How to Make a Hospital Corner

1. Anyone who's ever worked in a hospital knows how to make a bed. Anyone who's been in the armed forces knows how to make a bed. For that matter, anyone who's ever gone to camp knows how to make a bed (those counselors can be a lot like military personnel themselves). So how come so many beds in this world are made so sloppily? Time to put a stop to all of this!
2. Step 1 - Put on the bottom sheet
3. Sometimes you have a fitted sheet, and sometimes you don't. If you have a fitted sheet, with elastic on the ends and pre-formed corners...
   • Stretch the sheet over two corners at one end of the mattress.
   • Walk around the bed and stretch the sheet over the other two corners of the mattress.
4. If you have two flat sheets, take one of them now and...
   • Hold the long end of the sheet (the side without a hemmed edge) with both hands, and stand next to the bed.
   • Flip the sheet out over the bed, so that it billows out and spreads over the mattress. Position the sheet so that it hangs evenly over all sides of the mattress. Make sure the long edges are parallel to the floor and hang below the bottom of the mattress.
   • Take the short end of the sheet, and tuck it snugly under the end of the mattress. Make sure that the sheet lies smoothly between the box spring and mattress.
   • Go around to the opposite (short) end of the bed and pull the sheet taut. Tuck the sheet under the mattress as above, maintaining the tension you've created.
   • Move back around to the long side of the bed. Tuck the edge of the sheet under the mattress. This should create a vertical fold but won't if the short edge of the sheet is bunched under the end of the mattress.
5. Go to the other side of the bed and repeat the last step. This is where you can tug firmly on the sheet to create a taut surface.
6. Step 2 - Put on the top sheet
7. Now you're going to create a nice, tight confining area to slide into at night. Your feet will be unable to shift around, and you can get some small idea of what a straight jacket feels like as you fall asleep.
8. If you've just used a flat sheet as your bottom sheet, you'll realize that the top sheet goes on in almost exactly the same way.
   • Find one long end of the sheet (a side without a hemmed edge) and stand next to the bed. Generally, the sheet will have one edge with a hem of at least 2", and that end should go towards your head.
   • Flip the sheet out over the bed, so that it billows out and spreads over the mattress. Position the sheet so that it hangs evenly over both long sides of the mattress but has extra length at the foot end. The end of the sheet where your head will be should reach the top edge of the mattress.
   • Take the bottom end of the sheet and tuck it snugly under the end of the mattress. Make sure that the sheet is flat between the box spring and the bottom sheet. Move back to the long side of the bed. Tuck the sheet under the mattress, so that a vertical fold is created at the bottom end of the mattress. Tuck the remainder of the sheet under the mattress, but leave a foot or two of it loose at the top. This will be folded back over your blanket to form a nice, soft edge that sits next to your face.
9. Repeat with the other side of the mattress, creating a taut surface by tugging firmly.
10. Step 3 - Put on the blankets
11. You're almost finished now. All that's left are the blankets and pillows.
    • Step to the side of the bed, and flip the blanket so that it billows over the bed. Position it so that there will be room for your head and shoulder, with the remainder hanging evenly over the other three sides.
    • Repeat the steps that you took with the top sheet, first tucking the bottom under the mattress, then the sides. Remember to create vertical folds by not bunching the blanket under the mattress.
    • Fold the portion of the top sheet that you left loose back over the blanket. Tuck the edges under the mattress to form a neat and tidy appearance.
    • Place the pillowcases over the pillows and put them aside.
12. Et voila! A bed that you can now mess up to your heart's content!