Fitted Sheets

[beekeyknee]

I've never had trouble folding fitted sheets.

http://www.nickmom.com/photos/fitted-sheets-with-i-am-not-made-to-be-folded-note/?xid=taboola_nm

 

[frigilux]

That's great! I have only one set of sheets, so folding is never an issue. They go straight from the dryer back onto the bed.

 

[DADoES]

 
I learned to fold fitted sheets when I was 10 years old.  The procedure was explained in the user guide for my grandmother's Whirlpool dryer.

 

[petek]

Why do you need to fold fitted sheets all that well anyways. Once you stretch them over the mattress all the wrinkles disappear and they're covered up regardless LOL

 

[davey7]

Wait, so how DO you fold them? Mine always look awful.

Just glad I don't have to iron 12 foot wide vintage tablecloths like at Chatsworth.

 

[tomturbomatic]

I learned from the instructions on the back of the package of sheets and instructions in an old BH&G or Ladies' Home Urinal. You start with the finished side facing away from you, tuck the corner pockets into each other the first two times you fold which puts all of the fitted pockets in one corner. Smooth the sheet and finish it by folding the pocket with the 4 fitted corners on the inside. It won't look like a folded top sheet, but it doesn't look like a wadded up ball of fabric either.

 

[rp2813]

I've attempted to fold them but unless there's a trick to doing it quickly without spreading the sheet out first, I've gone back to letting them sit in the laundry basket until it's time to change sheets. 

 

If I'm storing them for a long period, such as fleece sheets we don't use during the warm months, I'll make the effort to fold the fitted one properly.  Otherwise my time is too valuable.

 

[liamy1]

Fold a fitted sheet

This may help

 

[norgeway]

I let!

Donald fold them, he worked in department stores for 20 years ,so he can make them look like they were new, I on the other hand make a mess!

 

[tomturbomatic]

Liamy1, excellent video! It shows what I was trying to describe. Thank you.

 

[toploader55]

Oh Tom...

Ladie's Home Urinal

Too Much. ROFLMAO !!!

 

[mich]

I think..

Martha's video, explains it best. Although, seems like the show guest still couldn't figure it out :/

 

[rp2813]

FAIL!

The "Living on a Dime" demo leaves out one important step.

 

After tucking corner #2 into corner #1, our friend Jill slyly transfers the whole hanging mess to the other arm before tucking in the remaining two corners. 

 

She does NOT point this out.

 

Without doing this transfer, the whole process is an epic fail -- at least that was my experience. 

 

The Martha Stewart method does not involve switching arms and it's far more confusing, as the guest clearly demonstrates.  I ended up with a sheet that looked like hers -- with three attempts.

 

I'd like to see both of these women go through the process with a king size sheet like mine and see what sort of a time they have with it.

 

After reviewing the first demo and catching Jill's serious omission, I'm heading back downstairs to try it again.

 

If that nonsense doesn't work, I'm going with this guy's routine:

 

 

 

[rp2813]

Tried it again switching arms and still ended up with a tangled uneven mess.

 

This is the wrong time to be trying this.  I'm on Prednisone for five days due to a bronchial issue, and as a result have zero patience for BS.

 

Regardless, I'll not be attempting this again.  The 30-second guy wins.

 

[danemodsandy]

This is All Very Well, But....

I learned to fold fitted sheets several eons ago. My issue with fitted sheets is a bit different:

They don't fit any more. Mattresses are all sorts of different thicknesses nowadays, and sheet makers make all sorts of different skirt depths to fit them, and there is evidently no standardized system to point out what fits what. Even worse, mass-market retailers sell sheets with an "average" skirt depth (the part that goes down the side of the mattress and tucks under it), which means they sorta fit everything, but not really.

Back when dinosaurs roamed the Earth, mattresses were all pretty much the same depth, and contour sheets were all capable of fitting them. Now, nothing really fits anything.

This is progress?

 

[frigilux]

How to fold fitted sheets:

 

[ptcruiser51]

Thank you Sandy!

I thought I was the only one who noticed this major linen infraction!

When I moved to FL I ditched all my old sheets and bought new. Did the same with my matresses. NOTHING I bought fits correctly. Other than duct-taping the corners to the mattress, I don't have any solutions.

As for fitted-folding, just do what my OL and aunt used to do. Put them over the bed. Which should be already made-up with your chenille or matelasse' bedspread. Straighten the sides and corners, then just fold nice. Done. Wrestling with linens makes no sense; there are more important things to do. Like ironing your dinner napkins.

 

[logixx]

Okay, I'm 30... on a Friday night... and I'm standing in front of my computer folding sheets like Martha. What's wrong with me?! LOL

I did get it to work, though, and it looks much better than just balling them up and tossing them on the highest shelf in the closet. Found some underwear in on of the sheets as well. Win/win!

