Your Bedsheets and These Changing Times: A Poll

And please include a photo of said sheets taken under a blacklight.

Closer to 22-30 days cuz I live alone. I washed and changed them yesterday.

i used to do this weekly. rather less frequently now that i have to go to a laundromat

For a while now we have had a housekeeper who comes bi-weekly and changes the sheets. Now that I am soon to be unemployed, I will be doing this myself. On about the same schedule.

Clean sheets feel so nice.

I recognize that for many of us, revealing this sort of intimate information, apart from the anonymity of a bare vote, silently cast, would be far too embarassing. So, feel free to just vote and then skulk away under cover of darkness. It's what all the best ilxors are doing even as you read this.

But discussion is ok, too.

John Hodgman said something about people with dark sheets being filthy slobs who never wash their sheets, and I felt the shame of self-recognition.

i love clean sheets but i don't mind dirty sheets so much, depends on how they're dirty, my own dander is ok, poo stains are not.

if i feel like i could use them to sand down a piece of furniture that needs to be repainted it's probably time

really love this thread title btw

In those rare times when i'm expecting overnight company, every 4-6 days. The rest of the time, you don't want to know....

(aaah, every 1-2 months. I really need to change this)

The last time I washed my sheets was bcz I'd fucked like 4 different people on them over the course of several weeks and there was this little *ding* that went off in my head that went "You really should wash your sheets"

my practice was every 2 weeks but it has drifted to 3-4 weeks, but if i am sick and feverish i will change it right after a good nightsweat

weekly

this just happens, tbh, no idea when. I like to think that my tolerance isn't too far beyond hers but i'd happily go a couple months without changing if it was cool weather and there wasn't anything showing.

I voted 11-15 days, but I should really be honest and admit it's more like 16-21 days.

When I worked mon-fri it was evedry weekemd. Now I'm home w/babies so it's a more fluid schedule but I still aim for weekly changings.

Once a week but that usually winds up being once every two weeks tbh.

Yeah I've been single for the last few years so standards have slipped... Always pleased when I do get round to it though, nothing like fresh sheets.

I don't even know how often it is because my husband always changes them, I probably haven't changed sheets on a bed in over ten years.

every four or five days. no other choice since it's really warm and humid all the time and if i don't wash the sheets in that time period, they really start to stink.

was helping a friend move once (only a block over, so we were walking things to the new place) and we were stripping down the bed so I asked if he wanted us to leave the mattress pad on to protect it during the move or take it off. he started to say "I don't think I have a mattress pad.." as I was pulling the clean-looking fitted sheet off, only to reveal what looked like a soot-stained mattress pad

omg

yes, that was my reaction. it was around that time I realized while I have bad kitchen tidiness issues, etc. that I can only ever pretend that I live dirtbag style

Every 4-6 days. I actually have someone do this for me, but I have someone do nearly everything for me (ALS, it's a hell of a disease) so I voted for the 4-6 day option rather than the "we have the luxury of a housekeeper" option.

In my bachelor days, I was still picky about clean sheets. You can go a month or more without actually washing them if you own several sets. I always used to need white sheets, because I used benzyl peroxide for acne and it bleaches colored fabrics. Sleeping at a friend's was complicated.

Weekly.

let's just say fortnightly

*looks away, whistling*

Every morning and then again every evening.

dammit I should have read all of the options before voting

our sheets are changed every other week by a cleaning service

clean sheets feel so nice but changing sheets and duvet covers is so frustrating it sometimes makes me hyperventilate with anxiety while i'm doing it. it needs to people to make it an acceptable task and i'm only one person and can't imagine any time again that i'll be one of a couple. even so i change mine weekly or if i miss the slot then fortnightly, never any more.

our sheets are changed every other week by a cleaning service

well ooh la di fuckin da

lol

look at big man there with his professionally cleaned sheets and his dignity

I've changed sheets by myself since I was a kid? I don't know, not that difficult.

single bed?

queen

btw thanking ilx for this thread, reminded me I was going to wash sheets today

queen ladidah

^^^holy shit

Automatic thread bump. This poll is closing tomorrow.

Pillows once a week after turning both of them for fresh side each night. Sheets, probably a fortnight unless i spill red wine on them like tonight. Both sets are white cotton and feel great when changed.
The hassle of changing them is less than the feeling of comfy and fresh i like when changed.

