Bedding – Buying Guide.

We spend on average 33% of our lives asleep and choosing the right bed and bedding is essential to have sound, refreshing sleep while our bodies repair and renew our internal cells.

A luxury duvet cover or bedspread can transform your room into a haven of class and total luxury instantly. You could either buy colors and designs that impart that look of luxury or you could have bedding that is truly luxurious with superb material and feel.

Silk and satin bedding sets can be extremely luxurious and can make you feel like royalty, whilst vogue materials like faux suede will give you a very contemporary look.  Good bedding may be a little bit dearer but it lasts longer and feels better then cheaper versions.

You can gage the quality of bed linen by its thread count (or the number of threads per square inch). The higher the thread count, the softer and silkier and durable the fabric is. Percale is the name given to any cloth that has a thread count of over 180, and is one of the best materials you can buy. Percale bedding can be made of either polycotton or 100% cotton materials. Egyptian cotton bedding is traditionally thought to be the best cotton bedding because it has the longest fibers. You can not go wrong with Egyptian cotton percale bedding, the Rolls Royce of bedding. You can get Percale and Egyptian Cotton bed linen in single, double, king and super king sizes, all from our Ebay store. 

For single bed, double bed, king size bed and super king size bed sizing dimensions, see our size chart.

 Duvets

Our duvets (also known as quilts) come in a range of tog ratings and fillings so you can pick the right one for warmth and comfort.

Duvets work by trapping warm air, and the higher the tog rating, the more warmth the duvet will provide. The table below will help you decide which tog rating is right for you.

Duvets also come in a synthetic or natural fillings.

Synthetic fillings

Duvets with hollowfibre synthetic fillings are particularly suitable for allergy suffers, and can be washed frequently. They provide all the warmth of natural filled duvets but tend to be slightly heavier. The outers (ie the outside cover) of the duvets are made either out of polycotton or the cheaper corvine material. Be sure to know which outer your duvet is made from, as although the polycotton outers tend to have a slightly higher price point, the quality and comfort they provide is far superior then corvine. High quality polycotton outer duvets can be found in various tog ratings and sizes in our Ebay shop. http://stores.ebay.co.uk/HomeSpaceDirect

Natural fillings.

Naturally filled duvets are soft and light and drape around your body perfectly. The natural fibres also tend to last about 3 times longer then hollowfibre, giving the duvet a lifespan of around 30 years. However, these duvets can not be repeatedly laundered as its ability to trap air will be diminished.  These duvets are also not suitable for allergy suffers.  Avaialble in our Ebay shop. http://stores.ebay.co.uk/HomeSpaceDirect

Buying Bed Sheets

From the wide variety of bedding available, be sure to choose the right size for your bed.

Sheets come in either fitted, flat, base valance or fitted valance. 

Flat sheets can be used to cover the mattress and be tucked under the double bed mattress.

Fitted sheets on the other hand fit over your mattress and usually have elasticated ends, to fit snugly round the mattress and keep the sheet in place. When shopping for fitted sheets, also look at pocket depth and elasticity. To find pocket depth, measure from the highest point on the mattress, including the mattress pad and any additional bedding you may use under your sheets, to the bottom edge of the mattress.

Similarly, fitted valance sheets fit snuggly round the mattress but have and extra length of material known as a frill. This covers the base of your bed, helping to cover either un-slightly marks or aging mattresses. A base valance however, fits under your mattress, and on-top of your base. Similar to the fitted valance, the frill covers the base of the bed, although you will need a fitted or flat sheet for the mattress itself.

Thread Counts

Thread count, the number of threads per square inch, determines the quality of a sheet. Generally, sheets with high thread counts have a durable, lustrous, and soft fabric that gets softer over time. They are also less prone to shrinkage than lower thread count sheets. Low thread count sheets, though less expensive, have a rougher feel and are more likely to wear through. 68 pick sheets and Percale sheets have high thread counts and are probably the best polycotton sheets you can buy. These sheets can be found in our Ebay store, in single, double, king and super king sizes.  http://stores.ebay.co.uk/HomeSpaceDirect

Fabrics

Each fabric commonly used to make sheets has its own merits.

• Combed cotton sheets undergo a cleaning process to eliminate impurities and short, less desirable fibers. The process results in a soft, smooth fabric.     
• Percale sheets offer a smooth, flat, and closely-woven fabric, finer than muslin and usually found in sheets with a thread count of 180 to 200. Percale sheets can be found in 100-percent cotton or 50/50 cotton/poly blends.    
• Egyptian cotton sheets: Highly durable, lustrous, and silky usually have a thread count above 200. The most desired of all bedding fabrics, Egyptian cotton is made of extra-long fiber staples grown along the Nile River. Available in various colours and sizes in our Ebay store. http://stores.ebay.co.uk/HomeSpaceDirect