The battle for bed linen supremacy - long fought over high, higher and highest thread counts - may be taking a detour from the cotton field to the forest.
Instead of pitting pima cotton against Egyptian cotton or lustrous sateen against no-iron percale, this latest skirmish for market share involves sheets and pillowcases made using fibers of bamboo plants and beech trees.
To be sure, these relatively exotic fibers are still a small part of the market, and many people have never even heard of them. But both fabrics are being explicitly pitched to eco-conscious consumers eager to believe that even small, personal gestures like what our sheets are made of can help the beleaguered planet.
After years of limited exposure - principally through catalogs and retailers promoting organic and "natural" products - these linens can now be found on shelves in Target, Sam's Club and big-box bedding chains as well as in specialty boutiques and catalogs.
"I think everyone in their heart wants to do a little something to make the world a little bit better," says Janet Partridge, spokeswoman for Garnet Hill, the bedding and fashion catalog operation that began selling a line of bamboo-cotton-blend linens in vivid colors this spring.
So just how eco-righteous are these fabrics?
Bamboo, which is native to Asia, is a highly renewable grass; it can grow a foot or more in a day and reach heights of 80 or 90 feet. For centuries, it has been used to make everything from bridges, buildings and furniture to musical instruments, baskets and tableware.
Beech trees, native to Europe, North America and parts of Asia, are slow growers, eventually reaching 50 or 60 feet. In the 1890s, the trees were a source of pulp for civilization's first synthetic fabric, developed in France as "artificial silk" and later named rayon. Today, however, some beech trees are being sustainably farmed specifically for their fiber, and its variations are sold under such trademarks as Modal and Tencel.
Whatever the degree of environmental correctness, there is no denying the tactile allure of both beech and bamboo.
"It feels wonderful on your skin," says Partridge, describing Garnet Hill's bamboo-cotton blend that is woven with 200 threads per square inch.
Just 200? That is relatively unimpressive in today's marketplace of sheets claiming 600, 1,000, even 1,500 threads. But it is also not terribly relevant because beech and bamboo fibers are so soft and fine.
At Bed, Bath & Beyond, $50 will buy a 100% beech jersey queen-size set. Garnet Hill's queen bamboo-cotton-blend quartet runs $130, while Elite Linens of Jamestown, N.C., offers a 100% bamboo twill set for $200 at Elitelinens.com.Washington Post via Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
