Article: Bed Linen Basics
Bed Linen Basics
Bed Linen Basics
There is a great deal of noise around what makes bed linen "luxurious" - most of it unhelpful, some of it invented for the purposes of selling something. Having supplied five-star hotels for the better part of two decades, we thought it worth setting out, plainly, what actually matters.
Thread Count Matters - Up to a Point
Thread count refers to the number of threads woven into a single square inch of fabric, and it is, within reason, a genuine indicator of quality. Beyond a certain point, however, it becomes a number chasing itself: manufacturers pack in ever more threads, often by twisting several together and counting each strand separately, to arrive at figures - 800, 1000, higher still - that bear little relation to how the fabric actually feels or wears.
We settled on 400 thread count some years ago and have never seen reason to move from it. It is the point at which cotton is dense enough to feel substantial, soft enough to feel indulgent, and - not an inconsiderable point - still easy to iron. Anything higher tends to sacrifice breathability for a number on a label.
Fabric Quality Is the Real Question
Thread count aside, the fabric itself does most of the work. Cotton remains the industry standard for good reason: its extra-long fibres spin into finer, stronger yarn, which is what gives well-made cotton sheets their characteristic softness and durability. Linen, silk and bamboo have their own devotees and their own merits, but for the crisp, cool, hotel-grade feel most people mean when they say "luxury," long-staple cotton is very hard to improve upon.
Style and Design
We supply hotels across the world, and if there is one thing that unites nearly all of them, it is a preference for plain white. It remains our best-selling colourway for exactly that reason, occasionally lifted with a touch of embroidery or detailing, but rarely more than that.
Why It's Worth Getting Right
Good bed linen is not an indulgence so much as an investment in something you use every single night. Buy well, once, and it will outlast several cheaper alternatives bought in succession - which is, when the arithmetic is done properly, rather the more frugal choice.
