You are going to love me today!! I am giving you all permission to NOT make your bed today!
Seriously, I am!! I even have a good reason for you to NOT make your bed.
I
 know this  is contrary to everything we were taught as children. At least if 
you lived in my house the bed had to be made before any fun for the day 
was going to happen.
Everything I have  ever read on how to keep a tidy home has told me that one of the things to do is…. “Make your bed everyday!”
Not only is it on the chart, but is almost always #1!
So how in the world can I give you permission to not make your bed? Keep reading…..
Author Cheryl Mendelson said the following:
"Each
 day when you arise, air the bed. Open the windows, if possible; throw 
the bedcovers back over the foot of the bed. (If the bedding will 
otherwise drag on the floor, stand a chair at the foot of the bed to 
support it.) Let the bed stand this way, unmade, while you shower and 
eat breakfast. The bed should air for at least an hour if you are going 
to work, or even longer if you are staying home. This helps immensely 
toward keeping the bed feeling and smelling fresh until you next change 
the sheets."
Now here is the why you are getting permission to not make your bed!
"While
 you are sleeping, you breathe about two pounds of moisture, along with 
breath odors and flocks of microorganisms, into the air, your pillow and
 your bedding. You also perspire, perhaps a cup's worth, and exude skin 
oils and body smells. And you use up the room's oxygen and replace it 
with exhaled carbon dioxide. When there are two or more people in the 
bed or the room, these effects are multiplied. All this explains why, if
 you sleep with closed windows, the room has a characteristic stale 
morning smell (although you might not perceive it until you leave for a 
few minutes and then return.) Unless you leave the bedcovers pulled down
 and the windows open for an hour or two, the moisture you have left in 
the bed either does not evaporate or evaporates very slowly, which makes
 for an environment in pillows and mattress in which dust mites, molds, 
and other microbial life have more of an opportunity to multiply. 
Opening the windows lets in new air to dilute the pollutants (microbial 
and particulate), carry them off, and bring in fresh supplies of 
oxygen."
Who knew?
I don't know about you, but after reading that, I am a believer in NOT making my bed everyday!  
Unmade
 beds really don’t look that bad, trust me, I do it almost everyday. Let
 me show you my unmade bed right after getting up, and then look at the 
after, still not totally made up, and it is airing out nicely and I even
 gave it a spritz of linen spray….
(Remember both images below show an unmade bed, the one on the right is how it looks while airing out and the one on the left is how it looks when we get up. The one on the right is neat and tidy, but still allows air to get to the bedding.)
(Remember both images below show an unmade bed, the one on the right is how it looks while airing out and the one on the left is how it looks when we get up. The one on the right is neat and tidy, but still allows air to get to the bedding.)
I like what Erma Bombeck said……..
‘
Here is one more little quote that I will leave you with…
Now go un-make your bed and let it air out!!!
 
 

You can either be a cook, housekeeper or a lover......I think May West said that...
ReplyDeleteIn the UK, it is common to air the bed before making it.
I loved this post Kathysue! I am a firm believer in making the bed everyday. My mother taught us that when we were young. But I never heard of airing it out and that's a great thing to do in the time it takes to get moving before we tidy up the bedroom. I find a bed much more inviting to get into when it's made up. My hubs would think I were ill if he came home and the bed wasn't made!! Ha!
ReplyDeleteJane
Yikes..who DOESN'T air out their bed??? Ack!! franki
ReplyDeleteHi Kathysue!
ReplyDeleteWhat a fun and informative post! I am a fan of a freshly made bed, ironed clean bed sheets make me happy!
E+J
I do this everyday...I leave the bed to air out while I am walking, then I come home and make it up. This works well for me.
ReplyDelete