By Jackie Reeve
Jackie Reeve is a writer covering all things bedding. She has also reported on towels, rugs, and chicken coops (with help from her 20 backyard pets).
If you’re a hot sleeper, if you like a little texture to your sheets, or if you love linen clothing, you might love linen sheets. Cultiver’s Linen Sheets have been our favorites since 2018.
We’ve researched dozens of linen sheets and tested 25 over the better part of a decade, with the help of both linen lovers and linen skeptics.
Our top pick is comfy for most people, stylish, and pretty durable for a fabric that’s notorious for wearing out quickly.
Everything we recommend
Top pick
These sheets have been our top pick since 2018. They have the best combination of quality, durability, and value of any linen sheets we’ve tested, but they don’t come in full size.
Buying Options
Runner-up
Linen lovers rave about Rough Linen. We found these sheets to be a little grainier, and possibly less durable, than our top pick, but they’re beautifully constructed.
Buying Options
Upgrade pick
These are smoother than our top pick, they wrinkle less, and they’re sold by the piece and dyed to order. But they’re more than twice the price.
Buying Options
Budget pick
Our longstanding budget pick is softer than similarly priced sets, but wrinklier and thinner. It’s not sold by the piece, but it comes in more colors than any of our other picks.
Buying Options
Top pick
These sheets have been our top pick since 2018. They have the best combination of quality, durability, and value of any linen sheets we’ve tested, but they don’t come in full size.
Buying Options
Cultiver Linen Sheets have been our top pick since 2018. They’re cool to sleep on, they drape beautifully, and they’re one of the softest and most durable sets we’ve tried.
They’re available in more than a dozen solids and stripes and in twin, queen, king, and California-king sizes—but they don’t come in full size.
Linen sheets are pricey, and a queen set from Cultiver costs nearly $400. But you can buy individual pieces or order a swatch before committing, and Cultiver has a 30-day return window (for unused sheets only).
Our five-year-old test set developed some holes in the pillowcases this past year (the pillowcases were the pieces most frequently used and laundered), but this is a common issue for linen sheets. They’re still about as durable as our runner-up pick from Rough Linen and considerably more durable than our budget pick from Pottery Barn (but maybe not our upgrade pick, the Bella Notte sheets). However, like most of our picks, Cultiver doesn’t offer a warranty.
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SKIP ADVERTISEMENTRunner-up
Linen lovers rave about Rough Linen. We found these sheets to be a little grainier, and possibly less durable, than our top pick, but they’re beautifully constructed.
Buying Options
If you want more texture to your linen, we recommend Rough Linen’s Smooth Linen Sheets. They’re not as rough as the brand’s name implies, but they are coarser than any other linen sheets we’ve tested.
We have seen more complaints about their durability than our picks from Cultiver or Bella Notte, and they come in the fewest colors of any of our picks. If you’re not sure whether they’re right for you, the company will send you a free sample card (but you have to pay for shipping).
You can buy these as a set or by the piece, and Rough Linen offers 30-day returns even for used sheets (but like Cultiver, no warranty). They also cost about the same as the Cultiver set.
Upgrade pick
These are smoother than our top pick, they wrinkle less, and they’re sold by the piece and dyed to order. But they’re more than twice the price.
Buying Options
If you can splurge, we recommend Bella Notte’s Linen Sheets. Their luxurious weight and feel made them one of the most popular sets with our testers.
These are the smoothest linen sheets we’ve tried and one of the coolest options on the skin. They’re also less prone to wrinkling, and they come in more colors than the sets from Cultiver and Rough Linen. Every order is custom dyed, and if you want to go full-blown romantic, the company also sells velvet, cotton, and lace accessories that it’ll dye to complement the sheets.
Like Cultiver, the company has a 30-day return window for unused items, but this is our only pick that offers a warranty—three years for manufacturing defects. You can also order swatches before committing. We’ve heard almost no complaints from owners about the durability of these sheets.
