Duvet Covers and Down Comforters

Protect your precious comforter from wear and tear How can you keep your down comforter clean? How can you give it a fresh, new look? How can you wash it with the rest of your bedding? The answer is a duvet cover, the perfect complement to your favorite down comforter. Have you noticed that all the down comforters you see in the online catalogs happen to be white? That's because, unlike most comforters, blankets, quilts, and bedspreads, the down comforter is not part of the decor or the color scheme. No, the down comforter is just like the down on a goose - it's the insulating inner layer. Down comforters are designed to come with comforter covers, or as they are also known, duvet covers. Down comforters and duvet covers are a great combination. One reason is you can get a different duvet cover every few years, or to match any "look" or color scheme. Meanwhile, you keep your same high-quality down comforter. You don't have to replace it if you take good care of it. You simply replace the duvet cover for a fresh new look, with the same familiar, fluffy comfort you've come to love. It's like receiving a new comforter without having to pay full price.

Easy to clean, care for

Let's face it, washing a comforter can be a dicey proposition. It's tough to find a washing machine big enough, and you never know if your softest comforter will come out of the spin cycle in the same condition as when you put it in the wash. Down comforters can be especially delicate. (It's recommended you wash them only every few years, and professional care might be the best bet.) With a duvet cover, you simply remove it (it's like a high-quality pillowcase or sheet that encases the comforter), and place that in the wash. You wash and dry the duvet cover, and put it back over the down comforter, which is now fresh and clean.

The comforter itself, meanwhile, actually is still clean. It's been protected all this time by the duvet cover's outer layer. Your down comforter remains well taken care of, and the duvet is the part that needs to be washed.

Putting the comforter cover back on

Most duvets come with buttons on one end in order to fully encase the comforter. It can be a small chore to get a Queen- or King-sized comforter back straight within its giant case, and you may find yourself arguing whose turn it is (or who should come help) when it gets out of the wash. But it's a five-minute job, and well worth the versatility, protection, and fresh-washed fragrance it can bring to your treasured down comforter.