Fresh clean linens are one of the keys to a beautiful and comfortable bed. To ensure that your sheets keep that just-bought quality, you should take extra care when laundering them.
Peggy Platner is the manager of Gracious Rooms and Room at the Beach and has 25 years experience in retail. She knows all about taking care of fine linens and other fabrics, and offers these laundering tips to make the most of your valuable bedding:
- Launder sheets separately. According to Peggy, it's very important not to put any other items into the washer when you're laundering your bed sheets. You may want to save a little money by throwing in some towels or jeans, but if you care about your sheets, you should resist. Zippers and buttons have a particular tendency to damage linen.
- Gentle wash. Wash your sheets with gentle care by using a mild detergent and a cool temperature setting.
- Gentle dry. Peggy recommends drying your sheets in a warm, rather than a hot, dryer and pulling them out while they're still a little damp.
- Smooth by hand. When you put the sheets on the bed, take some time to smooth them out with your hands. This will help eliminate unsightly wrinkles and creases.
Peggy is also a fan of sending sheets out to be professionally laundered, as this helps keep them looking their best. In addition, she offers this last tip: if you have to wash your sheets more than once a week to keep them crisp and nice looking, it's probably time to get new sheets.
For more information on caring for linens, check out the following organizations and websites:
Yves Delorme
Guide to caring for fine linens.
www.palais.com
French Quarter Linens
Caring for fine bedding.
www.eurolinens.com
House Beautiful Magazine
www.housebeautiful.co.uk
Country Living Magazine
http://magazines.ivillage.com
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