Flannel sheets for queen sized bed are just a little bit of heaven!  C’mon, who doesn’t like the warm and toasty feel of flannel on a cold winter’s night?

Okay, some folks don’t like flannel sheets because they have a tendency to ‘pill’.  So I thought I’d conduct a little research on the ‘ol flannel and see what I could come up with.  And since you’re here now too, I’ll let you in on at what I found!  (Oh, you’re welcome.)

First off, forget the thread count.  Flannel sheets are not categorized that way.  Why?  Let’s say you have sheets that have a 500 thread count.  That means, for every inch of fabric, there’s 500 little threads in there.  That’s a pretty tight weave and makes for a nice and smooth sheet.

Flannel on the other hand is a loosely-woven fabric.  It doesn’t stretch much because of the way the threads are woven:  straight, going over, under, up and across.

Quality flannel sheets are categorized in ounces or grams per square yard.  (Not inches mind you, but yards!)

Higher quality flannel sheets are in the neighborhood of 5 to 6 ounces per sq yd.  If you’re loaded with money, some flannel goes up to 8 ounces but now you’re talking major bucks to purchase this type of extravagant luxury.  (Pssst…. Rumor on the street that the best flannel comes out of Portugal or Germany.  Germany is reported to be Europe’s finest manufacturer of flannel, but you didn’t hear that from me!)

When flannel is used to make sheets, the fabric is weaved and then brushed.  Lots of brushing!  This breaks down the flannel fibers and makes for the nice, cozy, fuzzy feeling flannel is famous for.

Unfortunately, all this brushing also loosens the fibers as well and those not-so-welcomed “pills” are created.  Oh, here’s a tip I read about:  A good technique to avoid those pills on your flannel sheets is to wash them a couple three times BEFORE using them.  This removes a lot of those loose fibers created in the manufacturing process.  You’ll certainly be able to tell you’ve removed a great deal of them by all the lint on your dryer’s lint screen.  Better there than pilling-up on your sheets!

There are some favorable comments for sheets offered by Lands End.  One user said her sheets never pilled but after several years they were getting a little threadbare.

Another great producer of flannel sheets is L.L. Bean.  I’ve come across lots of comments from folks raving about the quality of their bed coverings.  Even after years of use, many are happy with their L.L. Bean flannel sheets.  No complaints about pilling with their products either.

Both L.L. Bean and Lands End offer heavy flannel and will let you know the weight of it.  You’re not likely to find that with bargain-basement sheets that you can get for around $20.

So, don’t be afraid of flannel sheets for queen sized bed – or any sized bed!  Buy quality flannel sheets from the get-go and you’ll have years of warm, cozy comfort as you sleep all nice and toasty!