All about linen and bedding sets

[Lizzie]

Hello everyone,

A topic that we talk about fairly regularly here in the Community Center is around how to manage linens and bed sheets, especially when it comes to providing them, changing them and washing them. We also see hosts ask what colour linen others think are the most welcoming, but also the most managable when used regularly.

There are quite a lot of different solutions that hosts adopt, many of which are based on the type of accomodation you offer, but one of common concerns is around controlling costs. Perhaps you have a plan of how often you change the bedding and replace it, perhaps you have little tips like applying a mattress cover to help prevent ware, perhaps you choose to wash your linen at a certain temperature to make them last longer.

How can you offer an excellent service and keep in budget at the same time? 

Please share your tips on how to manage linens and bed sheets, and get inspired by the solutions suggested by other hosts. Please give a “thumbs up” on your favorite ideas shared by others!

I look forward to hearing from you.

Thanks,

Lizzie

[Rachel0]

I get all my duvet covers and pillow cases from a wonderful online company here in UK called Bedeck  - they have regular sales and you can get some really gorgeous sets at a good price.  I don't know if they operate elsewhere but they are worth a google.  Sheets, plain pillow cases, matress protectors and pillow protectors are all from M&S - 230 thread count or above.  I get all my towels from M&S as well.  Linen gets washed at 40 with a squirt of Vanish if I find any dodgy stains (and I have found some very dodgy ones) or 30 if I don't.  All get dried in the garden in the summer and in the dryer a the local laundrette on a low temp in the winter.  Fabric conditioner is a total no no in this house - I think they make vinyl records out of the stuff - and I use Fairy non bio washing pods in my washing machine.  Never had a problem with any of this apart from when a football sock got left in the machine and everything came out with red streaks!  Everything is ironed by my cleaning lady or me.

I am not sure about top flat sheets.  I used to use them under the duvet but so many people took them off and left them on the floor that I stopped using them.  If we get hot weather in the summer I leave one in the wardrobe so that guests can use it instead of the duvet if they wish.  I also leave a blanket in the wardrobe if it is really cold weather. 

I try to coordinate the colour of the flowers on the window sill with the colours of the bedlinen for a final flourish! 

[Ria16]

Really enjoying the thread. As a new host I’d be interested to hear what your life expectancy of a sheet actually is not in terms of years but washes.
The sheet sets that I bought last year (i have 2 sets, plus one spare in case the sofa bed Is needed) have been hot washed roughly 30 times each. They were medium price not top dollar but the guests seem to love them and always make nice comments. I was thinking yesterday as I was ironing them that they have started to lose that nice stiffness feel. I was reading on one of those supersaver pages that you can use the water that you cook potatoes in for the final rinse. Heh ..haven’t tried that yet. 😉 But when I do invest in new sheets it would be cool to read something on the packaging that guarantees you for a 100 washes.
BTW My guests that turned up last night just got married..They only instant booked the day before and didn’t inform me of their upcoming nuptials or I would have got something special for their arrival. But the bride had the most detailed henna artwork on her hands and feet, if it wasn’t 11pm at night I,would have taken a photo as it was so incredibly beautiful. 😉 hoping it’s still on this morning 😉 I would love to see something like that on the border of my sheets even if it was done in a faint silver so hardly showed.  I have a 4cm lace edge. on mine and use the 3 sheets  style:) 

[Rachel0]

@Ria0

I don't know if you get Marks and Spencer in NZ but if you do, buy their plain sheets and pillow cases that have what they call " STAY NEW" finish on them.  That's what I use and even after more than 30 washes they still have that lovely crispness that new sheets have.  

Be careful what you wish for on the border of your sheets though, as if that henna comes off overnight you will have a pattern you didn't want!

[Ria16]

Cheers @Rachel0 M&S do an online shop, irll have a look. 😉 Next also do free delivery 

[Kathleen1]

I buy Costco sheets when they are on sale.  I use a steamer to get out any wrinkles. I do not have white sheets, but I do use white pillow cases. I buy the pillow cases in bulk from Amazon. 

