# Why do people make their beds? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 17, 2005, 9:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173 "2005-01-17T09:39:52Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kolak_of_twilo/32/73_2.png) [@Kolak\_of\_Twilo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kolak_of_Twilo)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 5:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173/21 "2005-01-17T17:56:10Z")
> [@Podkayne](#): > > **Philster’s** right. Making my bed was an important step for me in starting to get my extremely messy house under control. I can second this. For years I was one of those people who always had to keep the bedroom door shut because it was in an embarassing state of disorder. Once I started making the bed it seemed to help keeping everything else in order. I hadn’t really thought about it like that before. ---
**Author:** ![bibliophage](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bibliophage/32/7615_2.png) [@bibliophage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bibliophage)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173/22 "2005-01-17T21:41:29Z")
This strikes me as more of a survey than a factual question, so I’ll move this thread to the IMHO forum. bibliophage moderator GQ ---
**Author:** ![Cunctator](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/43a26b/32.png) [@Cunctator](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cunctator)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173/23 "2005-01-17T21:52:55Z")
I make mine every morning. I do so for a host of reasons: 1. Certainly general tidiness is the top of the list. I don’t like getting into an unmade bed. 2. Habit. My mother taught me to do so every morning when I was a child. 3. I do it as soon as I get out of bed and I actually find that the activity and movement is a great wake up/stretching routine. 4. I don’t want people seeing my unmade bed and thinking I’m a lazy slacker, since that’s inevitably what I think about anyone else whose unmade bed I see. ---
**Author:** ![dangermom](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e274bd/32.png) [@dangermom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dangermom)\ **Post date:** [January 17, 2005, 10:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173/24 "2005-01-17T22:12:32Z")
I do it because it makes the room look so much better, and to keep it cleaner. I like to turn down the sheets in the morning to air them out–I open the sliding door to get lots of fresh air–and then I make the bed so the sheets don’t get dusty or icky from kids jumping on them, etc. One day when I forgot to make the bed and it was still turned down, I went in the bedroom to discover my 4-yo daughter and her little friend jumping on the bed–and he was wearing his cowboy boots. Bleah. People with pets, of course, have even more reason to make their beds. But the simple fact that it makes the room so much more pleasant is worth the 20 seconds of time it takes to do the job. And really, isn’t it a great feeling to turn the blankets down on a nice neat bed and anticipate snuggling down in there? Mmmmm. By now, I associate unmade beds with unaired, frowsty sheets and blankets. It feels unhygenic to me–I know that’s overdoing it a bit, but it’s true. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2005, 12:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173/25 "2005-01-18T00:01:29Z")
I couldn’t care less, however, the missus insists that a nicely made bed is much more comfortable to sleep in – no wrinkly sheets to lie on, the blankets spread evenly across the bed, etc. In fact, if she doesn’t have a chance to make the bed in the morning, she’ll straighten it out immediately before crawling into it at night. ---
**Author:** ![nivlac](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/3bc359/32.png) [@nivlac](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/nivlac)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2005, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173/26 "2005-01-18T00:25:33Z")
When I was in college living in a very small space, my bed was also my sofa, my couch, my dining table, my space for throwing stuff on. So it was made to be used for something other than sleep. Now I do it out of habit. ---
**Author:** ![StGermain](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/stgermain/32/2868_2.png) [@StGermain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StGermain)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2005, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173/27 "2005-01-18T00:36:29Z")
I’ll make my bed before I sleep in it at night. I don’t mind looking at an unmade bed, but I can’t stand sheets that aren’t nice and tight. Sometimes in the morning I’ll pull the sheets and down comforter up to the top of the bed, but at night is when I really make it. StG ---
**Author:** ![Podkayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/edb3f5/32.png) [@Podkayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Podkayne)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2005, 12:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173/28 "2005-01-18T00:45:32Z")
> [@Kolak of Twilo](#): > > For years I was one of those people who always had to keep the bedroom door shut because it was in an embarassing state of disorder. Me, too. I was talking to a friend a while ago, and said, “You know, I mean daggy orange 70’s carpet, like we have in our bedroom,” and she said, “I’ve never seen the carpet in your bedroom.” That threw me for a loop, because she used to visit all time time. Then I remember, that was the Bad Old Days. She moved before I got my act together. Now I leave my bedroom door open without giving it a second thought. ([Credit where credit is due.](http://www.flylady.net)) ---
**Author:** ![movingfinger](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/7ab992/32.png) [@movingfinger](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/movingfinger)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2005, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173/29 "2005-01-18T00:48:01Z")
I leave the covers open to “air the bed out”, i.e; to let all the nocturnal farts dissipate. Also, my GF always worked a night job and is used to sleeping during the day, and still does. So, there is no motivation for us to make the bed. Oh, hell; let’s face it: we’re lazy slobs and not especially bothered by the fact. ---
**Author:** ![Mauvaise](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mauvaise/32/11084_2.png) [@Mauvaise](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mauvaise)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2005, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173/30 "2005-01-18T01:24:59Z")
> [@StGermain](#): > > I’ll make my bed before I sleep in it at night. I don’t mind looking at an unmade bed, but I can’t stand sheets that aren’t nice and tight. Sometimes in the morning I’ll pull the sheets and down comforter up to the top of the bed, but at night is when I really make it. > StG Heh! I do the exact thing. I can not fall asleep in a bed where all the bedding is askew. I always make my bed right before I get it in every night. And that’s pretty much the only time I make it. ---
