Well, boring or not, that is exactly what we have, funky. White linens (four pillows)with a duvet in a white cover. I have never used shams, though. Growing up and also as an adult, I always had bedspreads that were pulled up over the pillows. Then, I had quilts, but still just had the pillows without shams. Now, I love the duvet because it is warm and light. I have no need for extraneous stuff like shams. That is just not me.

I agree with what Cyn427 said - I have no need for extraneous stuff like shams. Our bed has 2 pillows for me and 2 for DH. Our quilt has alot of different colors in it with a white background so I bought 4 nice white pillow cases that wash up nicely (hardly any wrinkles even though they are cotton). I prop those up against the headboard when I make the bed in the morning and I like the look. I hate having to "clear the bed" before I can get in it at night.

Just a suggestion, but you don't have to use pillows inside the shams. Just drape the shams over the top of your sleeping pillows. It used to be a common way to make beds when people used quilts as the top covering of beds and before the advent of bedspreads.

Exactly..thank you! I just don't want to clear the bed.. and I don't want anything extraneous in the room. I *may* finally give in to a tv.. but otherwise, I want it to be all about comfort and sleep.

Justsaying.. I have to buy white sheets/pillow covers (I have ivory but I want crisp white). Where did you get your all cotton that don't wrinkle?

funkyart, I actually found a queen set of Kate Spade sheets
and pillow cases on clearance for $40 at Home Goods. The thread count is only 300, maybe 350, but the quality seems better than some of the other "off" brands that I have bought there. The other set of pillow cases is Ralph Lauren - again a Home Goods purchase, maybe $10. I don't know if these are better quality cotton, or what it is, but they are nice and soft and I am surprised at how nicely they wash up - but even if they didn't they would go on wrinkly because I don't iron anymore!

(Oh, and we have a tv for the 15 minutes we can stay awake watching Leno! Pathetic life we lead, I know.)

funkyart -- I thought DH and I were the last 2 people on the face of the earth to not have a TV in the bedroom. Glad to know we are not alone.

go for it funkyart! No shams here, no tv, and just enough light to read by when a story can't be put away for the night.

Ha.. you all have given me the resolve to keep the tv out of the br. The current bf is very ok with it.. but previous ones have grumbled lots.

I used to use RL sheets exclusively-- back when they had the jacquard all cotton. I have a set now that are much thinner than the ones I used to buy-- but it's true, they don't wrinkle. I'll have to check out TJ Maxx and Tuesday Morning. Thx!

Funky gal - I was wondering what you had decided to use as your duvet/comforter/quilt (whatever!). I think if you go with all white - or even ivory - and use the same color pillow cases - you are fine. You know me and my love of linens - I love shams (and even a few pillows!) LOL. But that is just me! If you don't like or want to use shams - go for it!!

We didn't have a tv in the bedroom until just the last couple of years. (Does that mean we are getting old?) It's nice to have the early AM news on when we are getting ready for work. It's nice if you are not feeling well and want to lay in bed and watch a little tv. It doesn't interfere with other "activities" (LOL), but we neither one watch alot of tv.

Does this mean you gave up on your inspiration pic for the bedroom - or was that the guestroom?

tina

No tv or decorative pillows here!

I do have a TV, but not shams. I am lucky if I can keep my pillowcases on the pillows! I do have a ridiculous amount of regular pillows though. I used to have a lovely duvet. It was so heavy I stopped using it. Then I felt like my bed was boring. So I have been buying pillowcases on clearance and mixing them up. I now have a jumble of pretty pillowcases and I love it!

Funky if you have shown your bedding, I don't remember it. What style/color is it?

I currently have all beige and white tones with a little brown and orange piping that you barely notice and I do have shams. I use khaki sheets and white sheets. If I didn't already have the shams, I would have my white pillow cases monogrammed with our initial and use that for the "decor". Love that look.

We have a small gift shop here in our little town that does a lot of monogramming and she is very reasonable on her pricing.

Skip them! I think the prettiest beds I've ever seen are the simpler made one's.

Shams look deliberate and are a PITA to take off and put back on, especially when you want to take a nap! Besides, most people don't see our bedroom's.

Do the decorative pillows in the LR intead. :)

For those who like the look of shams but don't want the work extra pillows cause you could use shams as pillows. There are plain cotton or fine linen shams that can actually be slept on. The bed looks 'dressed' but there's nothing to remove and find a place for when you want to sleep.

Right now I am using toile pillow slips which I don't cover with a spread and they are still decorative. They are the envelope style slip so no open ends. I just fluff them when I make the bed.

