to meet your guests’ needs. A firmer pillow is used for back and side sleepers, while stomach sleepers usually prefer softer options. Scandia Down has wonderful levels of down all offering soft, medium, and firm fills. My favorite is the Luxembourg medium pillow…simply heaven!
• In terms of decorative pillow combinations, here are my preferences: Queen bed with hotel stack: A long bolster is precious and easy to take on and off, 2 standard shams or euros are appropriate. King bed with hotel stack: A long bolster, 3 euro shams or 2 king shams – or – I’m loving Dutch size pillows from Leitner. Dutch pillows are the length of king pillows, but they are 30″ tall like a euro. You only need 2 of these big boys on a king bed, and they are great to lounge on.
• Linen sheets are a must for summer! I have always loved linen (more so than the average southern lady), but linen has come a long way in the bedding world. A washed linen sheet breathes better than an Egyptian percale, and men adore them. If you can’t splurge on a full set, invest in white linen pillowcases and mix them with a percale set you already have. Libeco’s Santiago collection is where it’s at!
• Duvets are out, blankets are in! In the south, we have all the humidity and heat needed to amp up your frizziest of hairstyles, so why amp up your bed just for looks? Layer blankets or quilts this time of year. Let the down duvet have a break and fold a cotton Brahms Mount blanket at the foot of the bed instead. It’s the perfect weight to keep you warm at night without leaving you feeling hot in the morning.
• Take care of your linens! Whether you buy them at Target or from Italy, allow your bedding to last by using The Laundress products. All of their detergents are gentle and hypoallergenic, and they get tough stains out. The best part is their scents…Le Labo Rose is the best thing my laundry room has seen in years! The All-Purpose Bleach Alternative is a life saver and a true miracle worker (it has gotten red wine out of my white linen chair).

Expert tip from Kendall Jackson of Suite Dreams in Birmingham, AL. Featured bedroom by McAlpine Booth & Ferrier in Atlanta, GA.