How often should you need to replace sheets?

tongue in cheek…depends on how you use them :D

I am assuming you are talking about Bed linen..

It also depends on so many variables. What is there quality, what they are made of (silk, cotton, count, with or without bondage straps), how often do you wash them, do you dry them in a dryer or on a line, even what detergent can have an affect.

I have about 4 sets, I rotate them and wash them about once a week. I usually get a set a year. But thats me.

Once a month?

I buy the high quality cotton sheets (like 400+ count) and they last me for years. The only time I have to replace them is when the elastic on the fitted sheet starts to go and/or if they rip or get damaged.

If they start getting those little balls of fabric on them, pitch them. I only buy the high quality sheets like @MissAnthrope does, so they last a long time.

You’re talking about buying new bedsheets, I presume, and not simply changing them for use.

I rotate several sets and have been using some of the same ones for years and years. My favorite set is more than 20 years old and still smooth and strong. I’ve really had only one fitted sheet wear out in all that time—get so thin and threadbare that it tore—and I think it was weakened by a bleach spill. None of them ever get little fabric pills on them.

@MissAnthrope @chyna @Jeruba Do you have any brands or exact products you’d care to share?

Sheets at JC Penneys These are the last ones I bought about 5 years ago. They have held up well for me.

@chyna Are they soft?

Yes. Actually, I think they feel silky.

@chyna Fabulous! They look quite nice.

@papayalily – I usually get mine at TJ Maxx. They generally have good stuff there. I also keep an eye out for Target, as they have high-count sheets now and sometimes they go on sale or clearance.

My mom has gotten me a couple sets, as well, and I didn’t pay attention to the brand name. My current set is Calvin Klein and I love them. They feel luxurious, like quality, just the right weight and softness.

I like these “watercolor” sheet sets very much and have them in several colors, which I mix and match for fun, variety, season, and mood. Blue and silver look very cool on a summer’s night; orange and ochre (not shown here) warm up a chilly one.

A word of caution, though: the ones I bought recently are different from my much older ones in two ways, even though the brand name is the same. First, the fitted bottom sheet is no longer so fitted but much more like a big bag with elasticized edges, hard to snug up and even hard to fold. Second, the deeper colors are now thick and stiff as if with a heavy layer of paint. They feel more like canvas than cotton, don’t breathe so well, and don’t soften up with several washings. I’m not quite so well satisfied any more.

I buy sheets by thread count and not brand. 300 thread count is great. I have at least one set of Nautica sheets that are 10 years old, and still good. Generally, they get torn up by toenails that need trimming.

We’re harder on towels. I buy Egyptian cotton from Bed Bath & Beyond; they have great $5 towels. 15 bath towels will set you back $75.

Replace…
Can you see the Mattress Pad or Mattress?

I would say not very often. I don’t have scientific proof, but it seems like most people get new sheets for variety, because they’re tired of their old ones or because something messed them up… not because the sheets they have are actually worn out. In fact, I only have one set of sheets that I bought, and at least three that are second-hand and perfectly good, just old-ish.

I change mine once a week but everyone tells me that this is more often than normal. I have three sets that I use regularly and I have had them for about years now and they are in perfectly good condition. I think you would be able to tell by looking at them when they need replacing.

@Leanne1986 Oh, yeah – I know when they need replacing. It’s just that I’m thinking the frequency with which I’m replacing them means maybe I need to switch to different sheets…