Making Beds The Easier Way

We had the loveliest weekend at the lake. This time, just the two of us. It's wonderful to have every bed full and to have the lake cabin full of grown children and little grandchildren. To have the house filled with voices and laughter. But a quiet weekend for two is a different kind of wonderful.

It was an unexpectedly pleasant weekend when we could enjoy being outside. Usually in July, it's so hot and humid, that staying inside seems the better choice. I loved spending my time on the porch working on a new baby hat.

 Daddy-O spent his time on the pier with a fishing rod and reel. 

I would meet him there in the late afternoon to compare notes of our lazy day.

And being the very best kind of Daddy-O, he brought me coffee in bed in the mornings.

Before we left, I put clean sheets on the bed. It's ready for the next guests. And that reminded me that I need to share a tip that I learned a few months ago. For years that I dreaded putting on a fitted sheet. More times than not, I had the short end on the wrong corner of the bed. It made this chore take longer. And it aggravated the daylights out of me.

My genius solution to that problem was to buy sheets with woven stripes so that I could tell which way to turn the sheet. Stripes go top to bottom. Easy enough. But not all the sheets I own have those stripes. So with those, it was always "try and hope." I was wrong more times than not. 

Then I read a brilliant tip on a blog I enjoy—Everyday Cheapskate. A tip that was in the "how did I not already know this?" category. 

Look for the corner seam with the tag. This tag was a few inches away, but it's obvious which seam goes with the tag. Most times the tag is right at the seam.

Then put the corner with the tag on the right hand corner of the bed at the foot. (When you are standing at the foot of the bed looking toward the headboard.) And voila! You've got your fitted sheet turned correctly. No more trial and error!

I've been making beds for many, many years. But this was new to me. I've tried it with an assortment of sheets, new and old, different brands. Some at the lake are really old ones and this works with them, too. After a family week, there are a lot of beds in need of clean sheets. So far this tip has worked every time.

Then when our housekeeping chores were done, we went to brunch on the lake. Brunch with pirates. It was a delicious end to the weekend.

Now we are home, getting ready for Mimi Camp that starts tomorrow. I don't think you'll hear from me again this week. Two little girls in residence for the rest of the week will undoubtably keep us busy. But if we survive (and we will), I'll be back here in a week or so.