Budget pick
Our longstanding budget pick is softer than similarly priced sets, but wrinklier and thinner. It’s not sold by the piece, but it comes in more colors than any of our other picks.
Buying Options
Our favorite budget sheets, Pottery Barn’s Belgian Flax Linen Sheets, are almost as soft as Cultiver’s sheets and cost about $100 less.
The sheets are thinner and stretchier than our other picks, so they may not last as long. They’re available in a staggering 27 colors, far more than any of our other picks. However, they’re the only pick on our list that’s available only as a set, and not as individual pieces—if one sheet rips, you’d have to buy a whole new set.
Pottery Barn offers a 30-day return policy, even for used sheets.
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SKIP ADVERTISEMENTThe research
- Why you should trust us
- Are linen sheets right for you?
- How we picked and tested
- Our pick: Cultiver Linen Sheets
- Runner-up: Rough Linen Smooth Linen Sheets
- Upgrade pick: Bella Notte Linen Sheets
- Budget pick: Pottery Barn Belgian Flax Linen Sheets
- Care and maintenance
- What to look forward to
- The competition
- Sources
Why you should trust us
Senior staff writer Jackie Reeve conducted the most-recent round of testing for this guide. She has 15 years of experience working with textiles as a quilter and quilt designer, and since 2016 she’s written or cowritten almost all of our bedding guides.
Deputy editor Christine Cyr Clisset cowrote our original 2016 guide to linen sheets and wrote our 2018 update. Before becoming deputy editor, she oversaw Wirecutter’s bedding coverage, and she’s a seamstress with decades of experience working with linen and other textiles.
Are linen sheets right for you?
If you like the texture and old-world European charm of linen clothing, you might like linen sheets. They have an airy feel and a casual, rumpled look compared with cotton sheets, but they have some weight to them as well.
The fibers used to make linen come from the stem of the flax plant—the same crop that produces linseed oil (or flaxseed oil, in the case of nutritional supplements). Flax fibers are thicker and longer than those from cotton, which result in thicker yarns. The resulting fabric is rougher than cotton but more breathable (those thick yarns leave a lot of space for air to breeze through). It’s often touted as great sheeting for summer because it’s so breathable, but some of the heavier linens we’ve tested work year-round.
Linen isn’t for everyone. It’s a relatively loose woven fabric with a reputation for developing holes and tears, and even for stretching out (despite the fact that linen fibers themselves tend to shrink in the wash). Linen fibers are actually stronger than cotton, but those breezy air gaps can also provide more opportunities for stretching, snags, holes, and tears. In our testing we’ve generally found that linen sheets need to be replaced more often than cotton sheets (which can be frustrating, because linen costs considerably more).
Also, if you like crisp and cool percale cotton or silky-smooth sateen cotton, linen may feel too grainy or scratchy against your skin. It softens up after many washes, but achieving the same smoothness you get after a couple of washes with good cotton sheets can take years with linen.
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SKIP ADVERTISEMENTHow we picked and tested
![A stack of white and gray linen sheets.](https://cdn.thewirecutter.com/wp-content/media/2023/06/linensheets-2048px-1075.jpg?auto=webp&quality=75&width=1024)
Since 2016 we’ve researched more than 50 sets of linen sheets and tested (and sometimes retested) 25. These are the criteria we prioritized when deciding what to test and what makes a good pick:
- A smooth feel: We wanted to avoid (or rule out) sets that felt prickly or overly rough. Like good cotton sheets, linen sheets soften over many washes, but we wanted to find sets that were comfortable to sleep on out of the box.
- Durability: We wanted sheets that will last for years of regular use. Durability is a concern with most modern linen sheets, so we looked for sets with great reviews and high-quality materials, then we kept testing most of our picks for years to see how they endured.
- A fair price: Linen sheets are a luxury item, so you should expect to pay more for them. Our picks cost between $250 to $900 for a queen set, but our top pick costs around $400.
