Summer Sleep Essentials

Photo credit: Parachute

How nice is it after a warm, full summer day to crawl into a cool, comfy, cushy bed like the one above? As a lot of us know, when the seasons change, often do our bedding and sleeping preferences as well. Today I’m sharing some of my summer sleep essentials for a delightfully refreshing and restorative night’s sleep.

1. My cool, crisp, comfy down alternative comforter. After researching how down feathers are gathered and choosing not to support it, I decided to try finding premium, high quality down alternative bedding. And much to my delight, I found so many comfortable, soft, breathable and luxurious down alternative options. Ever since I went “faux” down I’ve never looked backed. Now down alternative comforters and pillows are the preference at my family’s home and my own apartment. Premium, high quality down alternative duvets keep you warm and cozy in the winter and cool and comfortable in the summer the same way, if not better, than their down counterparts. I love mine so much I use it year round and look forward to cozying up to it each night. (If you want to learn where down comes from and how it is obtained, you can read for yourself here.)
2. Open windows. I love feeling a natural breeze from outside while I’m laying in bed. Unfortunately, since I live in NYC it’s a little too loud for me to sleep with my windows open but before bed and right when I wake up in the morning I always open my windows and take in the fresh air. It helps me wind down at night and start my day on the right foot in the morning.
3. Light, fresh, floral scents. I’m a fan of subtle floral scents that make my bedroom smell just as good as the flowers outside. And it makes it much easier to go inside after a beautiful day outside when you know your bedroom is a delightful summer oasis of its own. Two summery candles I’m enjoying in my apartment right now are: this lavender and thyme candle and this ocean tide and sea salt candle. 
4. Essential oils. I love to do a little spritz of essential oil mists above my pillows before crawling into bed each night. One great bedtime essential oil is lavender. Lavender is known for its calming properties that can help ease anxiety and quiet your mind before bed. I also really like Balanced Guru energy mists that come in different themes like: fearless, full of love, understanding, and intuition.
5. Giving back. What’s better than resting your head at night and feeling good about your contribution to the world? Well, now the sheets you buy can make a difference in someone else’s life. Parachute, a luxury bedding company, has partnered up with Nothing But Nets, an organization that provides protective sleep nets to areas in Africa that are affected by malaria-carrying mosquitoes. Every 60 seconds a child in Africa dies of malaria, but in areas where bed nets are used, the rates of contracting malaria can be reduced as much as 90%. For every Venice bedding set sold by Parachute, the company sends one life-saving sleep net through Nothing But Nets. In addition to the Egyptian cotton Venice set, Parachute sells a premium, 100% hypoallergenic luxurious down alternative duvet. It’s great to go to sleep in a comfortable bed, but nothing beats going to sleep with a peaceful mind and happy heart knowing you’ve done something to make the world a better place for those in need, whether it’s for humans, animals or both!

Photo credit: Parachute

xo,

Tedi