Best bed sheets for bed? Thread count explained? Size of bed sheets?

CHOOSING YOUR SHEETS

The type of fabric you select when buying your sheets will make a large impact on your comfort level.  There are different grades of cotton, which is determined by the length of its staple or fiber.  The longer the staple, the more luxurious and durable the grade of cotton.  The most popular choices for bed sheets are Cotton, Flannel, Silks or Satin.

TYPE OF FABRIC

Cotton sheets are the most popular because of its soft, breathable feel.  In addition to being comfortable, cotton sheets will not wrinkle as much and are moderately priced.

Muslin cotton being at the low end, has a thread count of up 140, can feel rough to the touch and is generally used for children's printed bed sheets.

Combed cotton is cleaned of impurities, and because the shorter fibers are removed, it is typically very soft and smooth to the touch.

Supima cotton is long fiber cotton that is produced in United States.  This cotton is of high quality and is also very soft and durable.

Egyptian cotton is of high quality, providing the softness, most luxurious fabric and feel.

Silk or Satin sheets are known to be more desirable and luxurious than other bed sheets.  They are silky soft and will keep you from sweating in the summer months.  One downside to satin or silk sheets is they tend to slide off the bed when not properly fitted.

Flannel sheets are a blend of wool and synthetic material cotton.  These sheets ar highly popular for their warmth and are generally used in the cold months, and often in baby bedding.

THREAD COUNT EXPLAINED

Thread count is the total number of threads running horizontally and vertically per square inch of fabric.  In general, the higher the thread count, the better quality the sheeets are.  For soft and durable sheets, you should look for a high thread count.

For example, a 200 thread count makes a great, durable sheet.  Sheets with a thread count of 300-400 are a bit nicer but still reasonably priced.  A sheet of 400-900 thread count may be more expensive, but will feel wonderfully soft to the touch.  A thread count of 1000 or higher makes for a very soft and smooth sheet, however the finer thread aslo results in a more fragile fabric, which may not always be ideal.

WHAT DOES "PLY" MEAN?

The terms of "ply" refers to the number of fibers twisted together before it is woven into a fabric.  By twisting two or more fibers together, the thread count of fabric can double or triple.  Some 1000 thread count sheets are actually 250TC 4-ply or 330TC 3-ply. 

The rule of thumb is the higher the ply, the heavier and thicker the fabric.  The highest thread count that is woven in a single ply is about 600 thread count.  1000 thread count sheets are typically always 2-ply.

WHAT IS THE WEAVE?

A weave is the interlacing of the thread that creates the texture, look and feel of the sheet.  A standard weave has a pattern of one stitch over, one stitch under. 

TYPE OF WEAVES

A percale weave is the most common for bed sheets.  It is closely woven plain-weave fabric and it is noticeably tighter than the standard type of weave used for bed sheets.  It is smooth and crisp to the touch, but has no gloss.

A pinpoint weave is two stitches over and one under, which is not as soft as sateen sheets, but nicer than a standard weave.

A sateen weave ( not to be confused with satin ), has four stitches over and one under, creating a luster almost like that of satin sheets.  The material is extremely soft and silky.

THE PERFECT FIT

The thickness of a mattress ranges from standard to pillowtop or even extra deep.  To determine the correct fitted sheets for your mattress, you will need to measure the depth of the pocket ( the distance form the bottom of the mattress to the top, incuding any pillowtop ).  A standard pocket size is 7 to 9 inches, a deep pocket is considered to be 10 to 15 inches, and an extra deep pocket depth measures 15 to 22 inches.

CARING FOR BED SHEETS

Most bed linens should be washed in cool water, using a gentle wash cycle and avoiding bleach in order to protect your bed linens.  When it comes to detergent, less is more unless the bed sheets are heavily soiled.  Make sure to not over dry your sheets.  Take them out of the dryer as soon as dry and fold them right away to avoid wrinkles.  If your sheets are wrinkled, a tip to removing them is to throw a wet sock or washcloth in the dryer along your bed sheets for an additionnal 10 minutes.

 For a variety of  BED SHEET SETS  in many Styles, Colors and Sizes visit Luxury Linens 4 Less