- Sold by the piece: Because linen sheets tend to tear more easily than cotton sheets, having the option to purchase by the piece is best. Buying by the set saves you money (linen sets are typically cheaper than the individual pieces combined), but having the option to buy individual pieces allows you to easily replace pieces or slowly build a set. You can also mix and match your sheets, as several Wirecutter staffers do, using a linen top sheet and pillowcases paired with a more durable, less expensive percale bottom sheet (such as our favorite from L.L.Bean).
To test linen sheets, we first order fabric swatches or pillowcases for our top contenders, wash and dry them five times to get rid of any softeners or other finishes, and then rub the samples between our hands and against our cheeks (a common test for determining fabric softness) to eliminate the roughest or weakest fabrics. Once we’ve narrowed down our favorite samples, we bring in full sets of those linen sheets for sleep testing.
![A close-up of the linen sheets from (clockwise from left) Cultiver, Pottery Barn, Rough Linen, and Bella Notte.](https://cdn.thewirecutter.com/wp-content/media/2023/06/20230615_LinenSheets_3x2.jpg?auto=webp&quality=75&width=1024)
We measure every set then wash it once, and measure it again to calculate any shrinkage. We examine each set to check for any signs of weakness in the fabric or construction. Then we sleep on each set for a minimum of two nights, paying close attention to how the sheets feel against our skin and how well they regulate body temperature through the night.
We eliminate any that were uncomfortable, then we wash the remaining sets four more times and reevaluate them for feel, construction, and any signs of wear and tear. From there, we determine our picks.
Our pick: Cultiver Linen Sheets
![A stack of white linen sheets from Cultiver.](https://cdn.thewirecutter.com/wp-content/media/2023/06/linensheets-2048px-0331.jpg?auto=webp&quality=75&width=1024)
Top pick
These sheets have been our top pick since 2018. They have the best combination of quality, durability, and value of any linen sheets we’ve tested, but they don’t come in full size.
Buying Options
Cultiver Linen Sheets have been our top pick since 2018. The sheets are made of flax grown in Belgium and France, then woven in Portugal and China.
The fabric is soft, smooth, and cool. Cultiver Linen Sheets are the softest set we recommend, with a light, bouncy feel and fabric that gets rumpled but doesn’t crease or wrinkle. We retested the sheets in summer 2022, and they were still our top choice. They have an ever-so-slightly fuzzy softness; our testers found them less scratchy than most of our other picks. They’re also densely woven and cool on the skin.
But it still feels like linen. If you already think linen is scratchy, these sheets might not change your mind—one of our 2022 testers, who prefers the silky-soft feel of sateen cotton sheets, said they felt like “sandpaper” when he first got into bed. But for fans of the fiber, part of the appeal is that bite on the skin.
Our same tester who found them scratchy at first admitted, after a night’s sleep, “there’s something to these.” He still struggled with the texture, but the sheets kept him cool on a summer night. “I felt snug but not overly hot, and I slept like a baby." In two years of testing, they were the comfiest set to sleep on for most of our testers.
The sheets are well made. The corners are mitered and neatly constructed, and the hems are even along all four sides.
They’re more durable than most linen sheets we’ve tested. One of our former editors, who owned linen sheets from multiple brands, said her Cultiver top sheet was the only one she’s ever used that didn’t develop holes. She also had the coordinating duvet cover we recommend, which got a lot of abuse from her pets and still didn’t develop holes, worn spots, or fraying. They also shrank less than any other linen sheets we tested.
You can buy individual pieces as well as a set. Linen sheets are not cheap—a complete queen set from Cultiver costs almost $400. Cultiver sells the pieces separately too, though, which gives you the option to slowly build a set or replace pieces if they wear out. Rough Linen and Bella Notte also sell by the piece, but Cultiver’s individual pieces are less expensive, as are its sets (and you save some money if you buy by the set).
They come in many colors. As of 2023, Cultiver offers 13 solid colors and three striped prints. That’s more options than the Rough Linen sheets, which are the closest in price. They come in an earth-tone palette of colors and offer a good balance of lights and darks. If you want to look at the colors in person, you can order swatches (which are free, apart from shipping).
