8 Reasons To Fall In Love With Belgian Linen Sheets

Posted on 12th January 2011 in General: Luxury Linens

Belgian Linen is made of European grown flax fibers. It is crisp, clean and comfortable, soft yet strong and durable.

Linen conveys understated qualities, unrivaled by any other natural fabric:

1. it is colorfast and launder beautifully wash after wash. The more it is used the softer it gets and the stronger it becomes.

2. Linen is thermo-regulating, insulate in wintertime while being cool and breathable in summertime.

3. It can absorb up to 20% of its weight in moisture before it feels damp, and easily releases moisture to the air to remain cool and dry to the touch.

4. There is a natural body perspiration while sleeping, so having sheets that easily absorb and release moisture is essential to a comfortable night rest.

5. Flax requires considerably fewer pesticides and fertilizers than other crops thus being non-allergenic and anti-bacterial, especially recommended for sensitive skin.

6. The fibers are recyclable and eventually biodegrade.

7. Linen naturally induces a feeling of pleasure, comfort and an healthy well being. It definitely makes you feel good!

8. Though Linen does wrinkle easily, it presses easily as well… ….and in the end that worn creased look is part of its stylish appeal!

Belgian Linen Sheets

Belgian Linen Sheets

What makes Belgian Linen so special?
The flax grown in Belgium is one of the few crops still produced in Western Europe, with nearly 130,000 acres under cultivation annually. For centuries, flax has been grown in Flanders, the westernmost region of Belgium, known since the Renaissance for its prosperity and culture. The climate and topography of the region, interlaced with many small rivers, have made it ideal for linen production.

Belgian linen is recognized as being the best in the World. This excellence may be attributed to three beneficial factors:

- a well-suited soil. Flax is best adapted to fertile, fine textured, clay soils.

- a favourable climate with adequate moisture and relatively cool temperatures, particularly during the period from flowering to maturity (June and July).

- Belgian flax growers whose prime concern is quality have the in-depth knowledge and experience required to ensure perfection throughout the various steps of the process. Preparing the soil, selecting varieties, sowing and growing flax, monitoring the cultivation, pulling and retting, the aim of which is to encourage fiber extraction. All these different tasks are carried out with the same rigour and care using traditional methods that have been passed on throughout the ages.

Flax
Natural fiber that comes from the stem or stalk of the flax plant.
Scientifically named Linum Usitatissimum translates from the Latin as “most useful linen.” In naming this species, botanists recognized the inherent value of the humble flax plant. For ten thousand years or more, man has known this gentle gift of nature was the source of textiles with special properties.

Linen
It is the fabric woven from the fibers of the flax plant crops. Linen is more expensive than cotton since it is technically more difficult to spin and weaves slowly while cultivation of the flax crops is more labor intensive and require specific climatic conditions.

Pamper yourself in 100% pure, premium quality Belgian Linen Sheets!

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Anatomy of the Perfect Bed

Posted on 24th May 2010 in General: Luxury Linens, How to choose bed linens

A quick visual guide to what a “Perfect bed” should look like:

Perfect Luxury bedding

1. SHEETS > A bed sheets set is made of a flat top sheet, a fitted bottom sheets and a pair of pillow cases. It’s the basic bedding item to actually sleep in.

2. DUVET COVER > A duvet or comforter cover is a giant pillow case that hold inside a down comforter. It is usually sold as a standalone product or packaged as a set with a pair of accent pillow shams. It can be used either with or without a flat sheet.

3. ACCENT PILLOWS > Additional decorative pillow shams to match. They have a flange around the four sides or some kind of embellished border. Available in several different sizes from small Boudoir pillows to Standard/Queen size to Euro squares (a.k.a. Continental shams) up to the large King shams used on King sized beds.

4. QUILTED > A Quilt is a bed cover made of two layers of fabric stitched together, with an interior padding held in place by decorative intersecting seams. A Coverlet is a decorative, top of the bed cover that does not cover the pillows. Matching quilted pillows shams, usually in the Euro square size, are placed on top of the coverlet against the headboard to beautifully frame the bed.

5. BEDSKIRT > A bedskirt is used when the boxspring of the bed is showing or when the top of the bed cover, like a bedspread or comforter, does not extend all the way down to the floor. Bedskirts fit under the mattress and on top of the boxspring and decorate with fabric to the floor.

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Top 3 reasons to shop for Luxury Linens

Posted on 18th April 2010 in General: Luxury Linens, How to choose bed linens

What Luxury Linens really mean?

It’s not just any overpriced, designer branded sheets you may find at high-end malls.

Real Luxury linens stand out for their exceptional quality with unique technical features that translate into actual benefits, making Your housekeeping easier and Your home more comfortable and good-looking.