**Author:** ![notfrommensa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/f14d63/32.png) [@notfrommensa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/notfrommensa)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2005, 2:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173/31 "2005-01-18T02:24:06Z")
My first evil step-mother used to complain when I didn’t make the bed. She used to ask me: “How can you even get into an un-made bed?” I responded “The same way you crawl into your bed when nature calls in the middle of the night” ---
**Author:** ![Gfab912](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/a9a28c/32.png) [@Gfab912](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gfab912)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2005, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173/32 "2005-01-18T02:28:26Z")
I wonder how many of you who don’t make up your beds in the morning don’t brush your teeth in the morning if you’re not going out and/or expecting company? Hmmm… ---
**Author:** ![butter\_pie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/aca169/32.png) [@butter\_pie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/butter_pie)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2005, 5:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173/33 "2005-01-18T05:12:25Z")
I generally make my bed, unless I’m sleeping in catnaps and expect to be getting back into it soon. I have a 4-poster bed with a canopy and it just looks neat when it’s all made. Plus, I’m a neat freak, and I also like having the covers straightened when I go to bed at night. I have sleeping problems from time to time, and will wake up with pretty much everything ripped up off the bed. It usually only takes a couple of minutes to do, and just looks so much neater and keeps the covers from just completely migrating to the floor. ---
**Author:** ![InternetLegend](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/internetlegend/32/13154_2.png) [@InternetLegend](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/InternetLegend)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2005, 5:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173/34 "2005-01-18T05:18:02Z")
> [@Gfab912](#): > > I wonder how many of you who don’t make up your beds in the morning don’t brush your teeth in the morning if you’re not going out and/or expecting company? Hmmm… My bed is not susceptible to gum disease or tooth decay. And I don’t believe that the sheets I’ve slept in for the past week would be any cleaner for my having straightened them out conscientiously every day. I make my bed when I change the sheets or when I clean and vacuum the bedroom, which means it’s usually made on two days of each week. The rest of the time, I’ll pull the comforter up so that the cats can’t shed on the pillows, but no one would mistake that for actually making the bed. ---
**Author:** ![Risha](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/5fc32e/32.png) [@Risha](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Risha)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2005, 5:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173/35 "2005-01-18T05:21:08Z")
> [@](#): > > I wonder how many of you who don’t make up your beds in the morning don’t brush your teeth in the morning if you’re not going out and/or expecting company? Hmmm… Ick. I brush my teeth every morning, thank-you-very-much. I just find making the bed to be an incredibly repetitive chore that I don’t get anything out of. I hate doing something just for the sake of doing something. A messy bed doesn’t bother me aesthetically, it makes no difference in my experience when I go to bed at night, the bedroom isn’t generally used except when we’re in bed so it doesn’t get particularly dirty, and I could care less if my friends or family notice through the open door that I don’t make it. Ironically, I married a man who can’t sleep unless his bed is made just-so. (A mild touch of OCD, I think.) So I’ve ended up making the bed every_night_, right before we go to sleep, as an act of kindness to him. ---
**Author:** ![jabiru](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@jabiru](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jabiru)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2005, 6:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173/36 "2005-01-18T06:53:01Z")
What odd timing: > [@](#): > > Failing to make your bed in the morning may actually help keep you healthy, scientists believe. > Research suggests that while an unmade bed may look scruffy it is also unappealing to house dust mites thought to cause asthma and other allergies. > > A Kingston University study discovered the bugs cannot survive in the warm, dry conditions found in an unmade bed. [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4181629.stm](http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/health/4181629.stm) ---
**Author:** ![Fern\_Forest](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/71c47a/32.png) [@Fern\_Forest](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fern_Forest)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2005, 7:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173/37 "2005-01-18T07:07:45Z")
I find sleeping in a neatly arranged bed difficult. It’s just too voluminous. I like my pillows up against me and my comforter tucked under me. In fact if I could get about 168 cubic feet of pillows to stack on my bed I would worm my way in leaving only my mouth and nose exposed. It’s very womb like, side note: How weird, womby means roomy. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2005, 8:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173/38 "2005-01-18T08:47:16Z")
> [@Crafter\_Man](#): > > Anyway, is there a practical reason for making the bed? Apparently, not making your bed is practical, if you suffer from [allergies](http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/4181629.stm). > [@](#): > > Failing to make your bed in the morning may actually help keep you healthy, scientists believe. Research suggests that while an unmade bed may look scruffy it is also unappealing to house dust mites thought to cause asthma and other allergies. ---
**Author:** ![Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Tapioca\_Dextrin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapioca_Dextrin)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2005, 8:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173/39 "2005-01-18T08:48:20Z")
Or, what **jabiru** said :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Smeghead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/f1d935/32.png) [@Smeghead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smeghead)\ **Post date:** [January 18, 2005, 10:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173/40 "2005-01-18T10:34:58Z")
Never done it, never will. Couldn’t care less how it looks, as long as it’s comfortable when I get in it. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/why-do-people-make-their-beds/285173.md?page=3)