**hands not goodwin his "I voted" button**

not goodwin his her "I voted" button

oops

his.

and thanks

I feel like several keystone cops.

weekly, at least. wife is a big fan of clean sheets and a nicely made bed.
when i lived by myself, god i used to go a month or more.

i don't even have sheets on my bed right now

i'd like to say this is some kinda new low but

i've just put on clean sheets. simple pleasures.

i mean getting into them will be. putting them on was horrible.

kind of want to make a tutorial video for jed

;)

my flannel sheets have stripes, making it easy to tell which way is which

^ pro tip

Automatic thread bump. This poll's results are now in.

gross result, ilx!

Every two weeks on avg

Pre-Carl: over 30 days (never)
Post-Carl: every 14 days (cleaning lady does it)

i just want to know who my other living in filth voter is

it's kind of amazing a human woman puts up with me

didn't vote in this but like once every 6 months? idg why they need to be changed so often

Hello Eugene

Where do I buy nice bedding for less than $100?

Bedding goes on sale regularly at department stores. Like over 50%-off on sale. And brand-name discount places are a good place to go too. Expensive bedding can always be found for less.

I just want grownuppy nice sheets, and I want them to be black. Black sheets are hard to find!

I believe overstock.com may be a decent choice for cheap bedding.

also: satin, sateen, pima, egyptian, microfiber, etc etc -- what?? Which one do I get?

Flannel in the winter, no other.

Flannel is awesome in winter.

Incidentally, this is traditonally the time for 'white sales' and potentially a good time to buy new sheets on sale.

I admire your interest in owning black things, but if you have dry skin or pets or any other source of contrasts-with-black, you're going to immediately see it on black sheets.

Costco is where I've been buying my sheets - usually pretty dec quality sheets, and under $50

I decided I can't stand Sateen. They sorta slimy feeling after a couple of days. I quite like Egyptian or Supima/Pima

I have some bamboo sheets right now and they're pretty cool. I just noticed some minor pilling, but I have been overusing and over-washing them, so they've probably been washed almost 20 times already.

I am all for flannel in winter, 100% cotton percale in summer. And any thread count above 300 won't breathe as well, so it becomes a pointless effigy of "luxury".

Changing my sheets is a Friday morning ritual for me. I used to think something like "MAYBE this weekend I'll meet someone whom I'd like to bring home...."

In fact, in living memory there has been zero overlap between those whom I would like to bring home with me and those who would like to come home with me. Yet the practice lingers--I'm going to be the tidiest old maid in the nursing home. :^P

aimless otm about +300 threadcount

My usual bedmate is a 60 pound mutt. He doesn't shed much but I do change the sheets every month or so when the scatter of short black hairs on the pillows becomes objectionable

*says nothing*

itt: cognitive dissonance

voted everyday, truthfully i have never and will never change my sheets

Didn't vote, but we change them every weekend. I also change sheets on the kids' bed every week -- at least until they're old enough for me to tell them to do it themselves. (And them to completely ignore me.)

Have we ever polled bed-making habits? Learning to make my bed every day was one of those hard-won lessons of adulthood.

when y'all are changing yr sheets are you washing the mattress pad as well? that's the part that adds to the hassle for me (it being so bulky it needs to go in a washer by itself).

the hassle is washing both early enough on a sunny enough day that the mattress pad (and pillow protectors) can actually dry in time to be able to make the bed again that day

i only wash the mattress pad every once in a while

everything would be done more often if i had laundry at home

this thread has guilted me into sorting mine out today !

btw : does anyone else vacuum the mattress and pad when the bed is stripped ? my wife always used to, and of course, i now have to continue the tradition !

oh, and flip the mattress over ...

i vacuum and flip the mattress, and change the blanket I use as a mattress protector, maybe every second or third time I change the sheets? I got into the habit when I was trying to make my asthma less bad, but it's way too much faff to do every time.

if you are going to wash your mattress protector every time you wash your sheets, what exactly do you need a bottom sheet for?

my mattress won't fit into my washer, help

bedding is one of those mysterious realms to me. all this terminology, ritual, order to everything. comforters, blankets, top sheets, bottom sheets, middle sheets, tucked in, pad, box spring - no box spring - foam - memory foam. what does it all mean? all I want is something to lie down in.

do any of you use blankets? i'm in the market for one lately but i find what's on offer to be crappy.

This summer the guy at the mattress store said that flipping mattresses is no longer a thing. Certainly it wouldn't be for pillow-top ones, which is what I have.

I hate changing sheets b/c my bed is surrounded on two sides by walls and on one side by a room divider.

But rotating the mattress (head end at foot, and visa versa) is probably still a good idea, so that the heavy part of your body is not always in the same place on the mattress.

And I would also do mine more if one side of my bed weren't up against a wall.

gross result, ilx!

