If you have one of the newer deeper mattresses, and often with padded tops besides, you need to be sure that you look for oversized comforters and duvets.

One thing that will help you is to actually measure how many inches you need, so as you shop you can look at the sizes in inches and determine if it will fit. We have the same issue because we have a very deep mattress. Luckily the comforter I found that I liked was also made for deeper mattresses.

Try an oversized king?

The folks at Cuddledown are really helpful--you should give them a call. Also, a lot of their stuff is made in the USA (often in Maine itself). Good luck!

Here is a link that might be useful: Oversized king comforter.

I won't buy anything less than 108" wide. Anything less and it won't cover the mattress. 108" seems to be the standard "long" size without moving into actual bedspread territory.
Pottery Barn's duvets are usually 108" wide but I always look, some of them aren't.

thesockfairy,
You've hit on one of my pet peeves. It's frustrating to buy bed linenes, ironing board covers, etc and have them just...not...quite...large enough. I suppose the manufacturers save money here and money there by shaving off inches. I always buy a King for a Queen bed and then, it's somewhat out of proportion to really "fit", but at least it will cover the mattress and box spring. I have to use quilts because of allergies and heaven forbid you wash them. There will be shrinkage even with cold water and air drying. I tried laundering mattelasse coverlets a couple of times and they turned into sofa throws. :) I'll step down now.

I've tried king for queen and it just never looks right. And why are so many quilts/coverlets full/queen instead of one or the other? Twin and king each have their own sizing. What's the deal?

I just bought queen quilts and a queen comforter from Lands' End... never saw the point to buying a full/queen for my set.

The labels Queen, King, Full/queen, Twin, really are meaningless. You have to look at the actual dimensions of the item.
It's like clothing...

I just bought queen quilts and a queen comforter from Lands' End... never saw the point to buying a full/queen for my set.

I find the selection of true queen sizes limited. It seems the ones I like are always labeled full/queen.

Dear Heather,

I actually posted about this same annoying problem a short while back. My husband and I upgraded our bed from a queen to a king, and found that our king duvet covered only the top of the mattress, and didn't even go down the sides at all! It looked silly, to say the least. It didn't help that our boxspring was big. We had to trade in in our boxspring for the low-profile one that Macy's was selling. Still the duvet was too small. The problem was finally solved when I went to companystore.com and found their oversized comfortors, which you can buy in either a down material or a synthetic down material. They have oversized duvet covers to go with them, but they are hard to find on the website-to see them you would actually click on "sheets" I think. They are on sale right now I think so hurry!

Anna C.

This has been going on FOREVER. The companies making the duvets don't keep up with the increasing thickness of US mattresses. It is why I much prefer bedspreads over duvets.

I have the opposite problem. I bought a double mattress and box spring set in the mid-1980s. Couldn't find bedding deep enough. Now, 20 years later all the bedding is oversized. (It is a rarely used guest bed.)

When I first bought it, I had to buy a king sized duvet to fit it. I still have that duvet, and it doesn't come close to fitting a modern king size bed.

When I lived in Europe 20 years ago duvets were not as common here as they are now. All the duvets over there were pretty much the size of the top of the mattress with very little overhang if any at all and they normally were either folded at the bottom of the bed or just laying on the top of the mattress.

When i started buying them over here I noted that people always seemed to buy them bigger so that they kind of worked like a bed spread covered the sides of the mattress.

Most of the duvets were quite a bit thicker than they are here so they would not really have worked falling over the sides of the bed anyway.

Perhaps the companies making them smaller are following the european sizes?

Well, you think you have problems....try having a California King!!! It's awful, because other than the fitted sheet, everything is sized for a regular king bed. Since a California King is narrower and longer than a standard king, the top sheet hangs too far down on the sides, and most comforters don't have the proper length. You can't buy any comforter that has a pattern that outlines the shape of the bed, either. Grrrrrrr!!

I have placed a high back bench or sofa at the end of my california king bed when I've had this problem with the short duvet on a cal king bed. That way, the duvet only has to reach the edge of the bed because the furniture (or tall footboard) meets it and gives it a nice stopping point. Just a thought!

And unfortunately I've learned that BB&B only sell cal king sheets online....but they fit perfectly; its worth the shipping wait!

The Company Store's standard king is 108x96 and their duvets fit them. They also sell an oversized king or queen that are 8" wider than the standard and they have a limited selection of duvets for them as well as a custom shop.

Well 2008 was a good year, wish my wine was as old as this thread;)

Not sure why this showed up as new for me last night, but I have wine newer and older.....

