BEDDING It's high thread count that translates into real comfort between the sheets

Good sheets will provide a soft and luxurious place to sleep for a long time.
SCRIPPS HOWARD
Armen Bacon knows what she wants from the sheets on her bed.
"I work really hard all day, and when I get into bed to sleep, I want that feeling of luxury and comfort," says Bacon, of Fresno, Calif.
For her, it's all about thread count, softness and silkiness. For others, the mere smell of freshly laundered sheets is enough to send them off into dreamland.
Whatever our preferences, when we slip between the sheets, we want to feel assured that our cares of the day have been put to rest and we can spend our night in peace.
Bacon says she started noticing the differences in bedding when she traveled in Europe a number of years ago and stayed in expensive hotels. "The beds were so comfortable and the sheets so soft you didn't want to get out of bed in the morning," she says.
"I remember thinking that we spend so much time in bed that we should have that feeling every day, not just when we are on vacation. Having a set of nice sheets with a high thread count is like owning one great business suit. You really get your money's worth."
Shopping for the best
Her 350-thread-count sateen sheets are so comfortable, she's contemplating putting them on the beds in her guest rooms.
High thread count and value pricing are the attractions when Tracy Redden of Visalia, Calif., goes sheet-shopping. "I like the Egyptian cotton with at least a 270 thread count," she says. "There's nothing like the feeling of good, 100 percent cotton sheets. They breathe and are soft."
Both Redden and Bacon shop sales and compare prices. Bacon paid $70 for her king-size sheets, and Redden paid $58 for hers. But Stacy Sanders of Fresno is paying $1,000 for her sheets and pillow cases.
"Having a nice bed is as important as having good cookware," says Sanders, who's planning to get married this fall. "Good bedding will last a very long time. My mother spoiled me. Even though she shopped the sales, my mother always bought good sheets. And she still has them."
Indulge in luxury
Sanders believes people should treat themselves well and that indulging in luxurious Italian-designer bedding is one way to do it.
"Once you go to the nice sheets, you can feel the difference, but you can't explain it," Sanders says. "You look forward to climbing into bed, and you never want to get out."
Of course it helps that she works at the Warner Co. Boutique in Fresno and gets a discount on the Sferra sheets that she buys. Sferra sheets start at 300 thread count and go up to 1,020.
Warners also carries Anichini, which can cost $1,800. Anichini sheets, which are manufactured in Vermont, have been heralded by Oprah Winfrey and have appeared in several Woody Allen movies.
"Oprah helped to raise the bar on sheets," says Rodney Fultz, who works at Warner and who has his own set of Anichini sheets. "She said these are the sheets to die for, and they are."
Wondrous weave
What's the big deal about thread count, anyway?
Phil Jones, a domestics buyer for Gottschalks, a department store chain, says the higher the thread count, the more tightly woven and more comfortable the sheets.
"Thread count has become a big selling point," he says. "A few years ago, consumers didn't pay any attention to it. Now they are looking at the labels. We used to see muslin sheets with a count of 132-180 and cotton percale, or blended sheets, at about 180. Today, good sheets are mostly 250 and above."
Gottschalks carries sheets that have a thread count of 600.
Trent Hutchins, another Gottschalks buyer, says people have been moving away from the poly/cotton blends to 100 percent cotton. "They just like the all-cotton feel better," he says of consumers, "and they don't seem to mind that they are not wrinkle-free."
Color, or lack of it, is another factor for some sheet buyers, Jones says. Many higher-end sheets are available only in ecru and white. "It could be because they are neutral and go with everything, or that people want the sheets to have an aged, heirloom look," he says.