That said, here are 3 very good reasons to only shop for luxury linens:

1. More comfort makes You feel better

High quality bedding can make a big impact on how well you sleep at night. Soft-as-butter snuggly sheets will greatly enhance you sleeping habits and cuddle you lovingly all night long. You will wake up feeling refreshed and rejuvenated with the right mood to start a new day.

Just like having at hand plush towels and bathrobes can set you up for a true spa experience every time you step into your bathroom.

2. Make your Home beautiful

Linens are a great accent to enhance your interior decor.

Much of the focus in your bedroom is on the bed itself and you can spruce up the whole room with a fabulous bedding ensemble and a vibrant quilted coverlet to match. Make your bedroom a special place to get away from it all!

You can easily revamp your bathroom as well, with just some attractive towels hanging on your rack or neatly folded and piled on the vanity top.

As a perfectly well dressed table with a great looking tablecloth and matching napkins will make a stunning dining room to really enchant your guests.

3. Get more value for your money

Household Linens are heavy-duty stuff subject to a hard physical stress in their daily usage as well as in their maintenance/care.  Beside being used on a daily basis your linens should be machine washed, tumble dried and ironed over and over again.  Quality is really a top priority if you don’t want them to be piling and look worn right after the first wash. 

When you take into account the fact that high quality linens are so well made that they last for a decade or more , you can see that luxury linens is always a worthwhile investment, especially when you also consider that poor quality goods can easily wear out after 3 washings or less.

That makes quite clear that even if it costs more to buy luxury linens you will have more bang for your bucks later on. It’s a high R.O.I. investment that will pay you back again and again with spectacular comfort for years to come.

Luxury Linens is an Investment to improve the Quality of Your life.

Trading down here is definitely not a good option!

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Luxury Bedding : Egyptian cotton sateen or Pima cotton percale?

When choosing for some new luxury linens one of  the very first thing to consider should be the type of weave of the fabric. This is the actual way each and every single thread is woven into a fabric fine texture. It is an often overlooked feature that can make a big difference on the way made up luxury bedding products look and feel.

Percale and Sateen weaves are the most common type of weaves  and are the two main options  available in the luxury linens market.

Sateen weave add luster and drape to luxury bedding  for a soft silky hand. The fabric has a lustrous and smooth surface, with a luminous sheen, while the back side shows  a slightly rugged texture.

Percale is a plain weave with a matte finish and a supple lofty hand. Percale cotton luxury linens are light and crisp yet incredibly soft. Both the top and back sides of the fabric look and feel exactly the same showing a textured surface.

The choice depends basically on the individual preference for luxury bedding  with a soft-as-silk touch and a luminous shine or rather a crisp hand with a matte surface.  Percale fabric is also lighter in weight and more breathable making it suitable for the summertime or the hot climate. Sateen is usually a little thicker and more tightly woven showing the highest thread counts. 

While 100% cotton luxury bedding is mostly recommended for the understated quality of a natural fiber, still not all cottons are created equal.

Among the finest quality available worldwide are Egyptian cotton, mostly woven into Sateen, and Pima cotton for Percale weave.

Egypt produces the best quality, longest fiber and most valued raw cotton worldwide. It is grown and hand harvested along the fertile banks of the Nile river delta where unique climatic conditions give rise to the finest long staple and extra long staple cotton fibers that are woven into world’s softest luxury linens.

Sea Island or American Pima cotton is a very strong, high-grade, long staple cotton quality developed from selected Egyptian cotton crops in the southwest of the United States. Because of the fineness of Pima cotton, more fibers can be spun into a yarn of a given count, which will enhance the feel, softness, drape and brilliance of a luxury bedding fabric. It is named after Pima County in southern Arizona, location of the experimental farm on which it was developed in the early 1900s. It now accounts for only 3% of US annual cotton production and is mainly cultivated in the San Joaquin Valley, California.

There’s not really one best choice in luxury bedding between Sateen or Percale as it is left to the personal preference of the individual shopper. It’s  important here to be aware of the substantial difference among  the two types of weave to get the maximum return on the investment in high quality luxury linens.

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Egyptian Cotton Sheets : Truth & Lies about World's finest Luxury Linens