― t_s (how's life), Monday, December 24, 2012 10:48 AM (3 days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Yes, true, rotating is the new flipping.

Xp

I have never vacuumed the mattress but that's a pretty good idea. I wish I could drag it outside to sit in the sun. I definitely flip it, horizontally and vertically (I am confident that this mattress is older than mattresses contemplated by the mattress store guy when he offered his advice).

*cough* febreeze *cough*

I mean to say that I would like to air out the mattress in direct sunlight, not that I would like to drag the mattress outside so that I can sit on it and also sit in the sun. I try to avoid the latter as much as possible.

We got a new bed this summer - king frame with 2 twin xl mattresses. So much space! The mattress guy was talking about how we needed waterproof mattress covers to keep them from soaking up sweat, which apparently causes mattresses to double their weight over a few years.

I love making this bed; it's like there's a hinge in the middle - flip up one side and put the sheet corners on. Flop the 1/2 mattress back down and everything's nice and smooth.

but all night you dream of being eaten by a mattress

you should have waterproof mattress covers anyway, in case you puke or pee or spill booze all over the place by accident.

meh

these days for me it's more like "spill baby formula all over the place", but it still applies.

also so the bedbugs slide right off the side of the bed instead of climbing onto you and eating you alive

but all night you dream of being eaten by a mattress

No, it's like there's an invisible fence there now, which prevents me from getting subducted under Mr. Jaq.

dayo, just get some hay

I honestly dont have sheets anymore just like mounds of cathair

a friend came over w/ her kid and the kid scooped up a big handful of cathair and tried to eat it I was so horrified idk if I posted about it already

that would solve my problems of midnight snacking too xxp

feed yr night mares :D

omg

:D

also so the bedbugs slide right off the side of the bed instead of climbing onto you and eating you alive

Yes. After a scare a couple years ago (mysterious, very itchy welts; no bedbugs; dermatologist said "probably just pigeon mites" !!!) I sealed up my mattress b/c if the bed bugs ever do come, at least I won't have to buy a new mattress. Plus I won't collect pounds and pounds of dead skin in the mattress over the years.

dont those covers rustle

The one I got is an allergy bag, made of very tightly woven material, and it does not rustle. TBF, I have not tested it for water-proofness, and I doubt it would pass that test.

I admire your interest in owning black things, but if you have dry skin or pets or any other source of contrasts-with-black, you're going to immediately see it on black sheets.

― mh, Wednesday, December 26, 2012 12:04 PM (2 days ago) Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I want black sheets bcz this is my duvet cover and I think they'd look v nice w/ it

http://bedzine.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/0111642_PE262577_S4.jpg

Well, I can't argue that

*says nothing*

Its worth noting that no sexual activity takes place on this bed. I don't leak. Most of the time I pass out fully clothed (no shoes) on top of the bed cover. So its not like I'm creating sweat/dead skin cell fed bacteriological cultures here.

When things improve (socially) of course I'll wash the sheets more regularly. I'll probably also wash the dishes, mop the floors, dust the shelves, and light scented candles more frequently.

stevie's duvet cover looks like a zs gif

I stripped the bed yesterday and washed everything at a friend's house while watching TV. But then when I got home, I tired and I hated the idea of making the bed, but I didn't want to sleep on the mattress pad, so I slept on a heap of clean sheets.

This is why I infrequently change my sheets, because it just means I'll have to put them back on, which is a task I hate more than any other.

what is wrong with you people?

NICE DISPLAY NAME JESSE

It actually confused me. I thought it was weird that you were saying that you did laundry at a friend's house and slept on a pile of sheets.

On the same schedule as dog baths, and for similar reasons.

time for a revive in These Changing Times

OK so I used to change the sheets every other week. By which I mean a person we pay to do this sort of thing did it. Now I am that person.

I am losing track of whether it is sheet changing week or not sheet changing week.

I try to do once a week but probably every couple weeks ends up being the way. over 30 days is crazy to me and literally was how I rolled when I was a 20 something bachelor dirtbag

Usually once a week but can go up to 2 weeks depending on several variables.

xpost Usually remember to change sheets because it happens on the same day or in preparation for long weekends because clean sheets are magic. Also white sheets, dark hair, one can usually tell.