Good idea luckygal! I love a pretty bed and keep our room pretty for us - not others. However, our master is visible from our great room. I don't use shams on our sleeping pillows - I have seperate pillows in the shams. I actually use two sets of shams. We have an armoire in our bedroom where the shams go when the bed is not made up. So, no biggie for us.

tina

I like relatively simple bedspread that are long enough to do the "fold and cover" over the pillows but they get harder and harder to find.

I have never had shams, and for several years have kept the bed made up with a white blanket on top. I do have some decorative pillows on the bed but don't mind throwing them onto a chair.

But don't you find that the pillows you sleep on get wrinkled and scrunched looking? I throw two pillow-filled shams over the "sleeping pillows". I never take the pillows out of the shams. I use two standard shams in a guest room and two euro shams in my room. I'd love to find a better way.

If that is what you want and you have no problem with it, why are you worried about what others think? I am not understanding this. It's your bedroom. I don't want to be in it with you so why are you asking?

I am so glad our master bedroom is upstairs, away from any visitors' eyes, because I have never mastered the art of a Fabulously Made Bed.

I have tried using two regular bed pillows (in pillowcases) and two shams on our queen bed. DH seems unable to remember to put his head on the pillowcased pillow, not the shammed pillow. So I gave up. I have plain ivory sheets on the bed, but I try to find more interesting pillowcases and mis-match them in a way that works with the comforter or quilt. I will say, though, that it can be hard to find JUST pillowcases that aren't in a set with the sheets. I have gotten them at Target, Company Store, RH, etc.

Another house with white (ironed) pillowcases on six pillows (2 king, 4 regular), a duvet with white sheet cover, a simple gray-beige Belgian linen headboard and pleated bedskirt with a wide cream border, and no television in the bedrooms.

Yes, they get a little rumpled, but we fluff them up and stack them back to front like books instead of in a pile when we get up, and it doesn't bother me a bit.

I like the idea of stacking them. Thanks for that idea.

I have no desire ever for decorative-only pillows on my bed (or any bed in my house). So no, I don't think it's tacky. I find beds with regular usable pillows and nice pillowcases to be very inviting to me. I don't think my bed looks as refined or finished as maybe it would with some extra work (decorative pillows, some euro pillows, etc), but I don't think it looks tacky either. Do what works for you. If you're tired of decorative pillows, then don't use them.

"But don't you find that the pillows you sleep on get wrinkled and scrunched looking?"

My pillow slips are cotton so as soon as they are dry I fold and smooth them and they are good enough IMO. Yes, they might look even better if ironed but not worth it to me. Everything in life is a balance for me and I'd rather spend my time doing almost *anything* except ironing! :D When I get up I fluff my pillows and don't want to put anything on top as I like them to air.

Patricia, I think the bar has been set quite high in home decor thru forums and blogs so some people are concerned with having their decor acceptable to a high standard *to themselves* and may feel inadequate if they cannot attain that. I know not everyone feels this way but it is now part of our culture.

No shams on my bed, no TV either.

We each have two pillows that just have pillowcases on them. The pillowcases are a dark solid color that is pulled from the print on our duvet cover.

I am getting tired of wrangling the duvet into the cover when I launder it, so my next bed covering will be a quilted bedspread.

It doesn't look like a Ralph Lauren bedding ad, but it's clean, pretty colors, and we like it.

Yes, this is my bedroom and ultimately it needs to please me and whomever I invite to share it with. However, in the new house, it will be on the first floor-- and provide access to one of the two bathrooms in the house. Much as I consider it my *private* space, I do imagine there are times others will see it-- close friends and family only-- but still others.

Tina, I've mostly abandoned the inspiration picture I'd posted about because the size and architecture of my room just won't ever allow me to achieve that look. That room had great old windows, beautifully aged hardwood and space for a handsome antique bed and great barley twist side table. I have a small mid century ranch room-- with high windows. That said, I will borrow from some of the things I liked about the look (I was always going to use my duvet even though the inspiration didnt use one).

So what bedding will I use? Well, I am not one to use the same bedding all the time. I have a couple of linen duvets in white and ivory, I have a couple of patterned duvets. I have a handful of cotton quilts in patterns and solids. MOST of my bedding pieces and sets are in similar color palettes-- they don't all mix and match but I have a large number of combinations I could go with depending on the season or my mood. I do think I want to stick with all white sheets regardless of the toppers.

I also like the idea of the stacked sleeping pillows. In fact, I am doing that now with my shams on the top (I am not using euros).

I have NO idea what I'll use for a bed as yet. The antique iron bed is going to the spare room for sure (if not to someone else). I'll likely move in with the mattress on a frame and buy a bed or headboard option. I want a cozy and inviting space-- but simple and not overdone (not unlike the original inspiration photo).

