A Friend Gets A New Apartment And A Set Of Egyptian Cotton Sheets
One of the reasons that my friends call me “The Egyptian Cotton Sheets Queen” is because I’m very generous with my friends; often I’m the one who gave them their only, or their first, set of Egyptian cotton sheets. I especially like to give a set of Egyptian cotton sheets as a housewarming gift. I recently got the chance to do so for my friend, Stella.
When Stella called me and said she had found an apartment, I was thrilled, but also a little amazed. “I thought you said that you couldn’t afford to live on your own?”
“I thought I couldn’t, but I was talking to a woman I work with and she explained that she has a tiny studio apartment that she would be willing to rent to me. It’s about 250 square feet including the bathroom.”
I agreed to come over right away to see it. Stella was absolutely right – it was *tiny*. But, then so was the rent. The whole apartment was only a little bigger than the main bedroom in my place. However, in addition to being the Egyptian Cotton Sheets Queen, I’m also known for my optimism. “Let’s call it “cozy”. That’s better than tiny.”
Even though it was tiny, it was in very good shape. The walls had recently been painted, and the hardwood floors had been redone. The tiny bathroom had a vanity with small sink, a toilet and a bathtub. It was a small tub, but at least it was more than just a shower. In one corner of the apartment there was an efficiency “kitchen” – the kind you might see in a hotel. There was a sink with a cabinet underneath and cabinets above. Next to the sink was a small fridge with a microwave on top.
I knew that Stella would be very surprised when I gave her a set of Egyptian cotton sheets as a housewarming gift, but I knew I would do so. Stella loves sunny yellow, and I had asked the manager at the home store to get in a set of really pretty yellow Egyptian cotton sheets for me, knowing that I would give it to Stella. At the time, I figured it for a Christmas gift, but a housewarming gift of the Egyptian cotton sheets would be so much better.
Stella owned very few things. She deliberately “lived lean”, hoping that someday she could pack everything in a duffel bag and get the hell out of her parents’ house. Aside from the money, there was one thing that kept Stella from leaving – her little sister Amy. Stella was 20 when she rented this apartment, her sister was 14.
So Stella had very specific needs for her apartment – she needed to have room for her sister to stay, she needed to be able to live in the place, and she was afraid of heights. So, no loft beds with a couch underneath. Then, I remembered a picture I had seen in the design book I bought back in college.
The room was divided into distinct areas by a raised platform on one side. What I think we could do would be to build a platform high enough that we could slip a mattress underneath for Amy when she came over. Stella was skeptical, but I was already picturing it in my mind – we could paint it cream so that it stood out, but not too much against the white walls, and it would provide a nice backdrop against the yellow Egyptian cotton sheets I had already ordered for Stella.
A Savior With A Pickup Truck And Construction Know How Helps Us Start Off Another Egyptian Cotton Sheets Adventure
I called up my friend/coworker/hopefully boyfriend soon, Tom, who owns large pickup truck and asked if he would help us move. While all of Stella’s things she was bringing with her fit easily in her car, I knew we would need some help with the wood for the platform.
When Tom met us at the hardware store, I showed him the picture from the book and explained what I wanted to do. While Stella excused herself to use the restroom, Tom and I discussed the particulars of the job. Stella and I had already taken measurements of the room, so we we just needed to figure out what kind of materials to get. “And you know that I’m going to give her a set of Egyptian cotton sheets as a housewarming gift.”
Tom smiled. “Of course. What color Egyptian cotton sheets were you thinking of?” I told him about the set of yellow ones that I has asked the home store manager to order for me.
When Stella rejoined us, we headed for the lumber section of the store. I wish I could tell you I knew something about lumber and what kind we picked to do the job, but I would be wrong. All I know is that Tom picked it out and we helped him load it into the back of his truck. We drove to Stella’s new apartment and dropped off the lumber – it was time to visit the thrift store and the dollar store.
photo credit: Incase Designs
While it was a packed day, we had a great time. I keep thinking about the sheets I was going to buy for Stella and how much she would like the yellow. I could tell that Stella was glad someone was keeping track of the decorating scheme, even if she didn’t know I was doing it because I was thinking about Egyptian cotton sheets.
