Wal Mart Sheets Last 1 Wash

[mixguy]

Muslin sheets

Growing up, muslin sheets were what my mother bought and they lasted for years!!! At that time we line dried all of our clothes too. I still prefer line dried sheets over tumble dried. You just can get that feeling and smell out of a bottle! Are muslin sheets available anymore? Their thread count was low but the threads were also thicker. When did they fall out of "fashion?" I remember "fancy" sheets (prints, stripes, etc.) being called "percale." Then did these terms fall out of favor to now be rated by thread count? I realize that a higher thread count, the more durable the material is supposed to be. Reading some earlier posts, I see that the source of cotton makes a difference as well. Anyone care to give me a brief lesson so that I may be a smarter consumer in the future.

 

[mixguy]

WalMart Quality

Well this situation just confirms that most of WalMarts "soft lines" are "factory seconds" and are not first rate. Many manufacturers have different grades. Don't expect an Arrow or VanHusen shirt sold at WalMart to be of the same quality sold at Macy's. We're also seeing that quality control and standards are not as good as they used to be. Yet we hear about so many technological advances. I suspect it boils down to profits and sales (the almighty inflated dollar). As more and more of our manufacturers seek out cheaper labor, the quality of the goods they produce seems to decline. I don't generally make blanket statements like this. If anyone knows differently, I'm sure they will respond.

 

[launderess]

One still sees "percale" used to describe bed linens.

Muslin is up to 144 threads per square inch
Percale is around 145 to 300 threads per square inch

Muslin wears long and better than percale because the former has a lower thread count per inch, those threads are thicker. This is also why good muslin sheets are very heavy.

Polyester cotton blends have replaced muslin in the low end of bed linens within the United States, and probably elsewhere as well. Though one still can find muslin linens in Europe.

What also did good heavy muslin linens in was the move of housewives, and insitutions away from ironing linens. Muslin linens simply do not look nor feel the same unless they are ironed.

You'd be surprised the prices people pay for vintage Pequot and Wamsutta "Supercale" linens. They simply do not make linens like that anymore, and would put Wamsutta's Supercale up against any high tread count sheeting from Asia or Europe sold today. What is interesting is both products come with laundering directions calling for washing in HOT water and using all the LCB one wishes. Housewives in those days didn't fool around and it was deemed a sign of slovenly housekeeping not to have white freshly ironed linens. Starch optional.

However am here to tell you, both Pequot and Wamsutta require lots of ironing, which explains all those ironers that were sold until the "wash and wear" craze took hold.

L.

 

[launderess]

Oh yes,

Muslin linens did come in colours,embroidered and with trim like percale. It was just that since women were buying muslin to "save", there may not have been a huge market for the fancy type do to cost. Have a lovely set of Pequot that has emboridery and Maderia cutwork in my stash, waiting to be restored.

Speaking of old linens, does anyone remember clothes and other items made from feedsack? Some of the best cloth ever produced in the United States held sugar, corn, feed, and such! *LOL* Sadly as textile production shut down in the States, the looms and equipment was either scrapped or sold off overseas. In the case of feedsack cloth, much of that equipment went to India.

L.

 

[panthera]

hath september...

Take a look at the this screen shot - I wonder if this is an artifact of my system or just another little clue that Sam's world really is bewitched...

 

[exploder3211]

confused

 

[panthera]

...april....June and november

ah, chad, didn't mean to confuse anybody. my system time shows Rex entry as on June 31, 2007. I thought that was kinda cute, cause the last time I saw that date was in a book on magic.
cute hunk of a clue-less guy in modern day london gets hit on the head and wakes up in ye olde londanum with dragons, knights, damsels in distress...and all on the 31 june...

wonder who else has seen a 31 june? post if you have!

 

[DADoES]

Happens occasionally when a month rolls over ... due to how post date/time is calculated and stamped. Known glitch, not important enough for Robert to spend time reprogramming for it.

 

[panthera]

Glenn,

Of course it's not worth worry about... - I just thought it was funny.