Cotton Satin 101
Between the Sheets

Cotton Satin 101

Feeling confused about whether or not cotton satin sheets are the right choice for you, or whether you’d prefer crisp percale? If so, read on!

We spend a third of our lives in bed - that’s about 3000 hours a year! - so choosing the right sheets is really important. At our Toronto brick and mortar shop, we’ve created a Thread Count Bar so our customers can touch and feel which sheets they like best. But for online shoppers, choosing the right fabric isn’t so straightforward.

Our Thread Count Bar

Try to imagine what your perfect sheet feels like in your hands. Is it crisp and cool, just like your favourite button-down shirt? If so, cotton percale is likely the right choice for you. If you’re imagining something fine and silky to the touch, you may be a cotton satin person.

Despite what its name may suggest, cotton satin is woven from pure cotton fibres. During the weaving process, cotton strands are woven in a certain pattern to give the fabric a light sheen and a silky hand that resembles satin. (Hence the name ‘cotton’ satin, or ‘Sateen.’)

 

Don’t be confused, cotton satin is NOT the same as that slippery, shiny satin you find in clothing and lingerie. Because the cotton is woven to create a sheen (rather than being inherently shiny), the sheen will eventually disappear over several washings and become as soft as marshmallows. That slippery, shiny satin you’re thinking of is polyester.

(And in case you’re wondering, cotton Sateen and cotton satin are actually the same thing! Sateen is simply a marketing term, not a unique material.)

Our cotton satin sheets are available in a range of thread counts from 320 - 1030TC, as well as a variety of colours and patterns. Even if you can’t visit our Thread Count Bar in person, we’re happy to send you swatches in any of our collections so that you can touch and feel before you buy.

Shop our full collection of cotton satin sheets here.