1-2 weeks. the only chore/cleaning i do properly. i enjoy doing laundry and i enjoy the feeling and smell of clean sheetz

things are stretching out because i'd like to reduce my laundromat trips during 'this troubled time'

oh yeah i should have added this is only since i bought a w/d last year. when i had to go to the laundromat it was just an aspiration to have clean sheets.

i feel like if you leave it long enough to tell you need to do it, it's too long. which it usually is with me.

but like okay okay, you weekly or 10-day sheet washers, do you wash your PILLOWS on the reg? because that too is something you're mashing your face into every night for several hours.

pillowcases sure, pillows themselves maybe every couple years

yea pillows! i saw some thing recently where somebody was like, all these people spending thousands on every flavour of cleanser there is and every night they let the oils and... you know, sloughage.. of their face just mash into the same absorbent pad that they've probably never washed in their lifetime

better not to think about it obv - i am not one of the cleanser people

My pillows are in pillow protectors under the pillow cases, both get washed and the pillows themselves get at least an annual cleansing.

About once a week for both sheets and duvet cover. I do 2 or 3 general washes a week and bang 1 of them into that.
But days may vary so only roughly about a week can be more cab be less. But somewhere around that frequency.

I've avoided washing pillows if possible because whenever I do they seem to emerge all clumpy. Am I doing something wrong? Synthetic fill pillows if it matters.

I am being more of a dirtbag than usual (with bedding and clothes) because I have to use the adjacent building’s laundry room that costs £3.50 a wash and I don’t want to keep having to go out and get change before using a space shared by over a hundred people. This is probably contributing to my general sense of malaise.

I've avoided washing pillows if possible because whenever I do they seem to emerge all clumpy. Am I doing something wrong? Synthetic fill pillows if it matters.

― Lee626, Saturday, 30 May 2020 7:27 PM (two hours ago) bookmarkflaglink

Tennis ball in the dryer really helps with this one. Also taking pillows and duvets down to the laundrette to use the big dryer.

Washing duvets, pillows and puffer jackets is pretty much the only time I use the dryer.

Yeah something(s) heavyish to clomp around in the dry with the pillows is u&k

i have 3 pillows I rotate because I prefer to sleep on my stomach but it sometimes irritates my lower back so I have to switch to my side or back and the type of pillow really makes a difference to me.

I wash my pillow cases and sheets about once a week, my duvet cover less frequently

my understanding is a lot of people don't even use a top sheet now, just a duvet? I still have been using a top sheet, a thin cotton blanket over it and a light down duvet over that, which I throw off in summertime. I keep an extra blanket at the bottom of the bed to use if I'm really cold

I've never had a top sheet under the duvet, just a duvet cover. Top sheet has only ever been for when I have had blankets (hospital, elderly relatives, some hotels)

One annoyance of staying in hotels is they have a top sheet duvet, second top sheet sandwich which turns into a Gordian knot by morning.

some hotels

jeez i thought i was a dirtbag for sometimes going 2 weeks without washing my sheets

the duvet cover is once a month though

putting a cover on a duvet on might be my least favorite chore

it's my least favorite too, but I learned that my duvet cover has ties inside at the top which I can secure to the top of the duvet and then shimmy the cover over the rest of it, which makes it much easier to put on

xp agree top sheet/blanket/duvet can become tangled and it is annoying, but in summer weather (at least here) having a top sheet allows you to ditch the duvet and still feel covered

I don't know. I'm still trying to figure out the best configuration

*secure to the top of the duvet* by just tying them around the corners of the top of the duvet

like Ed the idea of duvet PLUS a top sheet is completely bizarre to me. like wearing two pairs of socks. however - you then run into a problem if you only have a “button close” cover: your feet stick out. in france they mainly have “chiminée” covers with no buttons and an extra long flap of fabric at the bottom which tucks entirely under the mattress, facilitating that sweet no-topsheet lyfe

in hot weather i take the duvet out of the cover and just sleep with the cover. it’s like an extra thick sheet i guess.

/ cool story

Tracer that is what my partner does! I, however, have challenging temperature control needs (lol menopause, maybe?) and am most comfortable under a woven cotton blanket, no sheet. So while we do not have separate beds, we do have separate bedclothes.

the correct answer is once a week. wtf is 7-14 days. this is like when my friend got done for possession and they asked him how often he did heroin and the least frequent answer he could give was 'several times a month.'

plax it says 7-10

Ok same, 7 is non negotiable

Finally ready to wash my stinky lockdown sheets and of course cash no longer being a thing so I don't have the usual stash of pound coins for the machines. So I have just hand washed the fuckers and hung then indoors. Feel like I'm on the Ganges or something.

nice

Think about your life choices

I am very much at ease both with having avoided the launderette and now having clean sheets and see no need to ruminate further on either. If you would like to spend time pondering my "life choices" i guess that's your life choice.

you can handwash

damn, the lockdown started in mid-march my guy.

I just in fact put on new sheets, no better feeling really