Duvets, along with the accompanying duvet covers, weren't always understood. In 1749, Thomas Nugent, an English travel-writer passing through Westphalia, remarked: "There is one thing very particular to them, that they do not cover themselves with bed-cloths, but lay one feather-bed over, and another under. This is comfortable enough in winter, but how they can bear their feather-beds over them in summer, as is generally practiced, I cannot conceive." Of course, Thomas Nugent couldn't possibly fathom that, 259 years later, most Americans would be living in homes with central air conditioning and large overhead fans to keep them cool during the summer months, even loaded down with several plush layers of comfort. Now, selecting a duvet covers for down comforters is more a matter of taste than serious deliberation. Materials and brand names range for duvet covers, but you'll definitely want to look for one of high quality. After all, one of the reasons to purchase a duvet cover is to protect yourself from protruding feathers that can poke and annoy you all night like. The higher the thread count, the less chance you'll have of feathers stabbing you in the night. Another reason is to protect your down comforter from dust, dirt, allergens and grease, so you'll want a machine washable, durable material. Thirdly, you'll want to find a complementary style for your bedroom so you'll need to decide upon the best style, color and mood to represent you. Lastly, you'll need a comfortable material that will rest softly against your skin, lulling you to sleep at night. Often, duvet covers come in two different fabrics woven together; one for the top that perhaps offers more aesthetic sheen or texture, and one for the bottom, with a soft, comfortable underlying fabric. You can find a horse or hounds-tooth fabric, with brick print piping, that reverses to a saddle micro-suede or you can find 100% cotton, toile patterned luxury bedding with felicity fabric on one side and willow striped fabric on the other side. Woven plaid chenille jacquard is considered a popular, high-quality, contemporary design as well. Many people go with preshrunk, superior grade covers made of 55% linen and 45% cotton that are machine washable. One potential pitfall of duvet covers is that people assume the cover will protect their down comforters from all dander, contaminants, allergens and bacteria, which is simply not true. One survey found that people, on average, washed their covers only once every 10 years! Scientists were horrified with how filthy people's beds were. They recommend washing duvets at 40 degrees at least every three to six months, which will lower bacteria by 55% and decrease dust mite and cat allergens to zero. Pillows should be cleaned once every two months, they add.
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