A duvet is a loosely quilted comforter that is generally placed into a large fabric sheeting envelope which is fastened with buttons or snaps.
A duvet has quilted channels or baffles sewn into the construction to prevent the loose down from shifting. Early duvets were a large, single space that allowed the down to shift in the night causing ‘cold spots’; spots that had no down provided no more covering than a sheet and afforded no warmth. Eventually, channels or baffles were sewn into the duvet to prevent down shifting as well as to make smoothing out the duvet easier for the bed maker.
Duvets covers are washable and provide a protective covering for your down comforter which can be difficult to clean and must be aired out on occasion. In Switzerland and Germany, duvets traditionally were hung out of a window to gather the breeze and sit in the sun to dry out the moisture collected in the down. This tradition continues today as a way to freshen the bed linens.
Duvet hanging out of the window in Switzerland 2006.Being used in continental Europe for centuries, duvets took quite some time to catch on in England and the United States. Samuel Johnson, the famous author and poet, at some time in the 1700s described an unusual advertisement for: "some Duvets for bed-coverings, of down ... warmer than four or five blankets, and lighter than one." But they didn’t catch on. Perhaps, in part, because in America at the time, quilting blankets (quilts) was becoming the traditional way to keep warm and create a colorful bed covering.
It wasn’t until the 19th century that Victorian Britain recognized the duvet for its lightness and warmth compared to the woolen blankets traditionally used at that time. Still, the duvet was introduced as a blanket type covering and not used as it is in places like Germany and Switzerland.
In Europe, a duvet is traditionally used alone with only a bottom sheet while in the U.S. we use a comforter inside a duvet cover as a blanket.
Please visit Luxor Linens for the finest down comforters and duvet covers. We have down comforters, duvet covers and featherbeds; everything you need to complete the set and make your next night’s sleep your best night’s sleep. You can read about the history of featherbeds here.
We are making it our mission at Luxor Linens to keep our customers informed and educated about the products we sell. We welcome your questions or suggestions: contact WendyH at LuxorLinens dot com. Follow us on Twitter @LuxorLinens
Duvet Airing Out of the Window photo courtesy of: So gesehen.
