When you hear the word linen, what do you picture? Do you see the rumpled, natural look of the luxurious fabric adding a high-end touch to your space? An elegant dinner table complete with the perfect color scheme of table linens and dinnerware? Perhaps an inviting bed made up with linen sheets, looking more comfortable than a cloud? Indulge in this indescribable luxury and invest in linens for your own home.
With a traditional look, versatile style, and countless health benefits, what’s not to love about linen? Discover the amazing cooling benefits of linen fabric and feel inspired to make the switch.
What is Linen?
Linen is a textile made from the woven fibers of the flax plant. Dating to ancient times, it quickly became one of the most sought-after fabric choices for common household items, such as linen sheets, tablecloths, towels, curtains, and stylish fashion pieces. Since its discovery, it’s remained a beautiful, durable, sustainable alternative to other fabrics, such as cotton.
3 Ways Linen Keeps You Cool
Linen may be known first and foremost for its sophisticated style and versatility, but that’s not all it's loved for. Whether you’re looking for linen sheets for your guest bedroom or stylish linen home goods, the fabric has three main properties that work together to keep us cool:
1. Breathability of Linen Fabric
Although you can’t see them with the naked eye, a microscopic look at flax fibers reveals a miraculously porous surface. Every fiber has thousands of holes, and when woven together, the linen material has natural gaps that allow air to pass through. These holes are the secret to breathability, increasing airflow in linen products, from living room curtains near an open window to a snuggly comforter.
2. Linen's Temperature Regulation
The secret to why linen is revered as the best cooling fabric all boils down to one fancy word—thermoregulation. In other words, linen has natural temperature-controlling abilities! When it’s cold outside, flax fibers naturally contract, reducing the space between fibers and siphoning off the airflow to trap warmth. But, when it’s warm outside, the woven fibers loosen up, increasing airflow possibilities to allow the cooler air in.
3. Absorbency and Moisture Wicking of Linen
Linen is known for excellent, quick absorbency, absorbing up to 20% of its weight in moisture. Whether mopping up a spill at the dinner table with a linen napkin or enjoying the sweat-wicking properties while under your linen sheets, the structure of woven linen allows for it to trap a lot of moisture.
But just because the material can absorb liquids with ease doesn’t mean it stays wet. Linen has natural quick-drying and moisture-wicking abilities, so once your linen sheets get wet, it won’t stay that way for long. Your linen bedding will absorb and dry any moisture before you even notice, letting you sleep safely, soundly, and comfortably.
Find the Perfect Cooling Linen Bedding for Your Sleep Style
Whether you’re a hot or cold sleeper, finding ways to regulate your body’s temperature is the key to a well-rested night. When you drift off to sleep, your body temperature naturally cools, and any spikes of heat can lead to abrupt disruptions to that precious REM. Ultimately, it doesn’t matter whether you prefer sleeping with layers and layers of blankets or just one blue linen duvet—as long as you’re making the bed with the right material.
With ultimate breathability and natural temperature regulation, linen remains the most recommended material for bedding. Create a linen bedding set from bottom sheet to top quilt, or invest in one piece of linen bedding—even a simple switch can change the way you sleep for good. Consider the best linen bedding for you and feel the cooling benefits for yourself.
Linen Bedding is Perfect For:
- Couples—keep cool as a couple with linen bedding
- Hot sleepers—with linen sheets, gone are the days of sticking one leg out to catch a breeze
- Insomniacs—eliminate unnecessary disruptions and cool off under your linen bedding
- Kids—soft, plush, and stylish, kiddos love the cooling effect of linen sheets
- Cold sleepers—layer up to your comfort level without getting too hot
Can You Use Linen Sheets Year-Round?
While linen clothing is best suited for the summertime, linen bedding and home goods are great year-round! The cooling benefits of linen sheets translate to any weather, keeping you warm in winter and cool in summer.
Keeping Your Home Cool with Linen Curtains
There’s nothing more glamorous than flowing linen curtains in a window—but style is not the only reason we love them so much! These are more than decorative additions—the natural cooling benefits of linen can offer some additional control over your home’s temperature.
Hanging breathable gray linen curtains can prevent a room from feeling stuffy. With minuscule holes in each woven fiber, air can circulate through a set of curtains, keeping your home feeling airy and fresh.
Linen curtains also filter sunlight, preventing outside heat and sun rays from warming up your home too much. Draw your green linen curtains shut to keep the valuable cool air in during the summer or the chill out during the winter. Discover the different types of linen curtains to hand-curate how much light you want to let into your space.
3 Types of Cooling Linen Curtain Styles:
Linen curtains can complete any room in your house, but with so many types to choose from, where do you begin? Control the light input in your home and explore these three designs to find the perfect set for you:
- Just Linen—our basic linen curtains feature a rustic, wrinkled texture and slight transparency, designed to give a lived-in, lightweight look perfect for letting just the right amount of natural lighting into your space.
- Cotton Lined—do you love the look of linen but crave an extra layer of protection from the light? The inner cotton lining faces the window, blending the effortless breeziness of linen with more control.
- Blackout—whether you’re trying to transform your sleep schedule or decorating a nursery, blackout linen curtains offer maximum light control, blocking out the sounds and light from the outside world with a high-quality inner lining,
From linen bedding to linen curtains, linen is synonymous with luxury. Once you make the switch to this elegant textile and feel the wonderful cooling benefits for yourself, you’ll never look back!
