Bed Linen Buying Guide

Heal's bed linen is available in a variety of high quality fabrics including:

Cotton: From the seed pod of the cotton plant, creates a cool, absorbant and versatile fabric.

Percale Cotton: Usually has a thread count of 200 or over with a noticeably tighter weave than plain cotton cheets. Percale cotton fabric is firm and smooth with no gloss. it is also easy to care for, requiring little or no ironing. It dries more quickly than cotton, which is useful for busy lifestyles.

Egyptian Cotton: The humid conditions and rich soil along the Nile are perfect for growing long cotton fibres. Their length (about twice the size of other cotton fibres) allows them to be spun into very fine yarns. These yarns are soft and lustrous yet are very strong and durable. Another property of Egyptian cotton that makes it high quality is its absorbancy.

Sateen: Sateen is a fabric that has a slight sheen and a soft, luxurious feel. Sateen holds dye extremely well and has a lustrous appearence.

Silk: Naturally hypoallergenic and, being a natural fibre, excellent for keeping warm in the winter and cool in the summer. Silk is also said to be beneficial for your hair and skin.

Linen: A Natural fibre obtained from the flax plant, linen fibres are stronger and more lustrous than cotton. It's also cool and absorbant.

Voile: A Crisp, lightweight, cotton-like fabric, made with high twist yarns that have similar appearence to organze.

The thread count denotes the number of threads per square inch and is a good indicator of the quality of the bed linen. The higher the thread count the softer and more lustrous the fabric. It's also more durable and less prone to shrinkage. The more popular cottons will be around 150TC, while higher quality sheets will start at 180TC. Any bed linen above 200TC provides a more luxurious fabric quality.

Bed linen at Heal's is available in various thread counts, starting from around 180TC and ranging up to 600TC. Premium Egyptian cotton sheets are also available in an 800TC

Duvet Covers

Single Duvet Cover - 135/140 x 200cm

Double Duvet Cover - 200 x 200 cm

King Size Duvet Cover - 230 x 220cm

Super King Size Duvet Cover - 260 x 220cm

Fitted Sheets

Single Sheet - 90 x 190cm

Double Sheet - 135 x 190 cm

King Size Sheet - 150 x 200cm

Continental Sheet - 150 x 200cm

Super King Size Sheet - 180 x 200cm

Flat Sheets

Single Sheet - 180 x 260cm

Double Sheet - 230 x 260 cm

King Size Sheet - 275 x 260cm

Super King Size Sheet - 305 x 260cm

Heal's stocks a range of pillow cases to match different duvet covers. A housewife pillow case is a simple pillowcase where a standard pillow fills all of the fabric. An Oxford pillowcase also fits a standard pillow but has a border or frill around the edges. A Euro pillow case is a larger sized square pillow case.

Housewife - 50 x 75cm

Oxford - 50 x 75cm

Euro - 65 x 65cm

Washing instructions will vary depending on the design and fabric used. Each item will include a label which will advise on washing instructions. As a rule of thumb, bed linen should be ironed while damp or with a steam. Deep colours should be washed together, and ideally the pillowcase and duvet cover should be washed together. To maintain colour use non-optically bright detergent.

A bedroom is so much more than a room with a bed. Add colour and comfort with designer bedlinen from one of the brands available at Heal's:

Designer's Guild: Renowned for it's stunning textiles, offering a wide range of bedlinen, throws, gifts and accessories, Designer's Guild has also expanded into Children's Bedlinen.

Gingerlily: The finest A grade long fibre mulberry silk is used to create Gingerlily duvet covers, pillowcases, sheets, cushions and bedspreads.

Jigsaw: A British company that has been involved in the design, manufacturing and retailing of clothes and accessories for over thirty-five years. They have now extended their range to include homewares and bedding.

Kas: An Australian design and manufacturing company, specialising in fashionable home furnishings that reflect the youthful outlook of its management and designers.

Lisa Stickley: Lisa Stickley combines modern sophistication with un-compromised attention to detail, creating simple and refreshingly contemporary products for you and your home. Her designs have a quintessentially english style.

Marimekko: Cotton and linen fabrics that are printed at Marimekko’s own textile printing factory are the main interior decoration products. The designs are now iconic.

Mary Crisp: Mary Crisp is a textile and graphic designer who trained at the Royal College of Art, London.

Missoni Home: Missoni is known for its multitude of patterns such as stripes, geometrics, and abstract florals, in a kaleidoscope of colours.

Niki Jones: Niki Jones creates beautiful accessories for the home using traditional materials and crafts that have been passed down from generation to generation.

Orla Kiely: Orla Kiely offers an extensive range of women's accessories, home accessories and furniture featuring her bold signature patterns

View the full range of Bedding

View the full range of Bed Linen

Do you have a question? Why not email our Product Advisor at productadvisor@heals.co.uk