Specs:
- Material: 100% European flax (165 grams per square meter)
- Sizes: twin, queen, king, California king
- Care: machine-wash on warm, line dry, or tumble dry on low heat; do not bleach
How the Cultiver sheets have held up
Our original test set is still going after five years of regular use, although our tester told us her pillowcases (which were the most frequently used and laundered) developed holes. Linen is notorious for thinning and tearing, so five years is still a strong sign of durability for the price.
Flaws but not dealbreakers
- We have heard from a few readers that their Cultiver sheets tore within about a year, but we’ve still seen fewer complaints with them than with the Rough Linen and Pottery Barn sheets.
- The texture of the sheets varies between the solid-color options and the natural, striped, and chambray options (such as the sky colorway) because of the dyeing technique (see the slideshow above). We recommend ordering swatches first to make sure you like the feel of the color or print you’re interested in.
- Like Bella Notte, Cultiver’s return policy is only 30 days for unused sheets; unlike Bella Notte, Cultiver doesn’t offer a warranty. Cultiver does promise to rectify any issues with faulty products—we haven’t had reason to test this yet.
- Some readers noted that the sheets shed a lot, too. We haven’t noticed shedding of any kind with our 2018 or 2022 test sets, but we’ll keep an eye on it.
- The sheets aren’t available in full size, and the flat sheet is the same size for queens, kings, and California kings. Jackie tested a king-size set of Cultiver’s linen sheets, and the flat sheet was large enough.
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SKIP ADVERTISEMENTRunner-up: Rough Linen Smooth Linen Sheets
Runner-up
Linen lovers rave about Rough Linen. We found these sheets to be a little grainier, and possibly less durable, than our top pick, but they’re beautifully constructed.
Buying Options
For many linen-lovers, the coarser-than-cotton texture is one of the best things about them. If you prefer a grainier linen that’s a little hefty, Rough Linen’s Smooth Linen Sheets may appeal. The sheets are made of European-grown flax that’s then woven in China; that textile is cut and sewn into sheets in California.
They are pleasantly scratchy and heavy enough to drape well. Rough Linen has a loyal following among linen enthusiasts because of the grainy texture of their fabrics. These sheets have a comfortable drape and weighty feel—they’re thicker than the Cultiver Linen Sheets and more substantial than the Pottery Barn Belgian Flax Linen Sheets.
For one of our deputy editors, this makes them her favorite of all of our picks. She uses the flat sheet year-round (with a cotton fitted sheet), only switching to the Cultiver set in summer because of its wispy weight. “The Rough Linen top sheet feels heavy enough to almost be a very light blanket for summer,” she says.
They’re sold by the piece as well as in sets. Like Cultiver, Rough Linen sells its sheets as single pieces (fitted or flat) as well as sets. In the sets, you can specify if you’d like a combination of fitted and flat sheets or two flat sheets (buying in sets also saves you money). With linen, some people prefer to use two flat sheets, one folded around the mattress with hospital corners. Such a setup means you can rotate the bottom and top sheets for more-even wear, which might help the sheets’ longevity.
Rough Linen has a superior return policy. Like Cultiver, Rough Linen doesn’t offer a warranty, but you can return washed and slept-on sheets within 30 days (Cultiver only accepts unused sheets). The company will also send you a free sample card if you’d like to feel the fabric before buying sheets, but you will need to pay for shipping.
They come in a wide range of sizes and depths. Unlike Cultiver, Rough Linen offers a large variety of sizing for its sheets, including six sizes for its fitted sheet, two depths (standard and deep), and a supersize option for its flat sheets that measures 125 by 125 inches.
Specs:
- Material: 100% European flax (5.6 ounces per square yard)
- Sizes: twin, twin XL, full, queen, king, California king, supersize (for flat sheets only)
- Care: machine-wash with gentle detergent; tumble dry on hot or medium and remove while still slightly damp to reduce wrinkles
How the Rough Linen sheets have held up
One of our deputy editors has been using our original 2018 test set (which included two flat sheets but no fitted sheet) right along our 2018 Cultiver set, and after years of use she says the Rough Linen sheets are her favorites. “If I were to buy a set today, with my own money, I would buy Rough Linen.”
