Bed linen is a common and universal companion of human life. Even if the specific shapes and materials change from place to place and over time, some kind of textile always serves as an underlay and a cover for people when they sleep. Presence as well as absence of those textiles is a significant marker of identity, way of life, social situation, and geographical disposition.

We spend a substantial portion of our life in bed, in its multiple forms. It answers a basic necessity as the place where we sleep, but it is also often where we are born and give birth, lie in sickness and die, make love, dream and have nightmares, relax or lie restless when visited by a troubled conscience or insomnia. It is a lonely place and a shared space, and often crucial discussions happen there when we are on the verge of falling asleep.

How we make our bed reveals how we make ourselves human, civilized, and cultured, with all the delights, doubts, difficulties, ironies, triumphs, disgraces, pains, and pleasures that these three words evoke. Shall we peek inside the armoire?

What lies ahead is an extended questionnaire about your bed linen habits. For me it is fascinating to learn of people’s everyday routines, customs, and approaches to their bed linen, and through this questionnaire I hope to create a kind of soft portrait that is both collective and individual. Bed linen can be and is very “touchy,” that is, private. Some of the questions here are rather intimate—not because I am nosy or looking for gossip but because this is the nature of bed and bed linen. You are free to answer the questions that you feel comfortable with and omit those you prefer not to comment on. For me it is important to gather as much information as possible, but it is entirely up to you how much you would like to contribute. Please remember that this questionnaire is anonymous. Answering it can be fun—but feel free to make your own bed.