“I tend to prefer linen sheets because they're breathable and cooler overall than cotton,” she says. “I also love the crisp, clean look.” Cushner agrees that linen is the most breathable of bedding materials but admits it is often pricier than cotton and can feel a little rougher at first.
Percale sheets tend to be cool and crisp, and of the dozens of sets we've tried, L.L.Bean's 280-Thread-Count Pima Cotton Percale Sheet Set are our favorite. They're soft and breathable, yet more durable than others we've tested.
Percale is a cotton fabric with a basic weave that feels light and airy. It's best for hot sleepers who want more breathability or those who prefer a crisp feel.
Bedding made from bamboo, eucalyptus, linen, or even cotton with a percale finish has natural cooling properties that will help hot sleepers stay cool and everyone else sleep well during hot weather. Just as you may flip your pillow to the fresh side, these cooling bed sheets will feel crisp to the touch.
Coolest Temperature
Crisp, percale cotton sheets are the best sheets for hot sleepers. They're a common choice for hotels and guesthouses, thanks to their fresh feel and cooling properties. And you, too, can enjoy a hotel quality of sleep with these cool, white percale cotton sheet sets.
For people who get hot during sleep, choosing sheets made of bamboo, cotton, or linen — breathable fabrics that wick away moisture from the body and help maintain a comfortable temperature — can help.
If you like sheets that feel a bit starched and crisp against your skin, percale may be just right. Long-staple cotton is used to produce high-quality percale sheets, and a thread count range above 200 is a good rule of thumb to use when shopping for this fabric.
So, what makes hotel sheets so crisp? Their secret is to use premium quality cotton with a high thread count. The combination cools the sheets, making them feel different to the hotter, low-quality sheets you may have at home.
Percale's one under, one over structure (see image) has better air permeability, or breathability, than sateen. This makes the percale weave ideal for hot summer months. If you sleep with a foot hanging out of bed, or are often hot at night, you're a prime candidate for the cool and crisp percale weave.
Percale sheets use a one-over-one-under weave that gives them their classic crisp, smooth feel. Most percale sheets have a thread count of at least 200, so the weave is fairly tight. However, percale is still highly breathable. In fact, it is often considered the best type of sheet for people who tend to sleep hot.
Hotel buyers in the know most often choose percale sheets over sateen or other weaves. Hotels want white. White sheets are bright, clean-looking, and give a feeling of newness, even though they may have been laundered multiple times. Hotels don't want patterns, colors, or designs that may fade or stain easily.
The breathability and wicking properties of the bamboo fabric will keep your bed feeling cool and fresh all night long. In terms of cotton sheets, percale sheets tend to have the coolest feeling while jersey sheets tend to trap heat.
Percale: A smooth, flat, closely woven and combed fabric that comes in 100 percent cotton or 50/50 cotton/poly blends. Finer than muslin, expect thread counts here to range from 180 to 200. Pima or Supima: A high-quality cotton whose long fiber staple is somewhat similar to that of Egyptian cotton.
The difference between the two terms is that one refers to the actual material, that is, cotton. Percale is the style or design of weaving that makes the material strong. Percale is not only used as a term for Egyptian cotton. There are other types of cotton that are woven in the same way.
Durability – Viscose from bamboo fabric is known for its durability. It is less likely to pill with use, especially if you take proper care of your bedding. Meanwhile, Egyptian cotton is also easy to take care of, much like regular cotton, but tends to wear out faster than bedding made of bamboo viscose.
Less threads means less cotton, and less cotton often means better quality for the same money. The resulting sheet is usually finer, crisper and cooler to sleep in (like ours) hence 'cool and crisp'. Cool and crisp sheets aren't soft/thick/hot like the high thread count sateen sheets found in retail stores.
Percale fabric is lighter in weight and more breathable making it perfect for summertime or warmer climates. Sateen sheets are woven to create a silky smooth surface with a luminous sheen and is known for its luster and drape. Sateen is usually a little thicker and more tightly woven.
White colour is used because it does not hide any stain. Hence, the guests remain alert while eating on the bed of their hotel room or doing any other activities right there. They can avoid being careless while using the bed. Since white does not hide stains, white coloured bedsheets are easy to clean.
Among the most popular selections you can make, Egyptian cotton sheets utilize long cotton fibers to produce a luxurious bedding fabric. Percale describes the weave of the fabric and can actually be used in Egyptian cotton sheets to create a durable material that will last through several washings.
The 300-thread-count sheets are made from 100 percent cotton and feel cool and crisp to the touch.
Quality, comfortable sheets can be found with thread counts ranging from 200 to 800 and beyond. There's no magic number that is the perfect thread count. That being said, there are generally acceptable ranges for various kinds of quality sheets. At a minimum, look for sheets with an advertised thread count of 200.
Fabrics like TENCEL™, bamboo, and cotton can do wonders for your nighttime temperature, especially those with a low thread count around 180 to 280 and grid weaves for breathable construction.