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The best brushed cotton bedding for a sumptuous night’s sleep

Choose luxurious brushed cotton bedding this season to upgrade your sleep and bedroom style with GQ’s edit of the most covetable designs around
Best brushedcotton bedding 2024 Winter bed sheets

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Known for its softness and warmth, brushed cotton bedding takes its descriptive name from the fact that it is literally brushed to raise the fibres, which traps air particles to help improve insulation and keep you comfortable while you sleep. One of our favourite bedding types, brushed cotton is particularly luxurious to sleep in during the winter as it’s so warm, smooth and tactile, but it works well all year round, too.

There’s a wide range of brushed cotton bedding sets to choose from to suit a range of budgets and styles – from modern and modest, to colourful and flamboyant. The bedding comes in a range of colourways, sizes, shapes and patterns, so there’s something for everyone. And, if you want to take the brushed cotton experience further there’s a pillow or two included in our round-up of the best products, which you can pick up for a great price.

Here, we’ve summarised the most stylish designs to add character and comfort to your bedroom. And if you’re after other styles of bedding, you can check out our guides to the best bedding brands, the best Egyptian cotton bedding, the best linen bedding and the best bed sheets.

What’s the best brushed cotton bedding set?

There’s a wide selection of brushed cotton bedding sets to choose from, but design ultimately comes down to a matter of taste. Our advice? Opt for responsibly-sourced brushed cotton sets for the soundest of sleeps. In GQ’s edit of the best brushed-cotton bedding, we’ve rounded up a selection of the most stylish designs currently available. We’ve also highlighted a few of our favourites here…

The best brushed cotton bedding for 2024…

The White Company Brushed Cotton Sheets

The White Company

Velvet touch brushed cotton flat sheet

  • Sizes: Single, double, king, super king
  • Colourways: White

Hotel-style crisp cotton sheets are The White Company’s bread and butter, but for the times when you just want something that feels warm to the touch, rather than cool (i.e. in the depths of winter), this brushed cotton set is where you should be directing your attention. Designed to be cosy, it’s described as ‘velvet touch’ with the added texture creating a warming and hug-like feeling that helps keep you warm throughout the colder months. And with Oxford bordered pillowcases and a simple white design, it still manages to conjure the illusion of hotel sleekness, but with much more warmth. From £40 for a single. At thewhitecompany.com

Marks & Spencer

Marks & Spencer

Pure brushed cotton bedding

  • Sizes: Single, double, king, super king
  • Colourways: 15 colour options available

Crisp sheets are exactly what you need if you want to channel the elegance and style of a hotel bed in your own home, and these Marks & Spencer sheets do just that while also capturing the cosy feel that you get from brushed cotton. Complete with button fastenings, which give it an elevated look, the set is also available in a range of colours, meaning you can make sure it fits nicely in your room and complements your interior design. Get ready to feel nice and cosy. From £19.50 for a single set. At marksandspencer.com

The White Company Brecon Stripe bedding set

The White Company

Brecon stripe duvet cover

  • Sizes: Single, double, king, super king
  • Colourways: Grey, white

Brushed cotton bedding tends to come in either a plain white design or (on the complete other end of the spectrum) a chaotic, bold Christmas look. Finding it in a subtle, neutral patterned aesthetic is much more of challenge, which is what makes this set from The White Company even more desirable. With a simple stripe, it brings a bit more fun to your room, while being one of the softer brushed cottons we’ve come across. From £70. At thewhitecompany.com

Dunelm Catherine Lansfield Reversible Stripe bedding

Dunelm

Catherine Lansfield Reversible Stripe brushed cotton bedding

  • Sizes: Single, double, king
  • Colourways: Natural, Green

In 100% pure cotton, these Dunelm reversible stripe sheets have a subtle pinstripe pattern to them, which is neither too gaudy nor too plain. They are, in a nutshell, ideal for anyone who wants a little detail on their bedsheets without having to settle for a full, block colour which might otherwise be overwhelming. And the very construction of them is great, too – breathable and soft, yet warm in winter, machine-washable and even possible to iron on a cool setting. A steal, if we say so ourselves. From £20 for a single set. At dunelm.com

Piglet In Bed Canopy Heathcliff brushed cotton bedding

Piglet in Bed

Canopy Heathcliff plaid cotton bedding

  • Sizes: Single, double, king, super king
  • Colourways: Multiple options available

One of our favourite bedding brands, Piglet in Bed, is best known for its linen sheets, but you shouldn’t turn a blind eye at its heavier, brushed cotton sets. Designed with that rustic, wood-cabin suitable checked pattern, it gives exactly the kind of cosy vibe that you need in the middle of a British winter. Made in Portugal from a brushed cotton and tencel blend, it’s got just the right amount of texture while still feeling smooth, available in a green check, or a darker thistle, olive green or white. From £119. At pigletinbed.com

Dusk Anton check brushed cotton duvet cover

Dusk

Anton brushed cotton duvet cover

  • Sizes: Double, king, super king
  • Colourways: One

This one’s just a duvet cover, but you can add in a fitted sheet and/or any number of pillowcases as and when you need them, and the whole set will look both smart and inviting in proper, straight chequered lines. The brown-on-white design is serious without being formal, and will add rhythm and detail to a bedspread, while the cotton itself is ultra-soft, practically begging you to slump down onto it with a thud after a long day. Grab it while it’s still on sale, as well as the sundries. From £80 £30 for a duvet cover. At dusk.com

