Loomstead Linen Sheets

This is Highly Recommended, in which one of our editors waxes poetic about an unsexy but dependable consumer good they swear by.

Last year, upon moving from Chicago to Brooklyn, my partner and I decided it was time to join the better sleep counsel and overhaul our bedroom.

First, we bought a Floyd platform bed, a modern frame that’s easy to take apart and put back together again. Then, it was a new mattress from Bedega, a mattress company that doesn’t appear to be around anymore, but think similar to Casper, Tuft & Needle or any of the other bed-in-a-box companies that have come (and, apparently, gone) since.

At some point, they’re all the same, right? We spend a third of our lives sleeping. You want better sleep. You buy something better than the 15-year-old hand-me-down you’ve been sleeping on. Easy.

But though we’ve been enjoying our new snooze sanctuary (don’t forget the white noise machine!), it hadn’t been perfect — at least not until I got a set of linen sheets from an upstart bedding company called Loomstead. Once we spent a few nights swaddled, I knew we had completed our quest for a perfectly made bed.

Loomstead is a California-based company that lives on the fringes of the Internet’s bedding wars. The label has less prestige than splashy names like Brooklinen and Parachute — two brands your correspondent has also tested — but don’t let that fool you. Loomstead is quietly making some of the most comfortable, durable sheets in the game, and they’re doing it in a sustainable and transparent way.

Now laying on our queen-sized bed, Loomstead looks and feels the same as Brooklinen’s linen sheet set. That’s because it basically is: both companies use Belgian flax linen, which is prized for its lived-in look. The main difference, of course, is Loomstead’s sheet set costs $149, while Brooklinen will set you back $249. Granted, you also get a flat sheet, but what are those good for except obnoxiously bunching up at bottom of the bed?

Yet Loomstead is actually more comfortable than Brooklinen. It feels more durable, like it’ll withstand more washes. Plus, our dog seems to like it better. And who doesn’t trust a dog?

As an aside, if you’ve never slept on linen before, you’re really been missing out. Not only is more sustainable than cotton, it adds a nice textural touch to any space. Plus: it’s breathable, light and airy to the touch.

If you, too, are puzzle-piecing together your ideal sleep situation, Loomstead is your best bet. I’d recommend it to anyone looking at a saturated marketplace trying to figure out where to start. Hell, they’re just affordable enough that I might deck out my guest room, too.