What Is a Bed Skirt?
When you go to your local furniture store looking for bedding, you’ll notice that every duvet cover has a matching bed skirt. The same goes for comforter sets. If you want to be sure that your bedding looks exactly the way it should, you need a bed skirt. A bed skirt is an optional piece of fabric that is attached to the frame underneath your box spring or mattress.
A bed skirt is a fabric casing that sits at the base of a bed to hide the box spring and bed frame. Bed skirts are also known as dust ruffles, but no matter what you call them, they’re an inexpensive and quick way to make your bedroom look better.
When you’re shopping for sheets and quilts, it’s easy to get confused by all of the different types available. Bed skirts come in three basic styles: ruffled, flat, and gathered.
- Ruffled bed skirts are full and have a lot of extra fabric underneath them.
- Flatbed skirts are usually made from a single layer of fabric that runs all the way around the bottom edge of the bed.
- Gathered bed skirts have pleats in them and fall in folds around the bottom edge of the bed.
A bed skirt is meant to cover up all of the bits of hardware that are necessary for your mattress or box spring to stay on top of your frame.
What’s the Point of a Bed Skirt?
A bed skirt is a fabric that covers the space between the floor and the bottom of your bed frame. Bed skirts are typically used for aesthetic purposes, though some people may choose to use a bed skirt to keep dust or pet hair from collecting at the bottom of their beds.
Tucking the skirt under the mattress and box spring serves several purposes: It gives your bed a cleaner, crisper appearance; it prevents dust or dirt from getting onto the floor, and it hides whatever may be hiding under the bed.
But there are other ways to get these jobs done (and keep them done), so why should you bother with a bed skirt?
It’s all in the details.
- A bed skirt can add a bit of style and color to a room.
- If you’re not feeling particularly sassy, consider white or cream to create a minimalist look.
- A richer hue will go great with your bedroom’s wallpaper or paint job.
A bed skirt is more than something to hide your ugly box spring. A bed skirt can be used to make the bed look stylish and tidy. It can also hide wardrobe boxes and give a hint of personality to a room that might be otherwise lacking in decoration.
Tuck your sheets and blanket under the bed skirt for an easy makeover. You’ll instantly have a bed that’s tidier and has more style.
Bed skirts are also useful for hiding storage boxes or other things you don’t want to see just by looking at the floor. They can protect the legs of your furniture from getting damaged by water or moisture from an area rug. And if you have pets, you can use them to hide pet food and water dishes as well as pet messes too!
Do You Really Need a Bed Skirt?
The truth is that you don’t have to have a bed skirt. It’s optional, but some people still want one. After all, what’s the point of having a nice-looking comforter or bedding if the ugly box spring or mattress is on display?
A bed skirt covers up that unsightly under the bed storage area. It makes your bedroom look more elegant and finished. You can even buy matching pillow shams to go with your new bedding.
Bed skirts also serve another purpose: They keep cold air from getting trapped underneath your sheets and comforter in the wintertime. In fact, you may find that you need to adjust your thermostat when you use a bed skirt on your bed.
When Does the Bed Skirt Go On?
It’s always a pain to put on the bed skirt. It always seems like you’re going to tear it or end up with wrinkles, and then you spend 10 minutes pulling them out. Most of us just give up and walk away.
The solution is to put the bed skirt on before you put it on the sheets. That way, any wrinkles will be hidden inside, and in case of tears, you can easily fix them before they get worse.
It’s a lot easier to fuss with it when everything is already on the bed (and preferably not yet in use) than when your sheets are already on and you’re trying to get that last corner straightened out.
And something else — we usually make more of a mess putting on the sheets than we do with the skirt itself — there’s all that excess fabric hanging around, which is another reason for putting it on first.
Where Does a Bed Skirt Go?
Tucking the bottom of a bed skirt into the top of the mattress can be done in several ways. Some people tuck it under the mattress, while others place it over the mattress.