I have navy, brown,and white washcloths.  I also have make up remover cloths. 

I have comforter covers also. 

[David1705]

How often do all of you wash comforters?  I do it after each guest, some say this is too much.  But anything less to me seems unhygenic. Any tips?

[Stephanie6]

Hi @David0, As a new host I started with comforters and quickly switched to duvets so I could easily wash the covers for each booking.  You can put the comforters inside of duvet covers.

[Fiona-and-Keith-and-Fami0]

Great suggestion on putting a comforter inside a duvet cover!

[Andrea905]

Ich wasche die Bezüge ebenfalls nach jedem Gast! Das ist der Service auf den ich mich auch verlassen möcchte. darüber hinaus beziehe ich Kissen und Decken doppelt, auch die Matratze hat ein doppeltes Laken. In der Saison nheme ich stets den oberen Bezug umgehend ab und wasche und bügle ihn, falls notwendig- das ist ein muss für die Gäste! Bei Leerlauf während der Saison, nach mehreren Buchungen nehme ich dann auch die unteren Bezüge und Tücher ab. So kann ich in der Saisonpause ganz in Ruhe alles komplett waschen und bin hygienisch, mit Schaumstoffmaterial auf der allerbesten Linie! Gästebettwäsche, Handtücher und Fußmatten kommen separat in die Maschine, nacch dem Checkout. Für Sechs Betten habe ich 12 Bezüge also immer für einen Tag noch einmal, falls es wirklich "brennt". Und ich nutze gute aber ältere Bettwäsche z.B. Esprit Design.

[David1705]

How often do all of you wash comforters?  I do it after each guest, some say this is too much.  But anything less to me seems unhygenic. Any tips?

[Fiona-and-Keith-and-Fami0]

@David1705 I don't wash the comforters after each guest, but I do examine them to make sure they're still clean and fresh (yes, I do a sniff test—even on perfectly clean sheets that may have ended up at the bottom of the pile). I use a duvet cover that I wash a lot in the summer time and then insert a fluffy duvet inside it in the winter time. Something that may be helpful is to have a couple of duvet covers that can be slipped off and washed while the other one is on the bed ... ? Washing a duvet cover is akin, I suppose, to washing another set of sheets. Bedspreads aren't around like they used to be; these would be another option for a host who prefers to wash all the bed linens between guests—they're a lot less bulky than comforters so would go through the wash & dry cycles easier. Another option still is to consider whether a comforter really is unhygenic once it's been used on a bed. I'm thinking for sure sheets would be. Because my comforter (and duvet covers) are on top of the top sheets and I fold over together the top sheet and duvet cover/comforter twice, I'm thinking it should be OK. If comforters weren't protected by a top sheet and we didn't count on people to not do stuff on top of the bed ('nother story for another post), would you even sit on anyone else's bed? I'd say my tip, David, is to play it by ear and see if the work is worth the effort based on the particular guests and circumstances.

[Tatyana5]

If you get duvet covers then you can strip and wash the duvet covers for each guest. (If you don't want to buy duvets, you could just use the duvet covers with the comforters you already have.)

[Terri38]

I go for flat sheets in the one colour pallete (fitted sheets are convenient to use but can only go on the bottom).  Most of the sheets are a plain colour but there are a few pattered ones.

I use double sheets on the single beds as I found that single sheets just don't stay tucked in on single beds that have a decent foam topper on them.

And my stain-removal go-to is a bar of Sunlight Soap.  Wet the stain and scrub it with the soap.  Leave it overnight and wash as usual.  Stubborn stains (greasy!) may need to be attacked a second time and/or air-dried for a week.

[Lizzie]

Hello @Terri38,

Thanks for sharing this. How long do your sheets usually last for before you need to replace them? 

[Deborah465]

Love sunlight soap!