Definitions
Bedspread: a quilted cover for the bed that covers the entire bed, including the pillows and reaches all the way to the floor. Used more for decorative purposes than for warmth, they are a popular method for ‘dressing’ the bed. Use of a bedspread removes the necessity for a valance on ensemble based beds. Bedspreads also come in two types, one being fully quilted all the way to the floor, the other being quilted only on the top with the sides consisting of a ruffled skirt reaching to the floor.
Comforter: a form of quilt used more for decorative purposes than for warmth. It is usually filled with a polyester batting.
Coverlet: most typically like a quilted spread, often with a cotton filling. Like the comforter it is designed more for decoration than warmth.
Doona: the Australian word for a quilt or duvet. See quilt for further details.
Duvet: the French word for a quilt or doona. Duvets were traditionally filled with feather and down. See quilt for further details.
Quilt: also known as a duvet, doona, quilt or eiderdown. Quilts simplify making a bed, as it is a single cover instead of the combination of two sheets, blankets, and more traditional quilts (patchwork or otherwise) or other bed covers, which is traditional in many parts of the world. Many people using a quilt forgo the use of a top sheet, using only a fitted or flat sheet to cover the mattress. This is because quilts require a ‘quilt cover’ which is washed regularly, protecting the quilt within. Nowadays, quilts are filled with wool, cotton or artificial fibres like polyester, Dacron and microfibre.
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