Putting Sheets On A Bed

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If I were Goldilocks

I would choose my bed

It’s comfy

And cozy

And…

Just right!

And don’t get me started on clean sheet night —

Is there anything better??

I don’t think so!

Pin for laterRead HERE for how to make pillowcases from a vintage tablecloth — Pin for later
Read HERE for how to make pillowcases from a vintage tablecloth

Clean sheet night is the best!

But sometimes putting sheets on a bed is the worst chore ever.

Do you start the fitted sheet on one corner only to have to pull it off and start over because it goes the other way??

Do you walk around the bed several times to make sure the top sheet hangs down evenly on both sides??

These are just a few of the frustrations I used to have

Until…

I figured a few things out that really help with putting sheets on a bed in a snap:

1. GET TO KNOW YOUR FITTED SHEET

I’ve heard that the tag on your fitted sheet is always on the bottom right corner of the sheet. So all you have to do is find the corner with the tag and no more guessing about which way the sheet goes!

Now, I have a set of linen sheets and the tag on that fitted sheet is actually on the bottom LEFT corner.

So I just wrote ‘left’ on the tag with a permanent marker so I know that the tag is on the other side on that sheet.

Every time I buy a new set of sheets, I check out where the tag is located on the fitted sheet. If it’s on the bottom right, then I’m good to go. If it’s on the left, I just mark it on the tag. So now, getting that bottom sheet going in the right direction is a no-brainer every time!

2. START AT THE TOP

Even though you know which way the sheet goes by finding the bottom tag, you’re going to want to start by putting both top corners of the fitted sheet on first. The head of the bed is usually the hardest to get on so start there while you have a little slack in the sheet. Then work your way down to the foot of the bed.

3. GRAB IT BY THE CORNER

To get the corners on the foot of the bed, grab the fitted sheet by the inside of the corner on either side just where the stitching starts,

gently tug it tight just past the mattress corner and then pull it down over the corner and under the mattress. . If you pull it down by the elastic at the bottom, it’s way harder to get it on tight and you’ll end up with the corners of the sheet sticking up.

4.. SWITCH IT UP

Every other week or so, rotate the fitted sheet around to prevent wear in the same spot. So put the tag on the top left corner instead of the bottom right. This will help your bottom sheets last longer.

(See how to fold fitted sheets HERE)

5. KNOW WHICH SIDE IS UP

Now that you have the fitted sheet all settled and snug on your mattress, it’s time for the top sheet.

Here’s something that a lot of people aren’t sure about:

The right side of your flat sheet goes down. If you have printed sheets, that means the pretty flowers or stripes go down, facing the flowers or stripes on the bottom sheet, so when you pull the sheets back and get into bed, you’re sandwiched between the printed sides of both the top and bottom sheet.

Now for white sheets, it’s a little harder to figure out which side is the right side.

Here’s a quick way to tell:

Look at the side hems

On the wrong side of the sheet, you’ll see where the hem is actually turned under and stitched.

And on the right side, you’ll just see the topstitching.

Now I admit that it’s probably not that important on white sheets to make sure which side is up, but the hem across the top usually looks nicer on the right side…

and hey, I’m all about doing it right…

So here’s what I do to make it quick and easy —

After washing my top sheet, when I’m folding it to put it away, I make sure I fold it in half the long way first with the wrong sides together.

Then, when I take it out and put it on the bed, it comes out with the right side down after it’s completely unfolded!

6. HEAD STRAIGHT UP THE MIDDLE

I don’t know about you, but I used to go back and forth around the bed a dozen times to make sure the top sheet was hanging down evenly on both sides.

But one day I figured out…

I could use the middle fold to get it just right the first time — all I had to do is line it up with the center of the headboard.

This works best if you have a headboard that you can tell where the center of it is. Then all you do is line up the center fold of the flat sheet with the center of your headboard and there you go!

Remember in Tip #5 how we folded the flat sheet in half at first with the wrong sides together? Well now here’s where that pays off —

All you do is unfold it until you have the sheet folded right down the middle and you just lay it on the bed with the fold lined up on the center of the headboard.

And when you unfold it to the other side, it’s centered on the bed with the right sides down!

If you look closely, you can see that the center fold of the sheet lines up with the center of the headboard.

7. FOLD IT OVER

Leave extra sheet at the top of your bed so you can fold it over your blanket, comforter or duvet and cover. This will help keep them clean a lot longer because you’re protecting the top 6 inches or so.