We know a thing or two about sleep at Brooklyn Bedding. After all, we’ve been in the mattress business for over 25 years—and we actually handcraft all of our mattresses and pillows in our very own state-of-the-art factory in Phoenix, Arizona.
When asked what we wish every customer knew about sleep accessories, it is this:
Don’t treat your fancy sheets like they’ve been worn by your 14-year-old child who ground a base hit into second and slid for dramatic effect on Saturday.
No hot water. No scorching hot dryer. And, please, for the love of heaven, no bleach.
If your sheets warrant that kind of aggression, we just don’t want to know what goes on in your house.
We realize that, for some, this news may be disruptive. Even unsettling. Denial is often distinguished by minimization or rationalization. To help you work through this first stage of grief, let’s begin with a few questions (affectionately and very corporately known as the “decision tree”).
Are you emotionally crippled by attached to the way your mother or grandmother taught you to launder your bedding? If you answered yes, click here for a set of sheets that can be (practically) boiled, seared, starched, steamed, bleached and carried to second base for dramatic effect. Brushed microfiber sheets are not only incredibly durable, their signature attribute is easy care. Buy your kids one set in every color.
If you’re still with us—and no longer experiencing intrusive thoughts—we’re going to assume you’re open to elevating your adult sleep game by:
a. creating a luxurious sleep environment
b. blissfully slumbering between thoughtfully crafted, eco-friendly materials
c. spending more than $50
d. all of the above
e. something else
So what’s a sleep connoisseur to do?
Show your fancy sheet sets the love and adoration they deserve.
Take a vow to never do anything that would cause pain to the one sleeping closest to your skin, enveloping you in a billowy cloud of sumptuous softness and self-indulgence—so discerning of your every need that he/she/it just knows when to warm you in the winter and cool you in the summer. That means no fading. No shrinking. No excessive wrinkling.
Love is a verb, people.
Love washes sheets and pillowcases in warm water at most. The average temperature of warm water is 90 to 110 degrees. Any temperature above this range will cause fancy sheet sets, especially those made of sustainably sourced materials like TENCEL™ and bamboo, to fade, shrink, excessively wrinkle and otherwise be reduced to a shell of their former, natural glory.
Love similarly sets the spin level on the washing cycle to medium at most. Fancy does not appreciate being whipped into a frenzy.
Love sets its dryer to tumble dry low. This is perhaps the most important precaution in preserving the beauty and longevity of sheets and pillowcases. Love is patient and kind.
You’re in the bargaining stage now, we know.
Because stains.
Because bedbugs.
Because dust mites.
Because bacteria.
So let’s get personal about bedroom hygiene.
Water at cool to warm temperatures, coupled with detergent, is nearly always sufficient to clean any machine washable fabrics. If your bedding has fallen victim to liquids, fluids and stains, your best bet is to pre-treat the affected areas, then wash in warm water and tumble dry low per the recommendations.
To avoid bed bugs or dust mites, you should launder your sheets weekly, clean your mattress occasionally, and be sure to thoroughly eliminate those pesky dust bunnies around and under your bed. Love perseveres when it comes to safeguarding the environment where you spend one-third of your life.
If you’re still concerned about stains, liquids, fluids, bedbugs, dust mites and bacteria, you can invest in some type of machine washable mattress protection—either a protector that shields your bed like a fitted sheet, or an encasement that offers 360 degree coverage, better known in the mattress industry as DEFCON 1 readiness for invading pests or the zombie apocalypse.
Whichever. Comes. First.
Last, but not least, follow your manufacturer’s instructions for regularly maintaining and cleaning your washing machine. Many front load washers feature a basket cleaning cycle: THIS is the time to make grandma proud and add that bleach to help prevent mold and mildew.
If you promise to love, honor and cherish your sheets for as long as you both shall snuggle…we promise you the companion of your dreams and the will to live capacity to sleep happily ever after in a luxurious cocoon of extra hypoallergenic-ness.
