Microfiber sheets

Don't have 'em, but I do have some pieces of microfiber that came with things like my monitor cleaner. I hate the stuff. My hands aren't particularly rough - I don't "do" hard labor. But the microfiber catches on invisible roughness on my hands and I hate the feel of that. YMMV.

Am totally old school when it comes to bed linen; sheets are all flat, made from either metis, linen or vintage muslin or percale.

Candide

"[...] 100% brushed polyester microfiber..."

Run away! I don't mind a small amount of poly in sheets, but 100%??? And, brushed??? Eeek! As well, what is the problem with deep pocket-sheets on a standard mattress? Seems to me the excess would just draw in under the mattress, and keep things tucked in better. Much better than the alternative.

Beverly

Thanks everybody! I hadn't heard of microfiber sheets either and knew I wanted some input before I bought these (buy it now, auction). I've got some of those microfiber cleaning cloths and know they are doing some upholstery in the stuff now, but hadn't heard of sheets. They're awfully pretty, but I'll have to pass.

Thanks again!

I've got two sets of the deep pocket sheets and one I have altered the

The only thing "microfiber" says is that whatever the fiber is making up the yarn, it's smaller in diameter than silk fibers -- less than 1 denier. Could be polyester, nylon, rayon, who knows what. The fabric construction could be a knit or woven.

Most microfiber fabrics are not what I'd enjoy sleeping on... not enough friction to keep the pillow on the bed! On the other hand, I've met some very nice microfiber fabrics that I'd probably like as sheets.

Ya pays your money and ya takes your chances on stuff like this...

Kay

Like that guy said to Benjamin Braddock, "I have one word to say to you....... Plastic."

I've never seen any other fabric labeled "microfiber" other than extruded plastic made from petroleum. The word seems to have conveniently replaced the increasingly pejorative "polyester" terminology but still has mostly the same material drawbacks.

Phae

Same here. Microfibre cleaning cloths are billiant for their purpose (cleaning using only water) but they behave as though my hands were made from crunched-up barbed wire.

My hands are soft and smooth and don't experience that from any other fabric or yarn.

Mary

...

Oh the bliss just of the idea of newly laundered linen sheets each night ... ... I really must find that bolt of sheet linen I bought in Ireland some years ago. Trouble is, the damned cotton sheets won't wear out so I can't justify using the linen except on self-indulgent grounds :-)

Mary

There's no reason not to be self-indulgent when it comes to beds and sheets, IMNSHO. A good night's rest is a basic essential, and if sleeping on that linen will help, go for it! Don't leave it until one day when you're gone, because someone will take it out and say, "She always wanted to use this for sheets, but instead she saved it."

You're absolutely right about the first part but I always sleep well - unless we're away from home and the bed is fitted with a poly/cotton sheet. They're the work of the devil! We were very self indulgent a few years ago when we paid about £800 for a new mattress. Spouse was reluctant but he never considers it now. We both reckon that it was worth just one night's good sleep, all the subsequent ones have been free.

No, my reluctance to use the linen sheeting is so that the present cotton sheets aren't wasted, I would lose sleep if I did that. If the linen is still in the loft when we die I know that our 'children' will pounce on it, they'll probably argue over it - they all know something good when they see it :-)

In fact when we buy a tool or equipment for the house these days we always buy the best so that we get good use from it and it won't be thrown away when we die. We know what items our children want, they've made it pretty clear :-) Some 'requests' are duplicated, triplicated and in one case quintuplicated. Then there are the grandchildren, they keep adding to a 'desire' book I keep for the purpose :-)

Mary

Tend to mix things up a bit, but mainly use my vintage Métis and linen (French and Irish) bed linens during the warmer months, with the vintage Pequot muslin and percales (Canon and Wamsutta "Supercale") during the winter. Linen must be very damp, almost wet to iron well, and that just adds to summer misery. Cotton can be ironed barely damp, so am out of the laundry room faster.

Have begun experimenting with cold mangeling linen by hand, and so far must say love the results. It is hard work for small items, but have some vintage mangeltuch (mangelcloths) coming from Germany to make things easier. If all goes well probably will pick up an automatic eclectic kaltmangel machine (cold mangel) from Germany this summer. Linen that has been cold mangeled after laundering, instead of merely ironed feels ssssssssssssssssssooooooooo wonderful. Even better than linen that has been wet ironed dry.

Candide

I can understand that but I enjoy ironing and linen best of all - creating that smoothness, shine even,m is very satisfying. I have two 10' long linen table cloths to iron this afternoon and I'm looking forward to it.

You have a laundry room! I iron in the sitting room, that way I can watch the hens in the garden and listen to the radio.

That sounds very interesting - but again you must have space for it!

Really? Is it shiny?

My grandmother used a mangle for everything except shirt collars and fronts - she had no electricity and in summer had to light a fire to heat the flat irons. Grandad didn't often wear best shirts though, just as well :-) I'd have loved to have her huge mangle but I was only ten when they died and had no say in the matter.

Mary

For us American-born tail-end baby boomers, what is a mangle?

Here is a photo link:

Back to micro-fiber. It is > For us American-born tail-end baby boomers, what is a mangle?

I'm sure they were used in America :-)

One example is here, my grandma's was bigger and had numerous big cast iron gears to increase or decrease the pressure on the wooden rollers.

When we were first married we had one with rubber rollers. In fact it's still in the loft ... We had no washing machine and three babies, it was a long walk to the launderette so hand washing was what I did.

The picture is of one in a museum and, as often happens in museums, they don't think too hard when they include other items. The basket is modern Chinese but a basket wouldn't have been used under the rollers, water would have been squeezed out and drain into a bucket or some other vessel. The clothes pegs wouldn't have been on the drip tray either. These displays are put together by enthusiastic people who've never seen things in their proper context.

But I bet you DO know what a mangle is now, you might have called it something else :-) A wringer perhaps?

You can still get table top models.

I suspect the one mentioned by Candide has heated rollers but it might not. Simple, high, pressure, if the item has been well folded, can remove creases.

Mary

That looks very much like the device that my mother used to ruin all of her pretty new lingerie as a newly wed bride. She called it a wringer-washer - obviously some sort of manual combination washing/shredding device.

She did say that it was useful for removing excess water from sheets and towels prior to trying to dry them on a clothesline in the basement during long, cold, wet winters.

That's the one.

And if you think it's not a good tool you should try washing by hand and having nowhere to hang dripping clothes and bedding and nappies and ...

Mary who never had pretty lingerie but who bought to underwired bras today - the Buying Cruise Clothes project has begun!

snipped-for-privacy@webtv.net a écrit :

I have some microfibre underwear and it's very comfortable, breathes or rather lets my skin breathe and washes well and dries amazingly quickly.

Not sure about bed sheets, the description reminds me of the brushed nylon turquoise one I had as a child. Static build up anyone!

Claire in Montréal France