To begrudge buying new bed linen every few months?

[fluffysox15]

I usually spend about £25 for a duvet set, maybe £10 for a sheet. Within about 6 weeks the sheets go bobbly or the stitching comes open at the edges of the duvets and sheet.

Am I buying cheap crap?! If anybody could advise somewhere to buy decent bedding that would be great

My duvet covers are Tesco's most average range, they must be 5 years old and still look as shit average as they ever did They are holding together fine, not even a loose button on the closures and I do manage to change my sheets nearly every week.

I can't imagine what you are doing to yours, I wash at 60 and tumble dry them in winter. They really weren't expensive, maybe I was just lucky.

Some of the 100% cotton stuff at BHS is also worth a look.

Salmiak- that is the plan :)

As for hot tumbling action, well for the sake of my sheets I shall be using the washing line more and may even restrict bedroom 'activities'!

it could be not washing it often enough or whatever it is you wear in bed....bard wire jammies!

That silly fabric is 100% polyester and has no grip. When it's attached to a more robust fabric like poly-cotton it just falls apart (same happens with kids' dressing up dresses).

I don't buy anything that's not 100% cotton. We have bedding we were bought as wedding presents 11 years ago that still look new and the Biba set I bought last year is fabulously sparkly and washes gorgeously (40 degrees l, no conditioner).

IKEA bedding is good too (sheets etc).

Cotton all the way though.

You leave the sheets for 3 weeks, so it only takes TWO washes before the sheets etc. fall apart? That's nuts. Very poor quality...?!

The set on our bed at the moment is 10yrs old (JL) but the ones we had on last week were from TK Maxx 15yrs ago.
100% cotton high thread count - soft like sleeping in a cloud.

You could buy plain bedding then a colourful runner or throw to put on the bed for decoration when you aren't using it.

I've some white fitted sheets I bought in Tesco years ago....my mother always cross examines me as to where I got them as she says they are lovely, and then refuses to believe me until I show her the label that says Tesco on it.

If you like fancy schmancy covers why not buy a flat sheet and use it between you and the cover, then you might not have to wash the cover as much.

Ikea, if you get the slightly posher end of the range and not the cheapest.

And I have a Matalan Egyptian cotton sheet that's lasted really well.

I misread this as "to begrudge washing bedlinen every few months". In which case YABU - every few months works fine for me

But generally YANBU - I hate that bobbly, sleeping on sandpaper thing. I've only had that with polycotton or jersey sheets so I avoid those now.

I only buy 50/50 as can't be doing with the creases in 100% cotton. I buy in John Lewis or Primark and no issues at all, haven't bought bedding for years

Maybe it's the 50 temp with the embellishments and the tumble drying? I must admit I am not a fan of embellishments (or plain sheets - I like patterned but smooth!)

The best quality ones I had were from Next. They were nice and soft and washed well and they have lots of patterns. I normally wash bedding on 40 with everything else but sometimes on 60 if I only have that and towels to wash. I don't have a TD.

And YY I also have polycotton and it doesn't bobble. Cheap, e.g. matalan ones do. Pure cotton is SO creasy.

Holy crap Eva, you don't mean every day do you?!

manmade fabrics will bobble.

If you don't want to go to 100% cotton, then you need at least 60% cotton.

The silky strips and tops etc will fray and seams split and bobble.

I go for 100% cotton sheets and pillow case
JL or M&S are really nice quality at good value. (Asda and Tesco sheets were less good)
I do have poly cotton duvet, but that gets less wear than a sheet.

I wash our bedding on 60. Kids on 40 or 50.

Mine last for years, so I think it is the style and fabric.

if you use a fitted sheet, then as you pull it on the creases magically disappear!

I also find that tumble drying, but whisking them out as soon as dry and folding stops creases.

TBH my 100% cotton duvet gets tumbled, abandoned in the dryer and then folded and left till next sheet change. By then sitting folded has 'ironed' them.

100% cotton standard range from debenhams here. Wash at 60 (often with napisan due to baby vomits) and tumble dry (dry outside when possible). No FC.Often gets washed 3 times a week due to said baby vomit. It's only 3 years old but going strong.

Similar from Next but with pretty pattern bobbled after about 3 months.

I have a single bedset from M&Smy mum bought me 20 years ago that is perfect condition

I'd check the quality of what you buy.

Ooooh, flannel is the worst! I bought a set of flannel sheets, thinking they'd be soft and warm and snuggly. Nope! It bobbled really quickly and felt awful.

I've just washed and ironed the set and I can confirm the duvet cover is 100% polyester. The sheet I haven't checked but I will when I pop it back on tonight.

Thankyou everybody, I'm not well educated on cotton content and count. Future purchases will be much better quality and none of the embellished cheap stuff. I have enough bed runners and dress cushions to make the bed look nice so I'm going to opt for plain good quality bedding and hopefully that should solve things.

The bobbling could be because you're buying polycotton bedlinen (if you are). But basically, pure cotton won't bobble polycotton bedlinen is awful

As for seams coming loose: it's easy enough to redo seams with your own sewing machine, but then I make my own duvet covers & fitted sheets: I get a much higher quality. I have pure cotton damask duvet covers with zipped openings that are 20 years old, and just get softer & softer.

I upgraded to expensive bed linen a few years ago (by expensive I mean about £50 a bottom sheet and £100 a duvet cover). I recently bought a cheap bottom sheet 'cos of the colour and it is so not the same. It is something I never thought I would do 'cos I really like to save money but the difference is so obvious now I've downgraded again! I originally upgraded following divorce and a real need to spoil myself and have something for me - and I loved the pattern (and my ex would have hated it!). I buy from Achica as they regularly discount Pip Studio stuff that I really like and although it is sometimes available cheaper elsewhere, they never seem to have the size or colour I want when I want it. I save up - usually £2 and 50p coins in a jar - and wait till I have enough before I buy.

We got 2 good cotton sets from JL as wedding presents. Cost about £100 each. Lasted 12 years.

the duvet cover is 100% polyester

ahhhhh, there's your problem, right there. Yuk, polyester is sweaty, staticky and cheap. It's plastic, basically.

If you want cheap bedlinen but 100% cotton, look at La Redoute. Their quality isn't quite Egyptian cotton or high thread count, but I think it's nice enough. And certainly they have a lot of brightly coloured stuff, if that's your taste (I only ever have white, it's calming, and it all matches). And if you wait till a sale, you'll get a duvet cover for anything from £15 to £40, so within the price range you've been paying for yukity yuk plastic polyester.

There are loads of places on the web which do 100% cotton bedlinen for reasonable prices, so google is your friend. Also Achica is good, and Amazon, if you know the brands you like.