Flaws but not dealbreakers
- Rough Linen’s Simple Linen sheets are less durable than the Cultiver and Bella Notte sheets. We’ve read in several Reddit threads—and heard from our readers and even one of our own staffers—about the sheets developing tears or holes quickly (in one instance it happened after only six months).
- They shrank a bit more than the Cultiver sheets in our wash tests.
- They’re available in only six colors—the fewest choices of our picks.
Upgrade pick: Bella Notte Linen Sheets
![A stack of pink and white linen sheets from Bella Notte.](https://cdn.thewirecutter.com/wp-content/media/2023/06/linensheets-2048px-0303.jpg?auto=webp&quality=75&width=1024)
Upgrade pick
These are smoother than our top pick, they wrinkle less, and they’re sold by the piece and dyed to order. But they’re more than twice the price.
Buying Options
If price is no object and you want the smoothest linen sheets, we recommend Bella Notte Linen Sheets.
As much as we love these sheets, though, they cost more than twice as much as the Cultiver Linen Sheets but are not more than twice the quality. Most people will be more than happy with the Cultiver set, but if you want a wide selection of colors and ultra-smooth sheets that will last a long time (with proper care), Bella Notte sheets may be worth the splurge.
They’re the smoothest linen we’ve tried. The texture of the Bella Notte linen sheets feels almost buttery compared with that of the Cultiver and Rough Linen sheets, and the fabric wrinkles less and has a springy quality that makes it drape more beautifully across the bed.
The sheets have been the favorite of most of our testers since 2018. In our 2022 testing, Jackie’s then-10-year-old daughter (who’s almost an expert herself after a lifetime of helping with Wirecutter’s bedding testing) crawled into bed with these sheets and fell deeply in love. She asked for a set for her twin bed, which almost made Jackie spit out her morning coffee—that would set the family back just over $600.
They’re available in a wide range of colors and dyed to order. As of 2023, these sheets are available in 19 colors—more than Cultiver and Rough Linen—including several bright and cheerful options. That palette of colors is available for almost every product Bella Notte sells, so you can also buy throw pillows, duvet covers, and even a cotton fitted sheet (which we’re testing for our cotton sheets guide) to match. You may want to order swatches to make sure you like the fabric and color before purchasing.
Bella Notte works in small batches with an artisanal dye house, so the company notes that minimal tonal variations may occur because of their unique dyeing process. If you buy Bella Notte sheets at different times or replace a worn out sheet later on, the colors might not be an exact match. They’re made with linen sourced from Asia and Europe (the company doesn’t specify the exact countries of origin), and the sheets are dyed and sewn in California.
They’re the most durable set we recommend—and the only one with a warranty. We’ve heard almost no complaints from readers and staff about durability with Bella Notte linen sheets, and our test set has lasted for around five years of seasonal use.
If you do run into a problem, the Bella Notte sheets are our only pick that comes with a warranty. The company offers three years for manufacturer defects. It has care guidelines for maintaining your sheets, though, and you could void the warranty if you don’t follow them.
Specs:
- Material: 100% linen
- Sizes: fitted sheets come in twin, twin XL, queen, California king, and Eastern King (full fitted sheets available upon request); flat sheets come in twin, queen, and king
- Care: machine-wash cold on gentle cycle; tumble dry on low heat or line dry; do not bleach
How the Bella Notte sheets have held up
One of our senior editors used our 2018 set for several years and said they were lovely—“textured and thick but soft.” She noted that the fitted sheet stretches out over several nights, creating bunched-up fabric, and then a cycle through the dryer would tighten it up again until the next time she slept on it. But she suspected this might be because her mattress is a little shorter than most.
