Why is White Bedding the Most Popular Choice Of Bedding?

Despite the myriad of colours, patterns, and styles of bedding out there on the market today, one type of bedding remains the most popular: white bedding.

Go to a hotel and, nine times out of ten, you’ll likely find crisp white bedding on the bed. Given that white is so easy to stain, and some hotel guests don’t think twice about eating food or drinking red wine in bed, you’d be forgiven for thinking that hotels are wasting money by using a colour that’s easiest to stain. But, actually, that’s the whole point!

Why do hotels use white bedding?

When you go to a hotel, what’s the first thing you’ll want to check? The bedding is something we’re going to be spending all night lying on, so you want to be sure that it’s fresh and clean, especially as potentially hundreds of people have used that bedding before you. If the bedding was a dark colour, say black, could you really be sure that the bedding was fresh and wasn’t covered in stains? By using white, the hotel is showing you that they keep their bedding clean, as any stains on the bedding would be immediately noticeable.

Now, we’re not saying that hotels that use coloured bedding aren’t clean places, but first impressions are one of the most crucial factors in the hospitality world, as a bad first impression can immediately put that customer off ever returning. But white is the most effective way for the hotel to prove their standards of cleanliness.

Another reason hotels tend to use white bedding comes down to the sheer practicality of it. If you have white sheets on a bed, chances are that the hotel is using white bathroom towels and bathrobes too, as it’s a little jarring to the guest when the colour scheme suddenly switches from room to room. When the housekeepers go on their rounds, stripping the bedding and picking up any used towels that are destined for the washing machine, it’s much easier to put all these together into the same wash load. This saves time, money and means they’ll never get the nasty surprise of one errant red towel being mixed in with white bedding and subsequently ruining a dozen hotel rooms worth of bedding in one go.

Finally, even if the white bedding becomes stained it doesn’t mean that it immediately needs replacing. White is extremely easy to bleach clean, making the stain vanish as if it had never existed. This is ideal for when you’ve spent a small fortune on quality bedding and don’t have the luxury of replacing it all the time. But if it’s starting to look shabby, it’s time to replace that bedding with something new.

What other reasons are there to use white bedding?

Whether it’s in a hotel or at home, white bedding has other benefits that make it the preferred choice.

White is a versatile colour

Whatever design and colour scheme you may be using in your bedrooms, you can be certain that white bedding will go with it. It’s easy to match coloured accessories with white, while bright colour schemes on the walls and soft furnishings can be complemented by white bed linen, as the focus is firmly on the bed as it doesn’t get masked by another colour choice you’ve made for the bedding.

It’s an easy, and cheap, update for your bedroom

If you’re fed up with your bedroom design but don’t want to splash out the cash to transform the whole room, simply buying some white bedding can give you the fresh look you crave. This simple touch gives the impression of a newly decorated room, while slipping into brand new bedding is sure to give you a better night’s sleep.

It’s a fresh canvas

If you do have the money to do an overhaul of your bedroom design, white is a fresh canvas to build upon and helps you add little touches of personality. Just because you’ve gone for white it doesn’t mean every bit of the bedding has to be that way. Add personality with little splashes of colour such as a coloured cushion or a textured throw. Think of it like you’re starting a new painting. It’s totally up to your imagination as to where you want to go with it!

White is a timeless colour

While that trendy new colour may look great today, could you say the same about it in a year or two? Trends come and go, but white is always here to stay. This neutral colour will always be on trend and fashionable, so save yourself the hassle of constantly trying to keep up with new trends by going with white from the get-go.

White bedding may help improve sleep

While there isn’t a direct correlation between sleeping under white sheets and better sleep, the colour of the bedding has the power to transform the mood of a room. This, in turn, can affect your mindset when you’re trying to relax at the end of the day. White is a neutral colour and has a calming effect, invoking a sense of comfort and serenity in the room. If you red bedding in your bedroom, a colour that’s associated with being alert, it can have the opposite effect of heightening your stress levels when you’re supposed to be in a room that’s meant for winding down.

For more on the science of sleep and tips on how to improve yours, visit our article on the topic.

Does this mean that coloured bedding should never be used?

Of course not, that’s all down to personal choice. All we’ve done is explain to you why white bedding is the most popular type of bedding. Moving away from hotels and into your own home, you’re free to use your imagination and go wild with your bedroom design and bedding. But just remember that this is the place you need to sleep, so you don’t want to introduce a colour that’s so jarring that it affects your comfort in the bedroom.

If you do wish to buy coloured bedding, we offer a range of colours in our bedroom section. But, as it’s the most popular, you’ll mostly find hotel quality white bedding that you can always rely on.