Which method you choose depends on your personal preferences and whether you want to hide your box spring or not. If you do, you’ll need to tuck it under the mattress so that it’s completely covered.
Does a Bed Skirt Go Under the Mattress?
To properly tuck your bed skirt into your mattress, lift up one corner of your box spring to expose the space between the two pieces of furniture. The space will be covered with a cloth or rubber strip and will vary in size from one piece of furniture to another. Tuck one edge of your bed skirt into this exposed area and then smooth down the top of your skirt.
Do Bed Skirts Have to Touch the Floor?
How far your bed skirt should hang below the edge of your box spring and mattress depends on personal preference. Many people prefer their skirts to fall no more than 2 or 3 inches below the edge so they don’t see any part of the box spring when they look at their beds from a distance.
Does a Bed Skirt Go Under the Box Spring?
A bed skirt is a piece of cloth that hangs down over the frame of an open-style bed to hide the legs and sometimes the footboard, too. A box spring is that platform that’s under your mattress, supporting it and giving it height.
Many people believe that a bed skirt goes only on the sides of the bed, not underneath it. But if you have an open-style bed with just a mattress on top, you might want to consider using a bed skirt under the box spring as well.
It depends. Some bed skirts attach to the sides of the box spring so that the bottom of the skirt hangs down around the sides and does not reach the floor. The side panels of a box spring are not attached to anything, so if you want a bed skirt that reaches the floor, it needs to be attached to something. If your box spring has no side panels (it should have four), then you can use Velcro strips or safety pins to secure it.
Tiered ruffles are best left on top of the mattress because they can get caught on the box spring and mattress when you make your bed. Some ruffles get sewn onto a sturdy fabric that is draped over the edges of your mattress and secured in place with Velcro or ties. This type of ruffle can be used with or without a box spring.
Can I Use a Bed Skirt with an Adjustable Bed?
You should be able to use a bed skirt with an adjustable bed, but you might need to make some adjustments. An adjustable bed typically consists of two parts: the box spring and the mattress. The box spring stays in place, while the mattress can be raised or lowered to meet any desired height.
Treating an adjustable-bed set up as a regular bed is straightforward: You put your box spring on the frame of your adjustable bed, then place your mattress on top of that. If you have a traditional bed frame, it can be as simple as sliding your box spring under the frame’s headboard and footboard.
However, this may not work with an adjustable-bed setup if the headboard and footboard are attached to the frame at fixed heights relative to one another. Failing that, you could leave off the headboard altogether if you don’t mind how it looks.
Bed skirts should fit snugly around all four sides of your mattress and box spring so they don’t show underneath. They’re sold in different lengths so they can be tailored to fit mattresses with different heights. An easy way to figure out whether yours will work is by measuring your bed’s height from floor to mattress; add about 6 inches or so for clearance.
Tucking a bed skirt under your mattress is easy when the mattress is at its lowest position. But when you raise your mattress to the highest setting, a standard bed skirt doesn’t quite fit.
The solution is a specially designed adjustable bed skirt. These skirts attach to the frame of an adjustable base so that they stay put no matter how high or low you set the mattress. They come in several different styles. Some attach directly to the side rails of your adjustable base; others slip over your mattress and then attach to the frame with ties or Velcro.
Can You Use a Bed Skirt on a Sleep Number Bed?
Yes, you can use a bed skirt on a Sleep Number Bed. However, keep in mind that if you have fitted sheets, the fitted sheet will be visible under the skirt. If you do not like seeing fitted sheets then do not use a bed skirt on your Sleep Number Bed.
You can buy a separate piece to cover the fitted sheet. You can purchase dust ruffles separately and they will fit over the corners of your mattress. The dust ruffles are not expensive. You can even make your own out of fabric or other material that’s lightweight enough not to interfere with the air inside of the mattress.
Does Bed Skirt Have to Match Sheets?