Flaws but not dealbreakers
- The price has increased significantly (about $200 more to assemble a queen set) since we first recommended these sheets in 2016. As with most luxury goods, there’s a point of diminishing returns with the Bella Notte sheets. They’re about 40% more expensive than the Cultiver set, but they’re not 40% softer or better constructed—they’re maybe 5% to 10% softer (and for the significant price bump, there’s no guarantee you’ll get a longer-wearing sheet).
- In our 2022 testing, we noticed some small construction issues—like loose threads around several of the seams after a wash. We’ll continue testing and monitoring for any reader feedback.
- It takes four to six weeks for the sheets to ship because of the custom dye process.
- These sheets stretched a bit in our wash tests, which could speed up the risk of tearing.
- Although Bella Notte does offer a warranty, the return policy is limited—30 days for unused, unwashed sheets.
- Though we generally like it when linen sheets are sold by the piece, having the option of buying a set often lets you save some money. Bella Notte, unlike all our other picks, only sells by the piece.
- Due to its small-batch and dyed-to-order process, the company can’t guarantee an exact color match if you buy their sheets at different times or replace a worn sheet later on.
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SKIP ADVERTISEMENTBudget pick: Pottery Barn Belgian Flax Linen Sheets
![A stack of white linen sheets from Pottery Barn.](https://cdn.thewirecutter.com/wp-content/media/2023/06/linensheets-2048px-0376.jpg?auto=webp&quality=75&width=1024)
Budget pick
Our longstanding budget pick is softer than similarly priced sets, but wrinklier and thinner. It’s not sold by the piece, but it comes in more colors than any of our other picks.
Buying Options
If you’re looking for an entry-level set, we recommend the Pottery Barn Belgian Flax Linen Sheets.
They’re almost as soft as the Cultiver Linen Sheets. The fabric feels thinner and a little flimsier, and the hem finishes on the top sheets aren’t quite as nice, but they do cost about $100 less.
The quality is higher than other linen sheets at this price level. The fabric feels comfortable and better than comparable options from other brands, especially if you want a light set for summer. We tested fabric samples from a number of sets that retail for a similar price—including from Brooklinen, Parachute, L.L.Bean, Garnet Hill, and The Company Store—but we found them either rougher or flimsier than the Pottery Barn sheets. And of the 21 samples we initially tested in 2018—including sets three to four times the price—the Pottery Barn fabric was among the softest and most pleasant against the skin.
They come in the widest range of color options. The Pottery Barn linen sheets are available in 27 colors, by far the most of any of our picks.
They’re frequently on sale. These are the only sheets on our list that we’ve seen regularly discounted. Pottery Barn runs sales often, so if you have your eye on a set, wait for a sale.
Pottery Barn has a better return policy than our top pick. Like Rough Linen, Pottery Barn lets you return the sheets, even if you’ve used (and washed) them, within 30 days. (Cultiver and Bella Notte only accept unwashed sheets.)
Specs:
- Material: 100% Belgian flax linen
- Sizes: full, queen, king, California king
- Care: machine-wash in a warm, gentle cycle; tumble dry on low heat and remove promptly
Flaws but not dealbreakers
- They’re only sold by the set—you can’t buy pieces individually. If one of the sheets wears out, you’ll have to replace everything.
- We have heard from a few readers that these sheets didn’t last, but not enough to make us concerned. We heard far more complaints about West Elm’s linen sheets, which we used to recommend alongside the Pottery Barn linens.
Care and maintenance
It’s always a good idea to follow the care instructions on your sheets, especially if you own Bella Notte sheets, which have a warranty that might be voided if you don’t follow the specific care instructions.
Most sheets we’ve tested, whatever fiber they’re made with, come with recommendations to wash with cold water and tumble dry on low heat. You can wash sheets in warm or even hot water once in a while, although doing this all the time will shrink the linen and possibly cause it to wear out faster.
In the dryer, low to medium heat is the way to go. High heat is quicker, but it will bake the fibers of your linen sheets and possibly damage them. You can also line dry your linens, but minimize sun exposure to avoid uneven fading.
