Summer bedding ideas for hot nights and cool sleep

We’ve all been there. Tossing and turning, working up a sweat. All because you’ve not got the right summer bedding to cope with hot, humid nights.

Getting a good night’s sleep in the summertime shouldn’t be impossible. By switching your duvet tog to a lighter one, swapping to breathable bedding, and implementing a few clever styling tricks, you can avoid overheating and wake up feeling refreshed.

In this summer styling guide, we’ll cover everything you need to stay cool, calm, and collected during the hottest months of the year…

We’d recommend anything between 1.5–4.5 tog for your summer duvet. This is the optimum tog level to keep cool and refreshed in the warmer months. Choose anything higher than this, and you’re probably going to wake up in a hot sweat. Not fun.

Our lightweight Dream Team Ultimate Washable Duvet has been specially created to combat warmer nights, thanks to its 4.5 tog and clever Smartfil® design, which feels ultra-light and breathable with enhanced airflow for lasting freshness.

One word: Breathable. The key to finding the coolest bedding for hot summer nights is ensuring good air circulation and avoiding trapping any unwanted body heat. You can do this by checking your material’s breathability. This simply means how much air (and sweat!) the fabric allows to pass through it, helping to keep your bed – and you – cooler. Our favourite summer bedding fabrics are:

Linen

Linen is probably the most well-known breathable fabric. It’s made of natural fibres, with large open weaves that promote good air circulation and let heat escape faster. Plus, it’s a premium material with an organic feel, bringing quiet luxury to any sleep space. What’s not to love?

Cotton percale

Cotton is another natural fibre with superior breathability, especially when paired with a percale weave. This is a simple weave that easily passes through cool air to stop you from overheating in bed. It also gives the cotton a crisp, cool finish, ideal for summer bedding.

Bamboo and Tencel

Fancy something even more sustainable? Choose bamboo or Tencel bedding. Both fabrics are naturally made from organic pulp (Tencel most commonly from eucalyptus wood and bamboo from – you guessed it – bamboo plants), making them super eco-friendly. Both share similar benefits, too. They’re silky soft, cool-to-touch, naturally temperature-regulating, and even moisture-wicking – ideal for particularly sweaty sleepers!

Looking to upgrade your bedding? Check out our summer bedding collection.

What should you sleep under in summer? Here’s our step-by-step guide to layering your bed on those hot and sticky nights.

1. Cool mattress

With heatwaves cropping up more often in the UK, it may be time to invest in a clever mattress that’s built for keeping cool in the heat. Mattresses like the TEMPUR® SmartCool™ range, available exclusively at Dreams, offer exactly that. The exclusive Pro Air SmartCool™ cover offers 18% faster cooling than standard SmartCool™, as well as clever pressure relief and motion absorption to keep you comfortable whilst you snooze.

2. Mattress protector

To start building up your base layer, we’d recommend adding a mattress protector to extend the lifespan of your mattress. Choose a breathable material and look out for sophisticated options that are uniquely designed for hot weather, like our Home by TEMPUR® Thermoregulating Mattress Protector. This innovative protector features clever THERMIC® microcapsules, which constantly regulate temperature for peaceful, uninterrupted sleep all night long.

3. Mattress topper

Next comes your mattress topper, for that extra layer of comfort. Opt for something snazzy like our TheraPur ActiGel® Cool Mattress Topper, which has zoned ActiGel® foam. This cooling foam wicks away moisture, aiding temperature regulation and keeping you comfy.

4. Fitted sheet

Then add your fitted sheet. Remember, this is the layer that will be in direct contact with your skin, so it’s important to choose the right fabric. This is where those breathable materials will come in handy. Opt for a cotton percale or bamboo fabric for your fitted sheet to keep this layer as cool as possible.

5. Top flat sheet

Now, for your top flat sheet. This is an essential layer for your summer bedding, as it may become your “main” sleep cover on particularly hot nights where you completely ditch the duvet. Once again, this should be a breathable fabric like cotton or linen, perhaps even matching your chosen fitted sheet, for a coordinated look.

This is a summer essential, but it can look great all year round, too – simply drape it over your duvet, folding the top of the duvet back to hold it in place.

6. Lightweight duvet

Your final layer is a lightweight duvet. As we mentioned earlier, it’s essential to swap your squishy marshmallow-style duvet (which we love in winter) for a lighter tog duvet that’s sure to keep you from melting on those hot summer nights.

Need somewhere to store your winter duvet in the summer months? A handy ottoman bed offers full-length storage – plenty of room to hide bulky items like thick duvets.

Now you’ve nailed your bedding fabrics, it’s time to think about the look and feel of your bedroom – because keeping cool is a mind game, too. By opting for cool tones, you can foster a calm and serene bedroom environment that feels like a sigh of relief when you step through the door. Here’s how…

Fresh whites and naturals

When in doubt, stick with white. It’s crisp, fresh, and calming – exactly how your sleep space should feel. Speaking scientifically, white also reflects light! That makes white a fantastic choice to help bounce light around your bedroom and create a sense of airiness.

But you don’t need to stick to pure white alone. Soft neutral tones, such as oat, beige, stone, and cream, all work the same as white, bringing a serene atmosphere to your space. Plus, natural colours add a tiny bit of warmth for subtle cosiness.

Soft pastels

For those who prefer a more colourful backdrop but don’t want to overwhelm the space, consider using pastel shades, such as pale pink, lilac, mint green, or butter yellow. These light hues are perfect for creating a calm environment, bringing softness and personality.

Cool blues and aquas

Prefer a little more character? Design a sleep space inspired by the coast by introducing some beautiful cool blue and aqua tones. Just like the rolling ocean waves, a bedroom filled with splashes of blue has an instantly calming effect.

Now, for the finishing touches. Instead of piling up the scatter cushions (that will inevitably end up on the floor each night), opt for some intentional accessories. Three extra pillows max should work well. For example, two square scatter cushions and a long bolster cushion in front. This is sure to make your bed arrangement look ‘complete’ without overwhelming the space.

Keeping your bedroom decor fresh is a fantastic way of avoiding the “renovation itch”. Rather than spending a fortune on redecorating every six months, create different capsule bedding looks for each season.

For example, in the wintertime, you could dress your bed with dark green, tartan scatter cushions and a brow knitted throw. When the chilly season starts to defrost, swap your accessories for lighter pastel-toned pillows and floral quilts, then bolder colours and patterns in the summer, and so forth! This way, you can look forward to a new aesthetic every three months.

Credit: @hoppyeveleighafter

Don’t dread the UK heatwaves. With our summer bedding ideas, you can feel prepared for anything and enjoy a cool night’s sleep, even when temperatures soar. Here’s to a season of comfortable, breezy summer nights ahead…