His ’n’ hers duvet that could save your marriage!

One half ’s super-toasty, the other’s cooler. And, as winter bites, it’s just one of the ingenious new bedcovers that promise blissful sleep

WITH temperatures tumbling the prospect of snuggling beneath a cosy quilt has never seemed more inviting. Investing in warmer bedding is also a good way to help beat spiralling heating costs. But with a range of togs — the measure by which the warmth of a duvet is rated — and a host of different fillings, it can be tricky knowing which one to buy, never mind finding one that keeps both halves of a couple happy. Here, HELEN CARROLL puts the latest offerings to the test . . .

BEST FOR TOASTY TOES

The Duvet Store European Duck Down, 18 tog Prices: From £150 (single) to £300 (king size), theduvetstore.co.uk I had no idea that duvets came in anything higher than a 15 tog, so could not wait to snuggle under this one on a chilly November night, with a novel and a cup of hot chocolate.

I was pleasantly surprised by how lightweight it was (given its red-hot rating, I’d half expected it to be like lying underneath a brick), and I felt so snug I quickly drifted off to sleep.

The down for the individual pockets (to prevent the filling moving around) is sourced in the Pyrenees and inserted in Scotland, but there is no stitching on the outer cotton cambric fabric, so there are no ridges and no cold spots.

Even once my husband, dillon, came to bed, having followed strict instructions to turn the central heating thermostat down, neither of us overheated.

however, dragging myself out of bed to greet the chilly, dark morning, when my alarm went off at 6.30am, proved challenging.

I spent the rest of the day counting down the hours until I could return to my cosy cocoon. VERDICT: 9.5/10

BEST FOR SENSITIVE SORTS

And So To Bed For All Seasons Duvet, 15 tog Prices: From £570 (single) to £899 (emperor), andsotobed.co.uk SENSITIvE as I am to dust mites, I’ve always steered clear of feather bedding as it can’t be easily laundered.

So, despite assurances from the company that the cotton fine cambric cover on this fancy duvet is treated with something called a NOMITE finish — a special seal that acts as a barrier to dust mites — I was alarmed to see a couple of stray feathers escape as I wrestled it into the duvet cover, fearing that they might set me off sneezing.

But I needn’t have worried as this comfortingly weighty white Siberian goose down winter duvet — a 9 tog detachable autumn duvet pressstudded to a 4.5 tog summer one — was so soft and cosy that dillon and I slept like the dead.

So luxurious was it that it brought back fond memories of the rare occasions — pre-parenthood, of course — when we had splashed out on a posh hotel. Bliss. VERDICT: 10/10

BEST FOR MARITAL HARMONY

The Duvet Store European Duck Down Partner Duvet, split tog for dual comfort Prices: From £89.99 (double) to £220 (super king), theduvet store.co.uk ThE perfect solution for those warring couples who like to sleep at different temperatures but don’t want to go so far as having separate beds or bedrooms.

This duvet is divided, straight down the middle, into two separate togs, they can be bought ready-filled with down or made bespoke to personal preferences.

One side could be as low as a barelythere 2.5 tog, while the other could be anything up to a toasty 15 tog.

While it’s usually the women who feel the cold, dillon tends to be the chilly one in our marriage, a fact he puts down to his baldness (he’s even been known to wear a passion-killing woolly hat in bed).

So we tried a partner duvet with a warmth rating of 10 tog on my side and 15 tog on his.

In his cosy element, dillon was asleep in seconds.

and while my side of the bed felt perfectly warm, as winter sets in I might just be tempted to switch the duvet around when he’s not looking. VERDICT: 9/10

BEST FOR BEING ‘BARELY THERE’

Naturalmat Organic Wool Duvet Prices: From £95 (single) to £175 (super king), naturalmat.co.uk aS ThIS organic wool duvet is barely thicker than a blanket, I was actually dreading climbing into bed and vowed to discard it if I wasn’t snug enough to fall asleep within 15 minutes.

astonishingly, this man-made chemical-free quilt, which weighs just 500 grammes — the measurement used instead of togs — and boasts an ability to regulate body temperature, kept us both perfectly warm.

It would be perfect for those who don’t like to be too encumbered in bed, but I need something more substantial and weighty covering me. VERDICT: 7.5/10

BEST FOR A LUXURY LOOK

Sheridan Deluxe Dream Quilt, 10.5 tog Prices: From £77 (single) to £119 (super king), sheridan australia.co.uk WITh its attractive cotton jacquard cover and bound edge piping, this is designed for those who want the luxurious look and feel of down but, either because they’re on a budget or are prone to allergies, have to go for man-made fibres.

If you were willing, or mad enough, to wash it every week, it’s also aesthetically pleasing enough to be used without a cover.

at 10.5 tog, this is meant to be suitable for all seasons, however I was chilly after getting into bed without my night-owl husband, and it took me a few minutes to warm up. after that, though, I was perfectly toasty all night. VERDICT: 8.5/10

BEST FOR THAT FIVE-STAR FEELING

The Fine Bedding Company Boutique Silk Duvet, 13.5 tog Prices: From £75 (single) to £145 (super king), finebedding.co.uk WITh ITS fine, siliconised-fibre and pure silk filling plumped to perfection inside an elegant jacquard cotton cover, this is a remarkably soft and lightweight duvet.

despite its cloud-like lightness, this manages to pack a punch when it comes to heat and, despite the cool air in the bedroom, I quickly warmed up.

But at no stage in the night did we over-heat and have to kick off the covers — perhaps because the silk and fibre filling is designed to help regulate body temperature.

handily, this duvet is also machine washable at 60 degrees, which is the temperature required to kill dreaded dust mites.

according to the company, this is a favourite with Britain’s four and five-star hotels, so it’s one way to bring a little boutique luxury into your bedroom. VERDICT: 9/10

BEST TO BEAT HOT FLUSHES

The Duvet Store Climarelle Cool Suprelle Fresh Duvet Prices: From £79 (single) to £163 (super king), the duvetstore.co.uk dESIgNEd to regulate body temperature for those who tend to over-heat at night, this cover cannot be tog rated but it feels quite light — more like a summer duvet than a winter one.

having, so far at least, escaped

the dreaded hot flushes, I prefer to be snug, not cool, in bed.

With this duvet I struggled to nod off. In the end, I had to admit defeat and heaped the wool duvet on top of it.

The moisture-wicking microfibre filling is designed to draw perspiration from the skin, which is then said to more easily evaporate on the cotton casing. As well as being thin and lightweight, which didn’t help convince me that it would keep me warm, the cover rustled whenever I turned over in bed.

Still, I’d recommend it to anyone going through the perimenopause and struggling with night sweats. It could be just the job. VERDICT: 7/10

BEST FOR FAMILY BREAKFAST IN BED

Marks & Spencer Supersoft Duvet, 13.5 tog Prices: From £95 (single) to £129 (super king), marksand spencer.com An ATTrAcTIve, fluffy duvet made up of a 9 tog section which can be attached with press-studs to a second 4.5 tog layer in winter.

While the filling is all synthetic fibre, when the two quilts are attached it feels comfortingly warm and weighty — something my children, Isobel, 13, and christian, nine, say they enjoy when they climb into bed with me on Saturday morning, waiting for Dillon to rustle up some bacon sandwiches.

The cotton cover is silky and you can shift position without it making any noise. not the cheapest on the market, but it’s far from being the most expensive either. VERDICT: 9/10