Bed love.

I love mornings. And I love my bedroom.

I never thought I would hear those words pass my lips, but mornings have become the favorite part of my day. We've settled into a nice routine since I've been unemployed and I know it is going to be very difficult to train myself out of these habits.

Before my mom came to visit for Mother's Day weekend I did some serious cleaning/rearranging/organizing/getting rid of stuff. My apartment was filled with clutter and stuff I thought I absolutely needed. I realized at some point that those things were absolutely not needed. I filled a large black garden-type garbage bag and a comforter bag full of things to leave my home. It felt good to let things go. I've worked to keep it organized and clean and it feels so good to wake up to a clean kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, office area, but I digress...

So each morning I wake up in a bed that I loooooove. It is like a giant cloud and I've been told more than once that I put together a nice bed. So what's the scoop?

Layer 1 - a faux featherbed (a luxury in itself). My great-grandmother always had feather beds and I've had an ongoing love affair with them. When I moved from Geneva from Rochester it was time to let the other feather bed go since it had definitely seen better days. Mom gave me this new (faux) feather bed for Christmas and it is loftier and more sumptuous than the feathers were. It's love.

Layer 2: Good sheets from TJ Maxx. I used to hate it when Mom dragged me to TJ Maxx, because I thought it was just a bunch of crap. I can't stand picking through the clothes, but the TJ Maxx in Canandaigua is also a Home Goods and is heaven. It's the best one around and well worth the drive. Anyway, I have picked up a few pairs of 400 thread count sheets there and they just feel marvelous.

Layer 3: A lightweight down comforter from Ikea with duvet. Ikea sells a whole line of different weight down comforters for a very reasonable price. The problem is finding an Ikea close enough! This one was picked up on a Schools Attuned mission in Long Island last year. A great purchase, indeed!

Layer 4: A down conforter with a Shabby Chic duvet cover. I've bought a lot of bedding over the years, but this is definitely my favorite. The duvet makes it so easy to wash regularly and get rid of animal hair. There's nothing better than clean sheets, clean duvet and a feather bed.

Layer 5 : So, I know some of you are absolutely sweltering by now, but I love the heavy weight of blankets! So layer 5 is a cotton quilt, also from the Shabby Chic line at Target. I love love love this quilt. I've tried to replace it, but I just can't. The color is beautiful and soothing.

I reoriented my bed (which entails taking it completely apart, including the side rails) by turning it 90 degrees from how it was originally positioned, allowing it to face a window and let more light in. I know some of you prefer to sleep in a bat cave, but I haven't found that extra light really bothers me in the morning. Actually, the bed has moved twice since I moved here (it was originally in the loft space) and I like it best this way.

Anyway, I was planning to write about my morning routine, not my thick and sumptuous bed, here you have it.... The morning routine post will have to wait for another day!