How To Choose Fine Linens For Your Home   by Jeff Slokum

Nothing changes the look of a bedroom quicker than a fresh set of bed linens. If you have a bathroom "en suite" it's also easy today to find coordinating bath linens to match the bedroom linens. Today it's fun to mix and match linens, and many designers have their own design lines that mix florals with stripes and geometrics. Choosing fine linens for your bed and bath can be initially costly, but as with any purchase of quality made items you will enjoy fine linen sheets and towels for years to come.

True linen, which is stronger than any other natural fiber has actually been dated back to the stone age. It has also been found that the linen wrappings from Egyptian mummies are still pliable, thousands of years later. The more linen is used the softer it becomes. It can absorb up to 20% of it's weight in moisture before it feels damp and air drys quickly. An Irish linen tea-towel can last five to seven or more years, depending on the amount of use. Linen will dry and shine your glasses superior to that of cotton or any other blend. Flax linen is also non-allergenic.

When choosing sheets for your bed you will want to keep in mind thread counts. The higher the thread count the more luxurious and smoother feel the sheet will have. High thread count sheets are also more durable than sheets with low thread counts. High quality linen sheets can last up to twenty ears. As mentioned above, linen sheets will soften with use.

When looking for blankets for your bed you may want to choose a wool blanket for winter and a thermal blanket for spring, summer and fall use when there tends to be warm and cool nights. Thermal blankets are comfortable in warm weather. Wool which can be very light weight and dense is also extremely warm.

Flannel sheets come in all types of colors and designs and are favored by many for comfortable cold weather sleeping. 100% cotton well made flannel sheets will "puff up" after washing feeling softer with each washing.