cawaps, thanks. I've had an electric blanket for decades without any trouble. Somehow sleeping on top of something electric, what with the possibility of an unfortunate fluid spill, seems a riskier prospect to me. I don't think my sleep habits lead to much bunching, darn it.

My last two have been Biddeford and I have been pleased with them.

I used to use Sunbeam but their quality has gone down. My last two Sunbeam blankets did not last over a year.

I've had electric mattress pads for years with no problems. The really good thing is that the SO can't TAKE IT AWAY!

You also might consider the "toe warmer, which is a giant heating pad for the foot of the bed. The cats love it.

LG, my SOs are cats, firmly camped on my feet. :)

I appreciate the input and ideas. However, I think I'm gonna stay with a blanket. All that extra stuff underneath that needs to be smoothed out every day just doesn't appeal to me.

Blanket recs anyone?

We have the Biddeford, too. It is a very nice blanket, a very thick fleece type. We just use it to warm the bed, then turn it off. I prefer cotton blankets, but since this one doesn't touch my skin (I have a sheet and a cotton blanket in between) it is just fine.

We had to get a new one and I looked at several last year. I finally bought one, but returned it in less than a week. It was that plush and stretched terribly. You could feel the wires inside when you were sleeping. The controls didn't work correctly. It would not hold the temp. Made in China. It was one of the "better" Sunbeams from Walmart. I finially ordered one from E-bay. It is 100% acrylic like our old one. It has the dual controls and no auto shut off. It gets hot on high and turns way down to low. Looks like new and works great.

I hated to gamble on a used blanket, but it is fine. I don't know why they had to mess up the new ones. By the way it is a Sunbeam, made in the USA. I read the descriptions carefully and picked a seller that had a 100% approval rating. I probably paid more than it sold for new, but it was well worth it.

I was looking at a Biddeford online and I could see all the coils in the ad photo. I think plush is just too stuffed toy for me. I can just see my cats burrowing under the duvet to sleep on it. Fleece is probably more my speed.

Despite the great Black Friday prices, I think I need to visit some local stores (Macy's, Penney's, Target, etc.) and check them out in person. If they need to be returned or exchanged, it's easier.

The reviews are killing me, from raves to horrible pans.

My 93-yr-old mom gets cold at night, so I'm thinking of an electric mattress pad for her. But...well, Mom wears Depends at night. They work well, and she also had a waterproof on the sheet, but is there a danger with the electric pad?

bp, that's what I'm thinking about. I'm not there--yet--but ya never know when you can't get out of bed fast enough.

I have the Biddeford "sherpa with micro mink." The cat and dog love it. it's faux shearling on one side and a microfiber on the other. An improvement over the old Sunbeam blankets.

We have a lot of windows and it gets a bit chilly in winter. I don't like to turn up the heat unnecessarily . So this works well for us. We actually use it in the great room to watch tv. The king works for 2 ppl a cat and a dog. I use down comforters on the beds. The electric is too hot for sleeping for me.

Good luck.

I'm in California so our winters aren't brutal, but it does get cold at night in the winter. I like sleeping in a cold room in a warm bed so I turn off the heater completely at night. I have regular (not flannel) sheets, a light duvet in a cover. I'm looking for something that resembles a blanket.

At the risk of being annoying, because you've said you know what you want--you really should give an electric mattress pad a chance. Based on what you said--"All that extra stuff underneath that needs to be smoothed out every day just doesn't appeal to me"--you really don't have any idea what they're like. Mine has never bunched or wrinkled or needed to be smoothed out, unless it got displaced when I changed the sheets. It's thick and heavy and made like a fitted sheet so it stays in place. And it's very effective. I also live in California, but I don't heat my house at all. The house has been hovering around 60 degrees all week, but I've been nice and toasty in bed,

you really don't have any idea what they're like

I used to have one when I lived in England. Our 3rd floor bedroom had no heat at all and there was ice on the inside of the window and I was miserable, so the heated pad was so much better than hot water bottles.

I'm not adamantly opposed to a heated pad, but I'm used to a blanket. Does one put the thick soft mattress pad over or under the heated pad?

Linelle, have you tried Costco and/or Sam's? They usually sell them around this time of the year.

That said, have you ever considered going a different route entirely and given a down comforter a try? The type of warmth they generate is so much better. We had a lighter weight one when we were in California, now that we're in Michigan, we swapped it for a warmer one. We sleep in temps that are below zero with the window open and stay warm. They are so cozy and also much safer for the cats.

Lukki, I will look at Costco. I'm not familiar with Sam's.

What I use and need an electric blanket for most of all is preheating the bed, since I like to use crisp sheets throughout the year. I turn on my electric blanket an hour or two before bedtime, and then it's nice and cozy when I get in. Frequently I turn it off for the rest of the night. I have a down alternative comforter that is lightweight and I use it year-round. The cats sleep on top of everything and generate more heat. There's a comforter, plus two layers of duvet cover between the cats and the blanket.