Marks & Spencer x Fired Earth Aspen pure brushed cotton bedding

Marks & Spencer

Marks & Spencer x Fired Earth Aspen bedding

  • Sizes: Single, double, king, super king
  • Colourways: One

If you know anything about Fired Earth, it’s probably that they’re famed for the quality and tactility of their baked (fired!) tiles and stoneware. If you know that, then you can probably guess why they’re a good aesthetic fit for a product – bedsheets – that demands both taste but also a certain homeliness, too. This set of brushed cotton bedding, released in collaboration with Marks & Spencer, takes the signature terracotta red of a fired clay pot and lines of detailing which look like they’ve been lifted from something ancient and worthy, and combines them to stunning effect. From £59 for a single. At marksandspencer.com

Habitat brushed cotton bedding set

Habitat

Brushed cotton bedding set

  • Sizes: Single, double, king
  • Colourways: White, charcoal, grey, cream

Argos and Habitat have a reputation for doing the basic things right, and this brushed cotton set of bedding is just that: simple, soft and cosy. It’s relatively plain, with four colours in what are essentially shades at different points in the black to white spectrum, but that’s a small price to pay for… well, a small price, of just £20 for a sheet. And what else? It’s OEKO-TEX-certified, machine washable and made from 100 per cent pure cotton. Hard to fault, really. From £20. At argos.co.uk

Dunelm soft & cosy brushed cotton bedding set

Dunelm

Soft & cosy brushed cotton bedding set

  • Sizes: Single, double, king, super king
  • Colourways: 19 different options

Perhaps the greatest strength of Dunelm’s all-rounder soft & cosy brushed cotton bedding set is that it comes in a dozen-and-a-half different colours, meaning you can sleep in whatever shade you so desire: from terracotta, lilac and duck egg to the more obscure pinecone, aubergine and even rhubarb. No matter which you plump for, you’ll be on a dreamily soft bed of pure brushed cotton that will keep you cool in the summer and warm in the winter as required. From £20 for a single. At dunelm.com

Dunelm Dorma 100% premium brushed cotton bedding

Dunelm

Dorma Premium 100% brushed cotton bedding

  • Sizes: Double, king, super king
  • Colourways: Navy, Camel, Damson, Grey, Red

Need a new fitted sheet? Look no further than Dunelm’s Dorma range, whose sheet is a standard, tried-and-tested solution (sorry, terrible word) from a trusted brand whose bedding has kept us coming back again and again over the years. There are five colours to choose from, spanning navy and grey for the normies to red for those on whose bedroom activities we want to dwell as little as possible, as well as three sizes. From £30 for a double fitted sheet. At dunelm.com

John Lewis warm and cosy brushed cotton bedding

John Lewis

Warm and cosy brushed cotton bedding

  • Sizes: Single, double, king, super king
  • Colourways: Dove grey, Green, Bluestone, Merlot, Latte, White

Sometimes the simplest things are the best. For example, if you are in need of several sets of sheets at once – if you have children, say, or if you need to furnish a second home or rental that will be sleeping a lot of people – then John Lewis’s “Warm and cosy” brushed cotton bedding is cheap and cheerful. And warm. And cosy. You can hardly set a foot wrong with this, with two pillowcases for as little as £12; just mix and match and grab whatever you want, in any combination of pieces and colours. From £12 for pillowcases. At johnlewis.com

Is brushed cotton better than cotton?

Pitting brushed cotton versus cotton doesn’t really make sense, because when it comes down to it, brushed cotton and standard cotton are both made from the same fabric. The difference is that compared to how conventional cotton bedding is finished in a smooth way, brushed cotton has fluffier fibres, giving it a cosy feel that’s warm and ideal for winter weather. Ultimately, brushed cotton is still breathable in the same way cotton is, meaning you won’t overheat, but you’ll feel warmer than you would against a smoother, silkier sheet if it’s particularly cold outside.

Is brushed cotton warmer than cotton?

In short, yes – brushed cotton bedding is one of the best you can get for cold, winter nights. The key here is in the design, with the raised fibres being good for trapping air and keeping you more insulated than smoother cottons would. Brushed cotton has a thicker feel, with the textured design also bringing extra cosiness and warmth. The fun part is that it still manages to be super breathable – it’s still cotton at the end of the day. Think warmth, but without the overheating part that you might get with teddy sheets or fleece sheets.

Why choose brushed cotton bedding?

There are lots of benefits to choosing brushed cotton bed linen. “Brushed cotton bedding is an ideal option for those wanting a warmer and cosier night’s sleep,” says Paul Clarkson, Head of Category (Textiles), at Marks & Spencer. “The brushed fibres in the fabric trap the heat and retain it to keep you warm. It’s a breathable option so it helps to create the ideal environment for optimum sleep. It’s also easy to care for and washes well.”

What is the difference between brushed cotton and flannel?

As far as types of bedding go, flannel and brushed cotton feel pretty similar to the touch. Both are best suited to cold weather, have a cosier, fluffier feel, and tend to be really soft to sleep against. The differences aren’t major, but they do exist. Traditional flannel also tends to be thicker than brushed cotton, which is normally only brushed on one side, rather than on two (as flannel is).

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