The simple answer is no, but there are allowances for exceptions. If you want your bed skirt and your sheets to match, that’s fine; if you don’t, that’s fine too. It’s your bedroom and no one else will see it. The choice is entirely up to you. But here are some thoughts about making the decision.
It can help to think about your bed skirt as part of your whole color scheme in the room. If you’ve chosen a certain color scheme for all of the colors in your room, then you may want to consider coordinating those colors for your bed skirt as well.
If you’re using a light blue, yellow, or green on everything else in your room, then choosing light blues or yellows, or greens for your bed skirt will work well with the rest of the colors in the room.
Many people opt for a neutral color for their bed skirts like white or cream so they will go with any color scheme in the future.
Can Bed Skirts Look Good?
Can bed skirts look good? Well, they can be made to look good. But it’s not as simple as just taking a bed skirt and putting it on your bed. You’ll need to consider several factors when choosing the right bed skirt for you.
Tailored or Straight-Cut Bed Skirts
Bed skirts are available in two styles: tailored and straight-cut. Tailored bed skirts are shaped to fit at the foot of the bed, while straight-cut skirts hang straight down the side. Both types of bed skirts can help hide dust ruffles or other decorative pillows that may be on your bed. If you have a platform bed with no dust ruffle, you may prefer a straight-cut skirt for ease of use as well as appearance.
Color and Fabric
As with most furnishings, fabric choice is a major factor when considering whether or not a bed skirt will look good in your bedroom. For example, if you have wall-to-wall carpeting, you’ll probably want to choose a skirt with a fabric that coordinates with your decor. Likewise, if you have light walls and ceilings, a darker fabric may create an awkward contrast that makes the room appear smaller than it actually is.
Bed skirts make a big impact in any bedroom because they provide both functionality and style.
While most people associate bed skirts with the “princess” look, there are plenty of modern styles that can complement any room without looking juvenile. Bed skirts are also useful if you have little ones running around the house. They can prevent kids from pulling off your pretty comforter and exposing your mattress to dust and dirt.
Bed skirts are available in a variety of materials from wood to wire to the fabric. You can even buy them in a wide range of colors and patterns.
So yes bed skirts can look good or be styled to look good!
Will a King Bed Skirt Fit a Queen?
The answer depends on the design of your bed. If you’re shopping for a skirt for a platform bed, or if you have a sleigh bed or a headboard that extends to the floor, you can go with a king-size bed skirt.
If your bed is more traditionally sized, however, you’ll want to stick to the queen. A standard king mattress measures 76 inches wide and 80 inches long, while the standard queen is only 60 inches wide and 80 inches long—meaning the skirt will drape over the mattress’ sides instead of wrapping around it.
The easiest way to find out if your bed frame will accommodate a king-size skirt is to measure it yourself. You’ll need just two pieces of information: the length of your box spring and the height of your mattress. The average mattress measures between 10 and 15 inches in height; if yours is higher than that, you’ll need to choose queen-size bedding because it’s too high for a standard king-size skirt.
However, if you can think outside of the box and you are good at sewing I’m sure there is a way you can make the king-size skirt fit a queen-size bed.
In summary, a bed skirt is designed to cover the underframe of your bed. Most are finished in neutral colors that match many different styles and also come in a wide range of fabrics and textures.
Bed skirts serve a purpose: to cover up bed hardware and give the bed a finished look. Not only that, they help to keep the mattress cleaner, prevent dust mites and insects from getting in, and keep both pets and people from tripping on it. Although most people use them to hide their lower beds, there are many places you can use a bed skirt.
So… Why are bed skirts so important?
Bed skirts bring a bedroom together and enhance the aesthetics of your bedroom. They add a layer of beauty to the bed, making it more comfortable and useful. Bed skirts also shield dust, dirt, and other unwanted elements that can harm you and your body.
Keeping your bed safe from dust is one of the most important factors in maintaining your health. It is wise to invest in some bed skirt covers to ensure the safety of your home and family.
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