To ask how old your bath towels are?

[nanbread]

Ours are a bit flat, rough and slightly greying. I'm wondering if they're reached the end of their time, or if there's a way to revive them? They're about 12 years old.

One set is about 11 years old. John Lewis ones, still nothing wrong with them at all. Replaced a set of Sainsbury’s ones about 2 months ago as they had holes in and bleach stains, they were about 6/7 years old. Dunelm ones this time, they are very soft.

Some very old primark towels that are now used for dog drying. Some newer maybe 6 year old from Christie that are going around the edges very annoyingly cos I paid a lot of money for them, still soft and fluffy but each time they go in the wash and dryer I wonder if they'll come out as fluff. Some newer ones from king of cotton that I reckon will do a few decades.
Two 7 year old bamboo towels that are in good nick but I'm allergic to so have gone to the dog towel pile.
And just recently a really really old Christie towel that has done for me and two children and me as a child so 50 plus years has been sent to the garage to do whatever garage towels do.

I love a soft fluffy towel.
Hate it when dh doesn't put them to dry in the tumble dryer.

I have some that are from before I was married, so more than 30 years old. The rest are all various ages but I'd say none less than 8 years old.

We have some (cough!) that fell into our bags from the gym we used to go to 30 years ago! They're still going strong, still fairly thick and fluffy. We've used them on a daily basis for 30 years now. Must have been pretty good quality to last so long.

We got our John Lewis ones for a wedding present 15yrs ago - still going strong, soft and thick.

@SimpsonsXmasBoogie

No advice I'm afraid but following your thread because I also have old, scratchy bath towels and am wondering if they need replacing.

Mine are about 4 years old. Should they still be good?

I never use fabric softener because I heard it wrecks the absorbancey, but it means the towels come out like dry toast. Do other people use fabric softener?

its usually the hardness of your water that causes the dry toast effect. I put in a water softener around 30 years ago, best money i ever spent.

My DF still has orange and brown swirly towels from the 70s. They are rough as a badgers arse but he won't bin them.

DH loves his old scratchy towels - I find them disgusting and always trying to get rid of them but he won’t let me!

We have loads in our house from my childhood. They get used regularly and are still good condition. We also have some of my parents beach towels from the 90s.
Then some from our wedding list 15 years ago.
A few new ones for the DC as they’ve got older. Their baby towels are used for hair towels etc.

Mine are around 30 years old. Two different sets that were gifts and both still going strong. I just wash and air dry either on the line or a airier.
Some of my hand towels were my late MIL’s and she has been dead for 20 years so who knows how old they are but they wash up fine but are now a little thin but still usable.

Ours are ancient. We inherited them from DH's when she died 13 years ago, and they were old then.

DH's grandmother

Most of ours are well over 20yrs old and still in great condition. Our favourite ones though are two huge bath sheets bought on a Portuguese beach 35yrs go for 4 escudos each (about 1.50). They are still soft although one is starting to fray at the edges now.

I wash then tumble mine. I don't use fabric conditioner but I do use tumble dryer sheets.

I have two towels which I keep for my own use; they are thin and much darned but are big and dry me better than any of our new ones.

They still have the name tapes my mum sewed on when I went off to university aged 18. I am 77. They were by no means new then. She would have been pleased about the thrifty darning.

Do I win the MN aged towel prize?

My oldest one is 43 years old and thin and threadbare (but very soft) so is relegated to a swimming towel

Others are various ages, I don't like crunchy towels, but the latest one I bought from JL is too soft for my liking ad I think not very absorbent. I have stopped using fabric conditioner but do tumble dry

In the summer I do dry outside but give them a little tumble, my machine has a gentle heat/tumble especially for softening

Days old from Boxing Day sales to nearly 20 years old.

If they have gone grey, why not dye them and give them a new lease of life? Dying fabric seems to change it and makes it like new again.

I’ve got some dylon machine dye I’m going to use on my faded towels. I bought them in 2002 in M and Co. Still got years left in them but they are a bit faded.

Ours we've had 20 years as got them as wedding gifts, they were decent ones "Egyptian cotton" from Debenhams. Not super fluffy now but still fine. Though they are cream which probably helps with not fading lol.

@SimpsonsXmasBoogie

No advice I'm afraid but following your thread because I also have old, scratchy bath towels and am wondering if they need replacing.

Mine are about 4 years old. Should they still be good?

I never use fabric softener because I heard it wrecks the absorbancey, but it means the towels come out like dry toast. Do other people use fabric softener?

If you tumble dry they stay soft. You can also give them a steamy iron. Sometimes detergent builds up so a wash with white vinegar or bicarbonate can bring back that white fluffy feeling. I quite like a scratchy towel personally, good for exfoliating 😀

My friend uses white vinegar in place of fabric conditioner. She says the towels are lovely and fluffy, doesn't have a tumble drier either.

Do other people's towels not start to fray at the edges after 10/15 years?

Except for that, I have absolutely no idea how old our towels are.

You absolutely win TrickyD.

I love a rough, scruffly towel. I find the too soft ones don’t absorb anything.

Mine are white John Lewis cotton. 15 years old. Wash hot wash with ecover laundry bleach (although hard to find right now). Only very recently have I wondered if I need new. Tbh they are great and don’t need to be replaced at all.

We had some from our wedding, so nearly 25 years ago. And I've also got a couple from boarding school with my nametag sewn on by my late DM, but they're used for lining the cat's basket.

I dyed them all when we redid the bathroom some 15 years ago, but some are definitely fraying at the hems.