 

 

[dustin92]

I half heartedly fold the fitted sheet, fold the pillowcases and stack them on top of the fitted sheet, then, neatly fold the top sheet but leave it long, then fold the top sheet around the fitted sheet and pillowcases. It usually looks fairly neat and keeps everything together.

 

[whirlcool]

My wife can do fitted sheets ok, I'm a mess at it. What usually happens is that even though I am 73 inches tall, I end up dragging half the sheet along the floor trying to get it to go together properly. And to me if you are dragging something along the floor, it's really no longer clean even though the floors are.

Since this house is so small, we don't have a folding area, and we don't have a linen closet. So whatever you fold is done as it is coming out from the dryer. Sometimes it works for me, most of the time I leave this to Karen.

 

[yogitunes]

I have always been taught to fold fitted sheets like in Martha's video....

I find an extra tip when having several sets of sheets, fold the fitted and flat sheet, and one pillow case, stacking one on top of the other, and using the last pillow case as a pouch, stuff all inside and tuck under as I place them on the shelf.....

this just saves time to grab a complete set of matched pieces, without searching for all the individual pieces....also seperate by bed sizes on shelves, single on the bottom, full on the next shelf, king on the top...

they are also stuffed into a pillow case as I remove from each bed, keeping everything together until ready to wash, so as nothing gets lost...

as I start to replace worn ones, I find it easier to buy and seperate by solid color......twin=white, full=tan, king=black.....at a quick glance you quickly know which belongs to which bedroom.....

this also works for towels, rather than run room to room to keep an ample supply, whites go in the main level bathroom, black/cream goes in the master bath, and sage/tan goes in the lower level bathroom....each one has equal amounts...

 

[toploader55]

Perfect Eugene.

I'm going to invite Justin Over when I launder sheets.

And That's That. Problem Solved

 

[westie2]

Here another 30 second way to fold a fitted sheet. Not hard on the eyes either.

 

[tomturbomatic]

Why did you get rid of your sheets when you got the FL?

 

[NYCWriter]

Sandy ...

... AMEN!

I still have an old "standard" depth mattress but the new sheets seem to be way too big.

 

[rp2813]

Agreed about fitted not exactly fitting anymore.

 

It's not always evident on the packaging that you're about to buy the deep dish variety.

 

[ptcruiser51]

@ TomTurbomatic

Re: Why did I trash all my sheets when I moved?

All of them were 20+ years old and had seen better days. I used to have a love life years ago(ahem), if you get my drift.

Also, I suffer from the misery of psoriasis. Repeated bleachings and harsh detergents are really tough on fabrics. That's the reason I wear a lot of black.

When I moved I got rid of all my furniture except for four sentimental pieces that I loved. Bought everything new, because the FL "look" is quite different from the Northeast.

But again, everything I bought in linens doesn't fit right. Except for one set that my sister gave me as a house gift. She bought them at Macy*s in NJ and gave me upon my departure. Perfect fit.

I think this is just like the 45/LP/Cassette/CD/DVD debacle that's been foisted upon us: I promise to buy whatever they deem will be the "last" thing they'll invent. In the meantime, my 1958 '45 of "At The Hop" on ABC-Paramount sounds just as good as the first time I played it. Thank you very much.

 

[rp2813]

Both Systems SUCK

Maybe if you own twin size sheets this works, but with king size it's a different story.

 

My arms got tired trying again tonight, and all I got was twisted mess. 

 

The only thing that works for me -- when I want to bother -- is to lay the whole sheet out on the bed, get the corners out and let the elastic edges fold inward,  then you have a square sheet to work with and fold easily.

 

I think the guest on Martha Stewart proved that the demonstrated method is not easy to follow.  They should mark or tag the corners and number them, with tags or marks positioned so that all are facing either upward or downward when correctly placed/tucked on your arm.  Then it might make sense, and as a result become instinctive.  Otherwise, it's a complete waste of time.

 

[launderess]

Another Fitted Sheet Problem Solved

Have perhaps only three or four fitted sheets, and even those were found at a good price (there was a local Williams-Sonoma outlet in our area), everything else in my vast linen store are flat sheets.

Having been involved with nursing you learn how to make beds with flat sheets and appreciate their value. For mostly long as one has been keeping house that is really only what is purchased.

Whomever invented fitted sheets ought to have been shot! *LOL*

The things ball up in front loading washing machines with pillow slips and cause all sorts of problem. Ironing contour sheets even on an ironer or press is much more difficult than flats. Worse are the ones with elastic all way round, even folding such sheets is a royal pain.

Regarding "deep" fitted sheets. Linen manufacturers have had no choice but to respond to changes in American mattress sizes. More and more households purchase those deep mattresses and then pile pillow top layers, pads, feather beds, etc... on and above. By the time things are done you've got one very deep mattress.

 

[rp2813]

I always make "hospital corners" when I put new linens on the bed.  Considering the balling up that L. described above,  which is far worse in the dryer than in the washer, I may start buying items separately so I can get two flat sheets.