The importance of a good night’s sleep cannot be overstated. Despite the few, members of the population who swear that they are somehow more energised on as little as four hours sleep, the vast majority of us need a full eight hours in order to be fully functional for the entirey of the day.
After all, sleep is how our mind and body regenerates – lowering the risk of a variety of diseases and disorders, while reducing stress and boosting our moods. According to the NHS, a healthy adult usually needs around seven to nine hours of sleep – though this may vary according to age, health and personal circumstances.
For us sloth-like sleep lovers, one key way to ensure we achieve a restful night’s sleep is by adorning our beds with the finest linens and bedding sets possible. But where does one start? From Egyptian cotton to stone-washed linen, the choices are seemingly endless – and don’t even get us started on thread count. Yet, there’s one uber soft material which is relatively new to the bedding game, yet has taken the sleep world by storm: bamboo. Let’s pillow talk.
Bamboo is the fastest regenerating plant on the planet, making it one of the most sustainble materials to manufacutre from. With each and every harvest, manufacturers and farmers can guarantee rapid regrowth in as little as 60 days, resulting in an almost never-ending yield with little-to-no shortages within the supply chain.
Indeed, according to Guiness Word Records, some bamboo species can grow up to 2.91ft a day – meaning that bamboo can literally grow before your very eyes if you sit with it for long enough. It also requires up to a third less water than cotton, and doesn’t need nasty additives like fertilisers, pesticides or other chemicals to thrive.
What are the benefits of bamboo bedding?
- Antibacterial: Bamboo is naturally antibacterial and further inhospitable to micro-organisms and pararsites including dust mites and bed bugs.
- Hypoallergenic: Since bamboo is produced without addition of any harmful chemicals, the result is a textile that is naturally kinder to the skin. Bamboo fibres are also naturally smooth and round which causes far less skin irritation than typical fabrics such as cotton and linen.
- Moisture-wicking: Though strong and durable, bamboo is also moisture-wicking and breathable – making it a suitable material for those with contact allergies that are exacerbated by sweat.
- Temperature regulating: Naturally thermoregulating, bamboo wll keep you cool during warmer months, and warm during the winter.
- Envrionmentally friendly: Due to its ability to rapidly regenerate, bamboo is one of the most sustainbale materials on the planet. Both growing bamboo and manufacturing textiles using bamboo uses up to one third less water than cotton.
- Unbeatable softness: Bamboo viscose has an almost water-like quality, with a smoothness and softness akin to the highest grade Egyptian cotton - just without any harmful environmenal impact.
Keep scrolling for a round-up of the best bamboo duvet covers, sheets and pillow cases for your best koal-ity night’s sleep yet.
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Panda 100% Bamboo Bedding
Sustainable down to the buttons, Panda’s bamboo bedding is the best in the game for a variety of reasons. Bear with us while we wax lyrical – pun intended.
These luxurious sheets have a thread count of 320, which is equivalent to a whopping 1,200 cotton thread count. Rest-assured you’re in for a good night’s sleep. However, if you’re in the market for bamboo bedding for its temperature regulating and moisture-wicking properties, don’t see the high thread count as a threat to your coolest night’s sleep yet – rather, see it as a promise of high-quality, long-lasting, and expertly crafted bedding. Bamboo bedding is renowned for its climate control abilities, whatever your internal temperature may be.
Not only is this bedding 100 per cent plastic-free thanks to the handcrafted raw bamboo buttons – which are far sturdier than plastic by-the-by – Panda prides itself on using the gentlest, natural dyes possible. All of the dyes used in the manufacturing process are Oeko-Tex standard 100 certified and comply with the Zero Discharge of Hazardous Chemicals (ZDHC) Group’s manufacturing restricted substances list. Similarly, all the bamboo used to create these fantastic sheets is ethically sourced and grown pesticide-free.
Perhaps our favourite feature of these bamboo sheets is the fact that Panda has sewn hidden straps inside the duvet cover, which can be attached to corner loops on Panda’s renowned Cloud Duvet. Fidgety sleepers everywhere may finally rejoice, for they’ll no longer wake-up to find the duvet has impossibly shifted to one side of the duvet cover, bunched-up beyond repair. Plus, the silky-smooth moisture wicking bamboo sheets will further prevent sheets from clinging to your body throughout the night.
Save by buying a complete bedding set in one fell swoop for just £123.25.
Buy now £110.00, Panda
Emma Bamboo Cover
Designed as a cover for your weighted blanket, this sumptuously soft 100 per cent bamboo sheet from Emma is ultra-hygienic, and easy to clean and maintain. It adds an extra bit of cooling power for the hot sleepers among us, and is realised in a soft and relaxing pale grey hue. They also offer a classic 100 per cent bamboo duvet cover for improved sleep and maximum comfort.