In the event someone happens upon this topic.... The answer to why the pictures look good and the product falls short; Look closely, some are tucked in at the bottom but they are turned down and never pulled up to the headboard. The head of the bed is filled in with pretty matching sheets and lots of fluffy pillows. I think they make them reversible just so they can have the unmade bed look that shows both sides. It's all in the merchandising and not the customers. The last one I bought was a king size and I got a close replica in a queen size just to throw across the bottom. It looks very expensive.

Most people in the US don't understand how duvets are used in Europe and the UK. They are used in lieu of a top sheet. They aren't tucked in at all. They do not have a fall or fold-back at the top. To make the bed in the AM, one picks up the bottom two corners and gives it a good shake and settles it back on the bed.

What most people really want is a comforter - one that falls down the side and can fold back at the top. Two different animals.

The solution is to get a bedspread you like and use the duvet as a coverlet. Or you can get a bedskirt and sew it to your duvet cover. Or you can get a matching color blanket and tuck it in on all sides and throw the duvet over it.

Or make an oversize duvet cover yourself (2 sheets work well) and fill it with a down BLANKET (larger than a insert). Hope this helps. I've researched this topic lots.

Good luck finding decent oversized king inserts and duvet covers. Yes, they are made but still too short if you have a really thick mattress.

I agree! What is the problem with duvets or comforters, they are ALWAYS too short or more noticeably never wide enough, ESPECIALLY now the modern trend is for higher and thicker matresses.This isn't rocket science but the bedding industry is so slow to catch up-WAKE UP PEOPLE!!!!!!!

....and another thing , a 104x96 measurement---is that 104' wide and 96"long King or 96" wide and 104" long California king? PUT the "W" for width and "L" for length then people will know what they're frigging well getting and not have to return it-SIMPLE business smarts eh?

Showing a picture of a King sized comforter/duvet on a queen sized bed seems to be standard practice. As far as I'm concerned it's false advertising.

I can't tell you how many top sheets and duvets i have turned sideways to get more width and cut down on "fighting for the covers." I do wish they were wide enough to cover the mattress on both sides. I have lived i Europe and I know how those Duvets were used. You had separate ones on a bed for 2 people. They were both too short for a tall person and not wide enough for how Americans sleep. I have an insert that is 114 inches wide the way I turn it and I can't find a cover to fit it properly. I have a 120 inch wide duvet which is great for coverage but the insert is again, the wrong size. The cover that came with the 114 inch insert is long since worn out and gone. I have just given up and ordered one at 108 inches. If I love it I may add fabric from a sheet to make it fit the quilt i am using as an insert in a 120 inch cover now. The dog chewed the zipper so it is time to replace it or alter that one to be without a zipper.

There's Super King and California King which are wider than King, but all are annoyingly too

short for the bed!

Go to a high quality fabric shop that does custom drapes and home furnishings and pick out fabric for your comforter and they can sew one with the dimensions you want❣️I am an experienced sewer and have made my own comforters, curtains, pillow cases and table cloths using high end fabrics you would not find in a retail store.

The only way you can get one to fit absolutely right is to have one customer made! I am so tired of trying to force fit pre-made comforters/spreads. I've wasted so much money over the years. These companies better figure it out before they go out of business. Clearly they don't have women working in the company!

Ha Ha, yeah you're probably right on both counts!

It is MOST aggravating, BUT I think I see a business opportunity here. Stay tuned...😉

It is so annoying to me that you cannot get a comforter to cover the sides of the bedding on the bed. Or long enough half the time. I resorted to bedspreads and then I had to get a king bedspread for a queen bed.

Well, here we are at the end of 2023 and I still I can't find a duvet to cover an 11-inch-thick, king mattress with a 3-inch topper. I bought a nice thick mattress about 20 years ago and returned it because I couldn't find any bed linens to fit. Still having the same darn problem. What is wrong with these companies? Clearly demand is there.

We need to go back to the old style mattress that was only 9 or 10 inches thick!

They have probably gotten even smaller with the inflation we've had the last few years!

I solved the problem a few years back by having a custom bed cover made by Calico Corner. They did it to the exact dimensions I gave them. It is only for looking pretty and not for using while sleeping.

Chipsa: I am a sewer; I love the higher end fabrics at Calico Corner! I need to go there to pick out fabric for new kitchen valences.

I have a Sleep Number queen bed, and my duvet fits perfectly. I did get a custom quilt since I love quilts and use that most of the year. But in winter we let the house cool down to 62 at night, hence the need for something heavier.

I have a kindKing bed and ordered mine through TEMU fits very well my question is will the mattress fit inside one. That’s a project going to try tomorrow. Good luck temu has never given me ANY PROBLEMS with orders, damaged,refunds or credit applied have also tec received many free gifts from them for playing their games they have give them a try Good luck !!

They do make a California King size bed that is bigger i got my king size through Temu fits fine never had a problem with them