I'm warm enough as is and I hate heavy covers. All I want to do is replace my electric blanket with a new one. However, I'll be open to a pad if I encounter one in a store and it says nice things to me. :)

I like to sleep in a freezing cold room. I use a plain old heating pad put under my bottom. I turn it on when I come up for bed and it's cozy under my down blanket when I get in bed. If I'm reading first, I leave it on until lights out.

Anglo, I like cold rooms too. I like my face cold and the rest of me cozy warm. I'm a bit of a miser when it comes to utilities and I don't turn the heater up past 69 degrees. But in the winter I get out the heating pad--it's the ugliest thing ever--and put it on my lap or behind my back while watching tv and it's divine.

I have the electric mattress pad instead of the thick soft mattress pad.

I use Biddeford blankets. It's basically a thin acrylic blanket with the heating elements. The thick plush versions give me the heebie jeebies. I got mine at Kohls a few years ago. I shopped to see if I could give you a link but it was too hard for me the see the blanket thickness and texture on the websites.

You might like this one it is actually quilted flannel. Dual controls.

https://www.overstock.com/Bedding-Bath/Cardinal-Pattern-Quilted-Flannel-Electric-Blanket/12236753/product.html

I just bought this one on the JCPenney site. It gets good reviews and isn't overly faux fur. Originally $400, 50% for Black Friday, plus I dug around and found a 20% coupon ($40 off). 90x90 for a queen which is ample enough for me. Will let you all know how it goes.

Thank you all for your input and suggestions.

Glad you were able to find something that might work. I like a cool room and crisp sheets too, even the duvet we use is a crisp cotton. I have to admit the first few minutes of cold are a bit shocking to the system but once the the down starts heating up...wow.

ETA: Got to love the new marketing names manufacturers come up with to reinvent old concepts...alternative down is nothing more than poly fiber fill, will never even come close to being as wonderful as down.

Linelle, that really looks nice! Please let us know how you like it.

Lukki, "alternative down" sounds so much nicer!!

I use the same type of bedding all year round. Even when our summer days are hot, the nights cool off, except for one or two nights when everything gets kicked off except maybe a sheet.

I am spoiled by our weather.

That electric blanket looks nice. I tried an electric blanket once and I didn't like it. It felt stiff and smelled funny. I ended finding a heated mattress pad at JCPenney when they were clearing out merchandise when they remodeled. It has dual controls but one only one works now. I like it for the same reason as you, to warm up the bed prior to crawling in. ETA: cant wait to hear your review on the blanket once you get it.

The blanket arrived, spent one night on my bed, and was returned the next day. Its fatal flaw? Too heavy. Yes, the "7 Layers of Warmth" made for too much blanket. I can't bear heavy weighty covers on top of me, even in the winter. The blanket was well made and produced nice warmth, but I knew the minute I got under the covers that I couldn't do more than one night like that. Also, not that it was a total deal breaker, but the controls are more upright and wanted to topple over, esp. from the weight of the two cords hanging down. The nice part of returning it was I bought it online from Penney's and I took it back to my local store.

While in Penney's I bought another blanket, Biddeford Heated Plush Blanket, less than half the price of the other one. It was not overly thick. Only problem is that it's plush and I just cannot understand why everyone's making blankets out of that stuff.

I had to go to Macy's as well and checked out their electric blankets. They had a different Biddeford, Comfort Knit Heated Blanket and it's fleece, not plush. A bit more, but still less than half the price of the one I returned. I bought it as well and decided to have an Electric Blanket Face-Off.

I decided to try the fleece first. Plus it has controls that sit more securely on the nightstand. Last night was a dream. Warm, responsive controls, no added weight. I have a winner. I haven't decided if I will return the plush blanket or maybe use it on my guest bed.

What I learned: Unless you know a particular blanket works well for you, it helps to buy in person so you can open the bag and assess the thickness and how the wires feel. Also dig down a bit and get a sense of the controls' ergonomics.

Glad you found something you are happy with.

lazy_gardens, can you tell me more about that electric "toe warmer"? The last couple of years I've had a problem with my toes being much colder. The regular electric blanket I use to preheat the bed, then turn off once I'm in bed and have warmed up. I don't like it on all night. But my toes stay cold, even with socks and cloth slippers on. Plus a folded blanket at the foot of the bed. It's like there is no heat to keep in, I need an outside source. I tried using a heating pad, but they are too small and I move off them. Plus, they have auto shut-off very quickly.

What search terms should I use? I have never heard of one before. Thank you.

Linnea56- if you google foot of the bed warmer, it will bring up what you are looking for.

Linnea, my toes get cold, too, even with socks on. But at a craft booth I picked up a pair of hand-knit sleep booties. They are loose around the feet to create an air pocket for warmth, but snug (not tight) enough around the ankle (and they cover my ankle bone) to keep the booties on all night. At the same time, I can kick them off easily if I get too warm, but not accidentally--I do move around in huge night. Keep your eyes peeled for a craft fair!