Buy now £35.00, Emma
M&S Bamboo Cotton Blend Sateen Sheets
Prized for its silky-smooth softness, the Bamboo Sateen range from M&S is crafted from a luxurious blend of 70 per cent bamboo viscose and 30 per cent cotton for a flexible, durable, and temperature-regulating bedtime experience.
Though the 300 thread count might seem like a turn-off for particularly sweaty sleepers, the climate control technology imbued in these high-quality sheets will provide warmth and comfort year-round, without the typically heavy feeling of high thread-count cotton sheets.
What’s more, if you find yourself tossing and turning throughout the night, you’ll be able to do so without the feeling of sheets clinging to every crevice. This smooth-as-silk bamboo bedding will cooly glide over your body with ease, providing the same comforting relief as the ‘cold side’ of the pillow at all times.
Prices start at £49.50 for a double duvet cover. Fitted sheets and pillow cases are sold separately.
Buy now £49.50, M&S
Ayda Cotton Bamboo Duvet Cover Set
Perhaps the prettiest bamboo bedding set we’ve ever come across, not only are these high-quality sheets sure to deliver a brilliant night’s sleep, but its reversible design offers a two-for-one deal and most definitely appeals to our indecisive side when it comes to bedroom décor.
The set is manufactured using 100 per cent BCI rayon from bamboo cotton, which is simply a fancier way of declaring that these sheets are made from bamboo, and bamboo only. ‘Rayon’ refers to the manufacturing process which creates the smooth a as butter material from the bamboo source material.
Oxford pillow cases and fitted sheets are sold separately.
Buy now £88.99, Wayfair
White Bamboo Bedding Set
Another value-for-money set that includes one duvet cover and two pillowcases, this bright white set of 100 per cent viscose bamboo sheets shimmer under soft lighting like a blanket of fresh snow. Certainly fit for royalty, the bedding set comes in a bamboo dustbag for safe and clean storage when not in use. For a truly opulent hotel-like look, why not opt for the slightly pricier dove grey satin stitch bedding set, which features a luxurious double border across both the duvet and the matching pillowcases?
Buy now £100.00, Truly
Ettitude Signature Sateen Duvet Cover
Available in a vast array of colourways inspired by nature, the signature sateen duvet cover is crafted from 100 per cent bamboo lyocell which, according to Etittude, is the only bamboo fabric which is entirely free of harmful chemicals and plastics. With all the special qualities that makes bamboo bedding so desirable – hypoallergenic finish, cooling effects and moisture-wicking properties included – the manufacturing of the signature sheet uses 500 times less water and produces 52 per cent less CO2 than cotton. That means you can rest easy with the knowledge that, while your sumptuous bedding may have cost you a pretty penny, it certainly hasn’t cost the environment.
In addition, the duvet cover arrives pre-washed – meaning that you won’t have to immediately shove your new sheet in the washing machine with oodles of fabric softener to enjoy a soft bedding experience, or remove the chemical, factory smell often noted in cheaper cotton alternatives. All of the dyes used to achieve the range of colours are natural and Oeko-Tex standard 100 certified.
Pillow cases and fitted sheets sold separately.
Buy now £230.00, Ettitude
Bambaw Bamboo Bedding Set
There’s not much that this bedding set from Bambaw can’t do in the way of benefitting your night’s sleep. From climate control to anti-dust mite hypoallergenic care, sensitive skin sufferers will be delighted by this set of silky smooth, 100 per cent bamboo rayon sheets.
Weighing in at just 1.17kg, this is also one of the lightest bamboo double duvet sheets yet. In order to preserve the colour and softness of your brand-new bedding, make sure to wash at 30 degrees or below and tumble dry on a low heat setting. You should also shake out the sheets before drying to avoid wrinkles.
Buy now £62.95, Amazon
Cosy House Luxury Bamboo Bed Sheets 4-piece Set
If you’re looking for the luxury feeling of bamboo bedding but require a more budget-friendly option – you search may just end at Cosy House. The material composition of these sheets contains far less bamboo than high-end manufacturers, with a 60 per cent polyester and 40 per cent bamboo blend. You’ll nevertheless be able to enjoy the temperature regulating and silky-smooth quality of traditional bamboo bedding, just with a slightly less effective though entirely more durable finish.
Scoop up this four-piece set for under £50.
Buy now £69.95, Amazon
Verdict
Our overall winner has got to be Panda bamboo bedding, for its unbeatable softness, luxurious feel and commitment to the environment. Following at a close second is the M&S Cotton Blend Sateen range, and honourable mention goes to the incredibly luxurious bamboo duvet cover from Ettitude.
