Soothe Your Aches in Heated Luxury
One of the most luxurious purchases I’ve made — luxurious in style, not in price, mind you — was a heated mattress pad. I turned to Wirecutter experts again, and I wasn’t disappointed. They suggest the Sunbeam Premium Quilted pad, and there’s a non-quilted version for about half the price if you don’t need the fluffy texture on top.
Plus, most models come with dual controls, so you can set up one side of the bed independently of the other. If your partner prefers it warmer or cooler than you do, it’s no problem.
Whichever one you choose, you’ll be happy come fall and winter when you can go to bed, press a button, and settle in with just enough time to enjoy the cool, crisp sheets before experiencing soothing warmth from below. It’s a life-changing combination, and I heartily recommend it. As a bonus, you can also avoid using the heater so much, which hopefully will save you a little energy.
You may think a heated mattress pad is only useful in the cold months, but if you walk a lot, exercise, or just have sore muscles, joints, or general aches and pains, sometimes it’s nice to settle into bed with a little warmth under your body. We’ve talked about ways to soothe sore muscles before, but this deserves a place on that list.
Invest in Good Smells and Happy Sinuses
The air can get pretty dry in my apartment, which means a small humidifier can go a long way toward a comfortable night’s sleep — and not waking up with a dry throat or sinuses. I knew I wanted a small, ultrasonic humidifier for my bedroom, but after looking into several models, I decided to get one that pulled double-duty as a scent diffuser. When you add a few drops of essential oil to the water after you fill the diffuser, it will both humidify the room and carry a pleasant scent on the mist.
For something the size of a small speaker or table lamp, the diffuser is a lovely spalike addition to my bedroom. I picked up a 200-milliliter version that also has a color-changing LED, so I turn it off entirely when I want to sleep. Sometimes I’ll leave it on a nice cool blue or purple if I’m reading.
If you want a more robust humidifier, the team at Wirecutter has better suggestions for models large and small — but my bedroom is small and this works for me. No matter which humidifier or diffuser you buy, make sure to clean it regularly; a dirty one can cause serious health problems.
Keep the Air Clean and Clear
One of the best purchases I’ve made for a relaxing, luxurious bedroom is one that may seem out of the ordinary: an air purifier.
Living in the city means dusty, dirty indoor air, even if you keep the windows shut all the time. After a year or so in my apartment, I developed a dry cough that was only really apparent when I woke up, and faded pretty quickly after a shower.
I didn’t think much of it until I caught myself vacuuming up a lot of dust from a spot I’d recently cleaned, and thought that an air purifier may keep some of that dust from getting into my lungs. I picked up Wirecutter’s budget-friendly recommendation, the GermGuardian.
Here’s something to remember about air purifiers. When I spoke to Tim Heffernan, a science writer and editor at Wirecutter, for a different story about air purifiers, he explained that buying one usually doesn’t produce instantaneous change. You may notice that the air “feels” cleaner after a few hours, or as long as it takes for the room’s air to circulate through the purifier. What you’ll really notice, however, is how much you feel better over time. It’s less of “aah, the air is so much cleaner now,” and more “that strange cough I had a few weeks back seems to have gone away,” which is exactly what happened to me.
Again, your mileage may vary, but if you have allergies, a respiratory condition, or live in a place where the air isn’t the best, an air purifier make a big difference.
Keep Allergies at Bay
If you have allergies, invest in some anti-allergy pillowcases and a mattress liner. They help a lot and are not very expensive. They’re no panacea, but they will keep dust mites at bay and will help you breathe a little better at night.
One unintended perk of anti-allergy pillowcases is that they often have a crisp, smooth feel when you lie down, which can actually keep your head a little cooler overnight. Some people hate that feeling because sets of poor quality can also feel a little plastic-y and tough. So make sure you buy a quality set — or get a chance to touch them before you buy them. Again, Wirecutter has great suggestions on which ones to buy.
For me, anti-allergy pillowcases serve three purposes: They make my bed more inviting, keep my pillow cooler at night, and help me breathe easier while I sleep. I can’t ask for more from my bed linen.