Patty, I appreciate your candor but not the snarkiness. It's been a long process for me to adjust to a smaller home, a smaller budget and all the new challenges that come with them. Frankly, it's a humbling process so no need to try to make me (or any of us) feel small. If you think my questions are ridiculous-- I'd prefer that you just ignore them and move on to the next post.

I expect all feedback to be sunshine and roses-- but I do expect respect.

SO very many of you have been patient, generous and gracious with your input on my modest projects. I am forever grateful to each of you.

I think people *do* see the bedrooms, (when the bed is made and you are not in it) in many houses that are not overly large, unless you close the bedroom doors.

Even though my bathrooms have always been hall baths, you could see into the bedrooms from the hallway if you used the bath. Even when I have had a powder room near a living area some people prefer to be away from people and use a more remote bathroom.

My current rental apartment is very large (for a 1 bedroom apartment--there is a dining room table in the bedroom that easily fits without being cramped) and the bedroom is at the opposite end from the front door, (some 50 feet) and yet you can see the bed from the front door because all doors line up.

So I don't think it's an inappropriate question for many households. I think people want to balance their own preferences without looking like they skimped or got lazy in the private parts of the house.

"I think people want to balance their own preferences without looking like they skimped or got lazy in the private parts of the house. "

Well said, Pal.. thank you.

Ok definitely in the minority on this thread. I like my shams. When I make our bed in the morning I like the look of my soft gold matelesse duvet with brown coverlet folded and laying across the bed. The coverlet lays so that you can see about 10" of the end of my duvet, so actually it isn't at the very bottom of the bed. Sheets and 2 of the pillow cases are a solid in a very pretty soft gold color from the Hotel Collection.

When the bed is made it has a total of 6 king sized pillows. Each side of our bed has: funky/patterned" cased, a solid and then the chocolate sham in the front. Shams and coverlet aren't a "set", but are very similar match.

IDK, I like the way it looks, so the extra effort of tossing the shams into a basket when we hit the rack, is no biggie.

Making a bed is a personal preference thing IMO. A whatever you like looking at, whatever makes you happy kind of thing.

Our home has a very open floor plan, and I really like to make my bed up first thing. Really, it not at all uncommon here that a friend or family member will accompany me upstairs. We host most all holidays, summers ~ we have the pool, so oddly enough, with company, there's sometimes traffic even in the MBR . Also, DD's BR is down the hall, and has friends at the house often when she is home from school. Our BR door open during the day, so the bed is visible when you hit the landing on the 2nd floor. I really don't consider my style or BR fussy at all, it's just made up to please my eye. I can think of very few occasions when I've not completely made the bed since moving in almost 30 yrs ago.

Also, I love to score interesting patterned king pillow cases in colors to mix in with solid sheets. Yes, I see the norm isn't 3 pillows stacked on each side of the bed, lol. However, I love the finished product every day.

Work, don't feel like the odd one out-- I like your look! In fact, I had a little pang of regret about going all white sheets when I read your post-- I thought, "well, what if I just have two funky/patterned pillow cases and two white ones" LOL.

My whole motivation for eliminating the shams is to eliminate the things that are unnecessary because I will have a MUCH smaller bedroom (I can't even call it a master without giggling), I realized that I am not going to have a convenient place to put them-- and any space I would find for them is space I could put to better use storing something I need.

We have three small sleeping pillows on our bed, with covers that match our beige linen duvet cover. I also have two large, king pillows with white cotton covers that match our sheets. We don't sleep on those big white pillows, but we use them when we watch tv in bed. If they didn't serve a function for us, I'm not sure we would go to the trouble of removing them each night. OP - if you put a tv in there, you might find an extra set of pillows can be functional for the same reason. Those pillows also help dress up the bed when I make it. The 3 small pillows line up perfectly in front of the 2 large pillows.

To answer the original question: I don't think it's tacky at all. If a (visible) bed is made neatly with just sleeping pillows, it can look clean and nice.

I have two euro shams that never make it back onto the bed unless I know guests might see it. They just sit on the chair and now that I think about it after reading this post, I am tired of looking at them! I'm also tired of duvets and covers...they slink down and you're left with a foot of floppy material at the top....and the whole thing slides down on cold winter nights and you have to be a weight lifter to pull it back up to your neck! I'm going to try a quilt next, but like palimpsest...I'm ready to go back to the bedspreads of my youth where it is folded over the pillows..but so hard to find is right!

I am tired of shams too. What about a nice throw to cover pillows in the day and for extra warmth when chilly or sitting up to read? I would like to see pictures of any good ideas.

I am so tired of the shams too

it was so comforting n warming looking back in the day!!!