Cotton Bedding : How to Wash & Keep it Soft | Washing Bedding Tips

100% cotton bedding, particularly that of a high thread-count feels luxuriously soft and is a sure fire way to get you feeling comfortable and ready for a good night’s sleep. However, there’s nothing worse than spending your money on high-quality bed linen only for it to only become coarse and scratchy over time. For this reason, we have compiled a list of our top 5 tips to give you some advice on how to wash cotton bedding to make it more soft and crisp with every wash.

1. Always Follow the Bedding’s Care Instructions

There are many different styles, thread-counts and variations of bed linen made from 100% cotton. This is why it’s so important that you wash bed linen as directed on the manufacturer’s care instructions, which can usually be found on the bedding’s label. This will prevent damage to your bed linen caused by washing at too high a temperature and will also ensure that they are thoroughly cleaned.

2. Use Gentle Detergents

Washing even the finest cotton bed linen with harsh chemicals can damage the material, which overtime can make them feel much less soft and comfortable. Using more gentle detergents is always recommended for keeping your bedding at the best quality it can be. If you do need to remove a tough stain, then make sure you treat the area with a spot treatment before you wash the linen. Doing this will prevent damage to your cotton sheets, preventing them from becoming dull and coarse.

3. Separate Towels from Bed Linen Before Washing

Even if both your bedding and towels are made from the same material (cotton), it’s important not to launder them together. As towels are washed, they absorb heaps of water, meaning they take much longer to try than bed linen, so need more time in the dryer. If you dry bedding for the same amount of time as towels they will also be more likely to shrink and crumple. On top of this whilst in the dryer, towels generate excess lint which can stick to your bed sheets and ultimately change their texture.

4. Get Rid of Pesky Creases

When our bed sheets are creased, it can make them feel scratchy and uncomfortable, not to mention looking untidy too. The best way to prevent these creases from forming is to take the bedding out of the dryer as soon as it has finished. The longer bed linen is left scrunched up, the more creases it’s likely to get. Another way to reduce creases and make your bed linen softer is to iron it. This shouldn’t take long if the linen is made from high-quality cotton with a good thread-count.

5. Don’t Overload your Washing Machine

If you overfill your washing machine, the linen inside doesn’t have enough room to move around as easily. As a result of this, the bedding inside won’t have been cleaned as thoroughly as it would have if you’d only filled it up to the max fill marker (no more than three quarters full).

We hope these tips have been useful in helping you to find new ways of washing your 100% cotton bed linen to keep them looking and feeling softer for longer.