Lay My Hat

Sarah, we are probably at the mid to high end of our market locally. We offer John Lewis polycotton percale bed-linen (50:50)

http://tinyurl.com/n4agsh

We originally went this route as our (then) caretakers were doing the laundry on site; I felt this would ease matters, since the house is large to clean, and sleeps eight.

This range is also what we use at home in the UK.

We've had no problems with the range and nothing has needed replacing either - this is our fifth season and they still look and feel as good as ever.

We get repeat visitors; only one guest has ever commented on the fact that we don't offer 100% cotton bedding, but it didn't stop him coming back the following year - and I'm willing to lay a bet that the only way he knew that the linen wasn't 100% cotton was by looking at the label!

I can't recommend this product highly enough. Cool, soft, and breathes well. Also looks less rumpled after a few days' use when guests make their beds up!

Interestingly, I bought some extra pillowcases recently for home. I've been wondering why they felt thinner when handled, and were proving harder to iron. I assumed that JL had simply changed manufacturers or altered the spec eg thread count. Before posting, I went to check the label of one to be sure I was telling you the correct mix. It was 100% cotton and clearly I'd bought it by mistake. To sleep on however, there's no difference!

It's a difficult comparison to make though - as everyone knows, thread count makes a difference to the feel when talking 100% cotton, and some high quality cotton sheets are definitely more "crisp" to lie on or under than ours,and feel thicker.

To Giddy Goat
Thanks for the recommendation for the JL linen, I had looked on line at that range and wondered if it would be value for money. I will go and buy a few sheets to try out.
Thanks again

My children being grown up, I used to do the ironing (24 guests) during the day in the laundry room. I often had visitors dropping by to tell me how lovely it was to have crisply ironed linen. Even if it said non-iron I would still skim over the items.
We have JL 100% Egyptian Cotton at home and it is a devil to iron, I might try the cotton/percale 50:50.
NEXT single colour bed linen is favoured by our daughter and easy to use.

Judith

NEXT single colour bed linen is favoured by our daughter and easy to use.

I'd agree with that, most of my bedding is Next (and the White Co percale) - but their non-iron bedding (which I got as a trial) was awful. In fact the fumes it gave off when being ironed put me off having non-iron.

You are brave to buy cream only. I used to use plain duvet covers but found they don't look as good as the patterned ones after a few months and they show even the tiniest marks.

This is seriously turning me away from white bed linen. After 5 years the bed linen I have that are a doddle to deal with are checked duvets from Laura Ashley...they're good quality, 100% cotton and never show any marks. Now after 5 years they've softened beautifully so even ironing is easy (though in the 1st 2 years it was hard going).

I'm on the hunt for pink (think sugared almond colour) checked duvets. More modern 'New England' style than gingham so if anyone spots any reasonably priced ones let me know!

Mouse (going off white)
x

is this the Supima range (Supima® Pure Cotton Non-Iron Fitted Sheet)

What colour do you buy ? there seems to be mixed reviews on this product so I am not sure whether to buy or not.

My M&S non-irons are nearly 2 years old, white and are the Supima range and not had any problem with them and they still look good - so thumbs up from me for M&S.

Am I the only one who doesn't iron duvet covers Patterned and 50/50 poly cotton they don't need it and they are M&S (not non ironed) and well over 5 years old and look as good as new.

apexblue wrote:
Am I the only one who doesn't iron duvet covers Patterned and 50/50 poly cotton they don't need it and they are M&S (not non ironed) and well over 5 years old and look as good as new.

I don't always iron my own bed linen, and am very bad about ironing for myself and the kids, but I always iron bed linen for the guests, sheets, pillow cases and duvet covers, 100% cotton or poly cotton regardless. I can tell the difference and it is just something that I'd expect to be done if I stayed anywhere, so I do it for my guests.

Mouse wrote:

You are brave to buy cream only. I used to use plain duvet covers but found they don't look as good as the patterned ones after a few months and they show even the tiniest marks.

This is seriously turning me away from white bed linen.
Mouse (going off white)

Truly (and this is of course tempting fate, ) our stuff in France looks as good as it did when it was bought. This is its fifth season as I said. It goes to a laundry - and (forgot to mention this) I guess they automatically press anything they launder.

Sarah, I do still iron our JL poly/cotton pillowslips at home in the UK. Very easy.We don't have all-white duvet covers here so can't speak for those but I guess you'd still need to run an iron over them too. Would be nothing like the effort to get a nice finish as it is on cotton though.

I can tell the difference and it is just something that I'd expect to be done if I stayed anywhere, so I do it for my guests

I agree

I have white bedding still looking great after 6 seasons and I bought some of it in Matalan. I prefer plain when I stay anywhere.

I can tell the difference and it is just something that I'd expect to be done if I stayed anywhere, so I do it for my guests

Me too. It's a holiday thing. It's such a nice treat to climb into fresh, ironed bedding that someone else has done. I have stayed in places where bedding hasn't been ironed and I do miss that touch.

My white bedding is still looking OK but it's the effort I put in to keeping it like that. In the years of renting I've had to remove numerous yellow stains, brown stains, red wine, felt pen, biro, chocolate and make up (lipstick, mascara, blusher).
Is it that white is a stain magnet? I've never had all this trouble with my lovely red check.
I got white thinking all I had to do was chuck it in with bleach and voila! Stains are out! Sadly not...and I've also ended up with stains from stain removers too Plus even the smallest mark shows. Maybe I'm being too much of a perfectionist

Mouse (thinking lifes too short...again)
p.s. and I dispair of washing powders...they say they get all sorts of stains out - but they don't.
x

Do you use laundry markers? I was thinking of getting some ribbon embroidered with our name and sewing it on, so it could be identified when it gets lost at the laundry (seems to be a regular occurence round here)
http://www.gbnametapes.co.uk/ribbons-an ... -c-34.html

Mouse wrote:

I can tell the difference and it is just something that I'd expect to be done if I stayed anywhere, so I do it for my guests

Me too. It's a holiday thing. It's such a nice treat to climb into fresh, ironed bedding that someone else has done. I have stayed in places where bedding hasn't been ironed and I do miss that touch.

I could be offended by these comments if I didn't know you both better. Unless you're using extremely expensive cotton bedlinen, I think you'd be hard pushed to tell ours wasn't. So there!

Unless you're using extremely expensive cotton bedlinen, I think you'd be hard pushed to tell ours wasn't. So there!

whoops - think I'm at cross purposes ...I was talking about preferring ironed sheets!? Do you not iron your sheets GG?

Mousie (whose preverence for bedding is a linen-cotton mix but would never expect to find that in a rental property)
x

Mouse wrote:Do you not iron your sheets GG?

Yes - or rather, I'm sure the laundry does! They're fitted so they never look amazing when first unfolded. The duvet covers do look good though as they fold flatter. I'm sure they press everything. They can't tell they're not cotton either, see!

I don't have Egyptian cotton beddin - I was just talking about the ironing too - wasn't responding to your post GG so no offence intended.

None taken Enid - thanks.