Manufacturers almost universally caution against using bleach because it’s harsh and can degrade the fabric. Some companies (like Bella Notte) even warn against using stain removal products because they might damage the fabric. Others have specific products they recommend for their linen. For most linen sheets—when you’re not worried about the warranty—a stain remover like Shout or Zout is fine.
Some companies strictly advise against using fabric softeners on linen, because a waxy buildup from the softener can inhibit the fabric’s breathability. But if you find that your sheets are particularly scratchy, using a softener every once in a while is not a big deal. A softener acts in a similar way to conditioner that you might use on your hair; using it every few washes shouldn’t create much buildup.
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SKIP ADVERTISEMENTWhat to look forward to
We’re researching new sets of linen sheets to test, including several that readers have recommended or asked us about from Magic Linen, Bed Threads, The Citizenry, and Target’s Casaluna brand.
The competition
This list doesn’t include every linen sheet we’ve tested, but it does include the options that are still available.
West Elm European Flax Linen Sheets: We tested these in 2022, and we think they have replaced our former budget pick and 2016 top pick, West Elm’s Belgian Flax Linen Sheets. (We couldn’t get the company to confirm this suspicion.) We thought the latter was made of the same fabric as our Pottery Barn pick, but the new version felt different (and worse); it isn’t worth buying.
Libeco Santiago Sheets: This brand has a very good reputation among linen lovers, and the swatch we tried felt cool, crisp, and sturdy, but these sheets may be too rough for some people.
Linoto 100% Linen Sheets: We tested five pillowcases from Linoto in multiple colors, and every sample felt really different. Despite this inconsistency, all of them were too thick and scratchy to test further.
Garnet Hill Solid Relaxed Linen Bedding: The pillowcase we tested was average for softness, but after five washes the fabric was heavily creased and wrinkled. The set would probably need ironing to look good on a bed.
Brooklinen Linen Core Sheets: The weave on these sheets was noticeably looser than the competition. We were concerned about their long-term durability, and we’ve heard from readers who own these that they don’t hold up well.
Parachute Linen Sheets: These sheets weren’t very soft, and after five washes they wrinkled a lot.
Cuddledown Italian Linen Sheets: The pillowcase we tested was in the middle of the pack for softness. One of our staffers owned a set of these, and the fitted sheet started tearing and developing holes after six months.
Matteo Vintage Linen Sheets: The fabric was very scratchy—it was one of the least pleasant of the linen samples we tried in 2018.
Hawkins New York Simple Stonewashed Linen Bedding: This was our least favorite of the samples we tried for 2018. It was rough and wrinkly.
This article was edited by Daniela Gorny and Christine Ryan. Additional reporting by Christine Cyr Clisset.
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SKIP ADVERTISEMENTSources
Sara J. Kadolph and Sara B. Marcketti, Textiles, May 19, 2016
Tricia Rose, owner of Rough Linen, phone and email interviews, July 9, 2019
Taylor Batlin, brand director at Bella Notte, email interview, July 18, 2018
Shannon Bean, customer service representative at Cultiver, email interview, July 16, 2018
Meet your guide
Jackie Reeve is a senior staff writer covering bedding, organization, and home goods at Wirecutter since 2015. Previously she was a school librarian, and she’s been a quilter for about 15 years. Her quilt patterns and her other written work have appeared in various publications. She moderates Wirecutter’s staff book club and makes her bed every morning.
Further reading
All the Sheets Wirecutter Recommends
Here’s every set of sheets we recommend, from breezy summer linen to cozy winter flannel, from neutral solids to quirky prints.
The Best Cotton Sheets
We’ve spent more than 600 hours over nearly a decade researching and testing cotton sheets. Here are the best ones we’ve found.
We’ve Loved L.L. Bean Sheets for 9 Years. Here’s Why.
The L.L.Bean cotton percale sheets are a long-standing pick.
The Best Sheets for Hot Sleepers
If you sleep hot in the summer (or any other season), we think high-quality cotton or linen sheets are the best choice for keeping you cool.
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