We know the importance of a good night’s sleep on our mental health and how crucial it is to maintain a healthy lifestyle. Sharing a bed with a partner can be tricky at times, especially when it comes to duvet hogging. If this is a particular struggle with your sleeping arrangements, consider the Scandinavian sleep method.
You may not have heard of it or already do it without knowing what the Scandinavian sleep method actually involves. It’s the practice of using two separate duvets if you share a bed with a partner. Essentially, it aims to stop either person from taking too much of the duvet, even though this isn’t done on purpose.
The Scandinavian sleep method has plenty of benefits, which is why it has recently grown in popularity. Here, we describe a few:
- If you need to get up at night, you have less chance of waking up your partner when you have a separate duvet. Even better if you have a motion-isolating mattress too.
- Do you sleep hot, and your partner gets too cold at night? If so, sleeping with separate duvets means you can choose one that suits your thickness and temperature preference. To discover what duvet is most appropriate for you, check out our ‘Too Hot Or Cold At Night? A Guide To Duvet Togs‘.
- You don’t have to worry about accidentally leaving your partner in the cold.
While those benefits may be all you need to adopt the Scandinavian sleep method, you may also want to consider some of its disadvantages.
- If you love a cuddle in the middle of the night, having two duvets can make it feel like there’s a barrier between you. A solution could be to stack the duvets on top of each other and have a cuddle before you sleep. However, when you go to your separate duvets, there may be fights about who gets the chilly top duvet.
- Depending on what size duvet you use, you might find that gravity does the duvet hogging rather than your partner.
- Neatly making the bed is a little bit more complex than with one duvet, but you will get the knack for it eventually.
As mentioned above, if your duvet is too big, you may find it falling on the floor more than it’s covering you. However, it depends on the size of the bed you use. Duvet sizes are much bigger than the actual size of the mattress itself. It would be best to consider this when deciding whether to adopt the Scandinavian sleep method.
Here, we suggest different duvet sizes for varying sizes of beds:
- Double bed: a double mattress is 135cm wide, but a double duvet is 200cm wide. If you’re using two double duvets, it might be too much duvet for one bed. Instead, we suggest using two single duvets that are 135cm wide.
- King size bed: a king size mattress is 150cm wide, and the corresponding duvet is 225cm wide. In line with this, two king size duvets are undoubtedly overkilled for the size of the bed. Again, two single size duvets is likely a sufficient amount. You could opt for two double duvets, but be wary that they might fall off in the night.
- Super king size bed: lastly, a super king size bed is 180cm, and a super king duvet is 260cm wide. This is the largest standard-size UK bed, the only one that can take two double duvets. A double duvet is still technically wider than a super king bed, but two single duvets may feel sparse when you compare.
It’s easier to know what works for you and your partner if you try a variation of duvets. However, buying every duvet size and trying them out is not feasible. We recommend opting for single duvets initially, as you will have more than enough duvet for yourself without the annoyance of it regularly falling to the ground in the middle of the night.
Considering the duvet you want to use is one of the best aspects of the Scandinavian sleep method. Duvets come with various fillings and tog ratings, determining the weight and insulation of it. Below, we briefly describe the duvets in our range and who they’re best suited for.
- Natural fillings: Our duvets incorporate down and feather fillings and are known for their softness and insulation. Moreover, their lightweight nature makes for an exceptionally comfortable night’s sleep. Opt for a hypoallergenic duvet if you’re allergic to dust mites.
- Hypoallergenic fillings: Alternatively, a hypoallergenic duvet uses synthetic fillings such as polyester. These fibres have much tighter pore sizes than natural fillings, which make it much harder for dust mites to pass through and reside there. This contributes to fewer allergy symptoms and a better night’s sleep.
- 4.5 tog: Our lowest duvet tog, this duvet is typically used in the summer. This duvet is made with hypoallergenic fillings and is perfect for people who sleep hot all year round.
- 10.5 tog: Known for being suitable no matter the season, a 10.5 tog is a versatile duvet that will regulate your temperature well throughout the year.
- 13.5 tog: Better at trapping heat than the previous tog ratings, the 13.5 is more suitable for the winter months. If you struggle with the cold, this is an excellent choice.
- 15 tog: This is the warmest duvet tog on the scale, which can trap heat better than any other mattress. This is the go-to choice for people who need extra warmth at night.
Suppose one of you is a hot sleeper, and the other struggles with the cold. In that case, it’s easy to see why having separate duvets with varying tog ratings is a winner.
