Does high quality graphic bedding exist?

October 16, 2021 5:40 PM

I'm looking for durable duvet covers and throw blankets that have large bold abstract patterns, and due to SEO algorithm hell, all I can seem to find are products that look eye catching on screen but are seemingly printed with a low res inkjet on thin fabric and look shabby in person.

Please help me find inspired bedding with the pattern offset-printed the old fashioned way or woven into the fabric itself. I would like the duvet cover fabric to be cotton or cotton sateen, and the pattern to be large, bold & geometric or abstract. The pattern can repeat but the tiling should be complex rather than with visibly repeating squares. Probably not floral. Bonus points if it's black and white. If this doesn't exist then I will go with a solid duvet cover with a bold blanket over it. With blankets I am more open to different fabrics and weaves, but the designs should be large. What stores should I be looking at?

posted by oxisos to Home & Garden (15 answers total)

What's your baseline? I like my IKEA printed duvet cover, for example, but the far end of the spectrum might be something like the offerings from Bless.
posted by sagc at 5:46 PM on October 16, 2021 [2 favorites]

If I were you, I'd be looking at any home store that carries Marimekko. What you've described is basically their raison d'etre.
posted by ZaphodB at 6:04 PM on October 16, 2021 [8 favorites]

How do you feel about Marimekko? (Scroll past the florals, please.) Not cheap, but high quality. And you can usually find it lightly discounted at overstock-type places, though it never gets truly inexpensive.
posted by BlahLaLa at 6:04 PM on October 16, 2021

This one from Macy’s seems to align with your wishlist. It’s out of stock on target but there’s a handful of positive reviews for it there. Very much on sale so perhaps worth the risk.

There are numerous geometric options at Pottery Barn and Crate and Barrel although I wouldn’t qualify any of them as “bold”. Marimekko is honestly very reasonably priced for the product.
posted by Mizu at 6:33 PM on October 16, 2021

I have Marimekko Mini Unikko sheets, and while I love the way they look, I would not recommend them. They feel quite rough on the skin and are not very nice to sleep on. Maybe the fabric would matter less for a duvet cover than sheets.
posted by pH Indicating Socks at 6:45 PM on October 16, 2021

Ikea has great 100% cotton duvet covers in bold patterns. For sheets, I basically shop Target's lines- they have good affordable sheets in great patterns- though they may not be bold enough for you. I think that the best bold sheets out there are produced for children or teens- I have sheet from Pottery Barn Teen and Kid for my bed-I have a Black and white theme going to by sheets for I can mix and match. For throw blankets, I would look at Urban Outfitters or Etsy.
posted by momochan at 7:00 PM on October 16, 2021

Society6 has very decent prints and the artists usually receive fair comp.
posted by firstdaffodils at 9:07 PM on October 16, 2021 [1 favorite]

The NYT had a small feature on this woman’s bold graphic design, including bedding, in the last month. I can’t speak to the quality as I haven’t touched it/used it, but your ask immediately brought it back to mind.
posted by icaicaer at 3:59 AM on October 17, 2021

Response by poster: Ok, yes, Marimekko. That's along the lines of what I am looking for. I didn't find a design from their current collection that I love, but are there any other companies that do what Marimekko does? I've already ordered textiles from Target & Society 6, and been very disappointed with the process color digital printing where the image is like a bad inkjet print, and you can't see this at all in the online photos. Give me spot-color offset printed fabrics or color woven in, like in days gone by! Dusendusen is close...who else is doing things like this?
posted by oxisos at 11:20 AM on October 17, 2021 [1 favorite]

There's a whole world of Finnish design that hits those notes, though Marimekko is the thousand-pound gorilla and offerings from other companies may not be as ready for use out of the box. Kauniste is one example; gorgeous prints but you'd need to make your own duvet cover from fabric swathes.

Anyway, other companies I can suggest are Lapuan Kankurit (I own this blanket and it's one of my favourite possessions) and Finlayson, who aren't my jam but might be yours.
posted by ZaphodB at 12:18 PM on October 17, 2021 [1 favorite]

Gudrun Sjoden might work for you.
posted by PussKillian at 12:30 PM on October 17, 2021

Crate & Barrel occasionally has stuff that fits the bill, such as the Haana line
posted by radioamy at 7:01 PM on October 17, 2021

I saw the artist and designer Cat Schmitz work at an open studio tour in Brooklyn this weekend. Her studio was AWASH in bright, bold colors. She does things to order based on the patterns that you like that she has. Here prices were reasonable and vary based on shape and product.
posted by chiefthe at 6:20 AM on October 18, 2021

I'm not sure if this qualifies as "bold" for you, but Parachute has a nice-looking woven-pattern duvet cover right now. I've previously gotten color-blocked quilts from them as well, which read much more like a pattern than like patchwork. They don't seem to have any of those right now, but I can definitely attest to the quality of their bedding.
posted by duien at 3:19 PM on October 18, 2021

A few more options that again are probably on the lower end of bold/graphic patterns, but might be close:
Black-and-white Ikat woven-pattern duvet cover
Woven gray-on-gray geometric pattern
posted by duien at 3:33 PM on October 18, 2021