Berth bed linen — why no standard size exists on board

A berth is not a bed that happens to stand on a ship — it is part of the ship. Its lying surface follows the line of the hull: forward it tapers to a point, aft it sits against a slope, and somewhere a panel crosses the wall or a pipe crosses the corner. Right angles, on which a standard sheet could orient itself, practically never exist.

Shop-bought bed linen fails on this in three ways: it pulls tight across the sloping side and draws creases into the lying surface, it sags at the tapering side and slips in the night, or it is simply too large for the berth beneath the headroom. Berth bed linen is therefore always made to measure — ashore as on board, only that on board the measurement is more complicated.

La Couverta takes the measurements on board — in the cabin, not from a plan drawing. Measured are the mattress in length, width and height, the run of the hull side, the position of panelling and the clearance above the lying surface, so that the covers can later be drawn on beneath deck lockers and reading lamps. From the measurements, paper templates are made and checked on the spot before a single centimetre of cloth is cut.

The templates are the real work. They record the asymmetry — no berth is the mirror image of another, and port differs from starboard even when the deck plan suggests otherwise.

The fitted sheet on board solves a problem that does not exist ashore: the mattress lies against a wall, and that side is hardly reachable when making the bed. Two solutions have proven themselves. The sheet with elasticated corners — drawn all round, cut exactly to the slope — holds itself and can be drawn on from the side of the gangway. The alternative is the berth cover with a zip: the closure lies on the wall side, the mattress is pushed in, the cover encloses it completely and does not shift even in a seaway.

Both forms are made from cotton jersey or percale, depending on whether the crew prefers elasticity or a firm, ironable weave. The seams lie where they do not press when lying: at the edges, never on the surface.

Blankets and duvets follow the same logic. A blanket in a standard size overhangs at the wide side of the berth and falls short at the tapering one; forward it trails on the floor, aft it does not cover. The blanket is therefore cut to the outline of the berth — with an allowance for the tuck-in at the wall side and a leading edge that works when making the bed from the gangway side.

For cabins with bunk berths a second question arises: the weight. Light quilted blankets with a filling of cotton or Trevira CS fibre are often the more practical choice on board than heavy down duvets — they can be washed ashore in an ordinary machine and dry overnight in the forepeak.

Every berth La Couverta has measured stays measured. Templates, pattern pieces, fabric and thread details move into the pattern archive of the atelier — with the ship’s name, the cabin designation and the date. If the crew needs replacement linen before the next season, a telephone call is enough: the patterns lie ready, the linen is remade in Hamburg and sent to the berth, without anyone having to measure on board again.

The archive also carries alterations along. If a mattress is replaced or a berth extended, only the affected template is adjusted — the rest of the documentation remains valid. What else we make on board is set out on the page Textiles for yachts; the requirements for fire safety and materials are described in the article Textiles on board — the IMO FTP Code.

The washing place on board is small, and the climate is not: salt and humidity keep working in every weave, even in the locker. Berth linen is therefore cut for care ashore — measurements that fit an ordinary household machine, weaves that can be washed at sixty degrees, no details that stand in the way of cleaning.

At the end of the season one simple rule applies: nothing is stored salt-damp. Sheets and covers are washed before the winter and dried completely; blankets and mattress toppers are stored ashore, dry and aired. What comes back on board in spring smells of the cupboard, not of the bilge — and fits, because the cut is right. The making is done on request, with a lead time of usually six to ten weeks.

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