When the day was done, we had paint and lumber, one mattress from Stella’s parent’s house, a mattress from the thrift store, and cleaning supplies from the dollar store. We had also found a huge piece of furniture to take up the other side of the room and provide desk space, dresser and linens space as well as some extra space for food. We were exhausted from bringing it up the steps – even though it was in pieces – but it was worth it.
Tom went home for the evening and I stayed to help Stella unpack our purchases. Since her apartment wasn’t ready for living, she was going to crash on my couch. I smiled to myself thinking of the yellow sheets as well as the set of Egyptian cotton sheets I would pull out for my sofa bed.
Another Day Dawns With Lots Of Work, But Also Lots Of Fun On This Egyptian Cotton Sheets Adventure
The next morning, I left a note for Stella, letting her know I was going to pick up breakfast, and I snuck out while she was still asleep. First, I went to the home store and checked with the manager to see if the sheets were in. I was in luck, the set of yellow Egyptian cotton sheets had come in just the day before. I bought the Egyptian cotton sheets and hid them in my trunk. Then I stopped to pick up breakfast at Panera Bread and went home.
After Stella and I had breakfast, we met Tom at the apartment. Fortunately, the apartment was in an end of row townhouse, so while there wasn’t really any yard, there was an alley that we used to set up the saw and “painting station” to make the platform.
By the end of another very long day, we had the platform built, as well as a bookcase from the leftover lumber. Even though it was getting late on a Sunday, the apartment smelled very strongly of paint. Since the weather was going to be good overnight, Stella left the windows open and spent the night at my place again.
The next day at work, I showed Tom the Egyptian cotton sheets I had picked up the day before. He agreed that the color was good, although I don’t know if he really cared that much about the Egyptian cotton sheets or about making me smile.
That night, Tom and I met up with Stella at her new apartment. We ordered pizza and sat around talking, remembering funny moments from the weekend and admiring the way the whole thing had come together. Stella thanked both of us about a dozen times each.
When we were done with the pizza, I pulled out the set of Egyptian cotton sheets. I had wrapped them on my lunch hour and when I handed Stella the package, she started to protest.
“No, I know what that is. It’s a set of Egyptian cotton sheets. I don’t want to take them…you’ve already done so much for me!”
I smiled and pushed the package of Egyptian cotton sheets back at her. “Yes, they are Egyptian cotton sheets, but you don’t know what color. Besides, I have to continue to live up to my reputation as the Egyptian Cotton Sheets Queen.”
Stella sighed, knowing that there was no way I was going to let her get out of taking them. She carefully opened the package and her eyes started to fill with tears when she saw the Egyptian cotton sheets inside.
“Kara…I love them. You know that I love yellow. I can’t believe you found a set of Egyptian cotton sheets in such a beautiful yellow.”
I smiled again. “Hey, the manager at the home store is used to me buying Egyptian cotton sheets. When she can, she lets me know about colors that are available. That’s why when she told me that she had a seen a yellow set of Egyptian cotton sheets in her ordering catalog, I told her to get them in for me. I had you in mind, but I figured it would be a Christmas present, not a housewarming gift. I think it worked out rather well, didn’t it?”
Stella couldn’t respond, she had tears running down her face. She got up and hugged me, then hugged Tom too. He handed her the tissues and she blew her nose. “You guys are the best. I don’t know what I would do without you.”
“You’d have to make the bed all alone with your Egyptian cotton sheets.” That got a smile out of Stella.
Our last bit of help that night was in making the bed with the the Egyptian cotton sheets. Stella thanked us one more time, then we said goodbye. As Tom and I walked to our cars, I thought about the good work of the Egyptian Cotton Sheets Queen and knew that another one of my friends was sleeping well that night, dreaming soundly on soft Egyptian cotton sheets.
Tags: do it yourself, Egyptian cotton sheets, home store, room design