Sheets and pillowcases come in a variety of fabrics and thread counts. No matter your preference, sheets are often quite an investment, particularly when you consider that we spend up to one-third of our lives in bed. Below are recommendations to help care for your bed linens to extend their usefulness and preserve the quality.

Change sheets and pillowcases once a week. Launder according to the care instructions. Use warm or cool water to prevent shrinkage.

To remove any stains from white linens, wash with a non-chlorine oxygenated bleach, which is gentler on fabrics than chlorine bleach. Dry sheets on low heat. Remove from the dryer while slightly damp to avoid weakened fibers. Iron if necessary while still damp.

Fold the top sheet and the fitted bottom sheet and one pillow case. Store inside the other pillowcase. Group sets of sheet by bedroom and stack them on shelves with a clearance of about 10 inches. Rotate sheet sets by using the set on top of the stack. Put the most recently laundered set on the bottom of the pile.