Posted on 5th March 2010 in Egyptian cotton sheets, General: Luxury Linens

When it comes to Luxury Linens the first thought that pops up in everyone’s mind is “high thread count Egyptian cotton sheets”.
That’s for a good reason as Egyptian cotton is indeed world’s finest cotton quality available. There are some truly unique technical specs that set Egyptian cotton apart from other natural fibers:
- The humid conditions and rich soil in Egypt along the Nile River banks create the perfect conditions to grow long cotton fibers (also known as staples).
- The staples of Egyptian cotton can range from 1 1/2 inches to 2 1/4 inches. Their long length is about twice the size of other cotton fibers.
- The length of the fiber makes it possible to spin the finest yarns without sacrificing the strength of the yarn itself.
- The strength of the fiber makes fabrics more durable and resistant to stress.
- Its ability to absorb liquids gives Egyptian cotton sheets deeper, brighter and more resistant colors.
- The yarns are smooth and lustrous and the softness of the woven fabric feels like nothing else, crafted in world’s finest luxury linens.
- Egyptian cotton is hand picked which guarantees the highest levels of purity. In addition, hand picking puts no stress on the fibers – as opposed to mechanical picking – leaving the fibers straight and intact.
- The particular care in terms of the cultivation process, and the hand harvesting, ensures that the cotton is perfectly clean at every stage of the growth cycle. The cotton is gathered by hand at 5 specific stages of its life in order to select only fully ripe seeds. This meticulousness yields a perfect quality yarn: its long and ripe fibers give exceptionally soft and silky luxury linens with a truly outstanding quality.
All these factors have resulted in Egyptian cotton being by far the best cotton in the world. Fabrics made of Egyptian Cotton are softer, finer, last longer than any other cotton in the world and are crafted into exquisite luxury linens.
If all this is true for sure about Egyptian cotton sheets, there is also a dark side of misleading information (a.k.a. lies) that should be properly taken into account before making any luxury linens purchasing decision:
- “Made in Egypt” bed linens does not mean Egyptian cotton sheets. On the contrary most of the Egyptian made bedding products are not likely to be made of Egyptian cotton at all since premium Egyptian cotton fibers are available in scarce quantity and grown in small lots for export use only.
- Egyptian cotton, due to its high cost, is often mixed and woven with lower cotton qualities that somehow undermine all of its fabulous characteristics. More often Egyptian cotton is only used in a very small percentage not clearly specified on products label. Only true 100% Egyptian cotton sheets would deliver those great benefits making really outstanding luxury linens.
- Egyptian cotton is not directly related to very high thread count as 1000TC and above. It is true on one hand that only very fine gauge yarn such as Extra long staple Egyptian cotton fibers can be tightly woven into high thread count luxury linens fabrics. Still on the other hand such densely woven fabrics may result in heavy and thick bed sheets while a lighter and more breathable texture could be more comfortable. Usually 300TC and 400TC Egyptian cotton sheets are finer and softer than many other super high thread count luxury linens.
- It can be misleading to evaluate Egyptian Cotton luxury linens just by touching and feeling a sample cloth of fabric in a store as there are many other cotton qualities that can be nice and soft as well (such as Pima). Egyptian cotton though deploys most of its great characteristics in the long run after year of use and endless washings. It even gets smoother and softer with time while the other linens just get ripped off and must be thrown away.
- Egyptian cotton luxury linens are expensive. It costs money to achieve the greatest quality and that’s what a higher price tag stands for.
In the end luxury linens shall be considered as any other investment in durable assets. The R.O.I. will outstrip the initial cost with spectacular comfort for years to come.
Egyptian cotton sheets are luxury linens perfection!

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Does Thread Count really count?

Posted on 12th November 2009 in How to choose bed linens, Scams Alert

Thread count is the most widely used indicator for quality of fine fabrics. That’s for a good reason. It is a concise, straightforward figure that give you a reliable quality grade.

Thread Count is still pretty good to give you a rough idea of quality yet it is not enough in itself to determine a purchasing decision.

Many other factors  should be taken into account such as raw cotton origin, gauge of spun yarns, weaving techniques and quality of all the necessary finishing processes to get fabrics ready for manufacturing. Learn more about luxury linens quality.

In general higher thread counts are achieved spinning premium long staple raw cotton fibers into the finest cotton yarns then woven in outstanding quality fabrics. Sounds good right?

Still very often a high thread count is achieved weaving thick yarns made out of impure raw cotton fibers resulting in a heavyweight, rough, pilling likely fabric. Definitely a poor quality.

For an easy reference when it comes to choose your bed linens :

Below 180TC is poor quality > It can be even uncomfortable –  I suggest to avoid this.

180TC to 300TC is good quality > Best choice for value bedding.

300TC to 500TC is luxury quality > Verify cotton quality. It should be only Long staple Egyptian or Pima cotton.

500TC to 700TC  is superior luxury quality > Verify cotton quality as it can only be made out of Extra Long staple Egyptian cotton yarns. Verify country of production as only premium manufacturing countries such as Italy, France and Germany have developed state of the art technology to weave such fine fabrics.

More than 700TC > It’s a waste of money as price grow exponentially for such a high thread count and quality performance is not really improving. This is the range of thread count where we see the highest scam density.  Be very careful before purchasing bed linens in this thread count range especially when it goes over 1000TC. You should only purchase this linens from reputable, well known vendors that give you full guarantees  or risk to get hurt.

Those are the only real information you can gather  from thread count figures. We assume of course that thread count listed in the product features is true and honest. It might not always be the case but that’s  just another story. it’s consumer fraud!

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Hello world!

Posted on 21st September 2009 in General: Luxury Linens

Please see “About” and “What’s in it for me” pages fo more information.

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