I'm not entirely sure why, but my mattress is big. It's the deepest one I've owned by far and, until recently, that meant that fitted sheets never stay in place, and even ping off during the night, disrupting my sleep.
However, during my reviews of the best bedding brands recently, I was introduced to extra-deep sheets, and they solved all my problems. I now swear by my deep fitted sheets from The White Company, but I recently spotted that Habitat has an extra-deep fitted sheet, too. It's worth mentioning that the former will set you back £65 for a king-size sheet, while Habitat's comes in at a cool £28.
I was already keen to try it — it's Egyptian cotton and has a 400 thread count, which both sound promising — but then I also spotted it has hundreds and hundreds of 5-star reviews across its different sizes, and they're glowing.
"Lovely crisp sheet," says one, "feels more expensive than it is."
"It is hard to find high count 100% cotton sheets," another reviewer says. "They are so comfortable and soft for sleeping — don't want to wake up! Will definitely recommend and will purchase again."
Given I'm used to the more expensive fitted sheets from the likes of The White Company, Piglet in Bed, and Rise & Fall, could these Habitat ones really live up to the hype? Here's how I rated them across the two most important factors.
Grip
It's the reason I've bought an extra-deep fitted sheet in the first place, so let's talk about depth and grip. Habitat's offering definitely has the depth part covered, and it does have strong, elasticated corners that hold it in place. I slept on these sheets for three nights as part of this test, and didn't need to re-adjust the sheet once during that time.
However, there are some limitations with Habitat's deep sheets that come with the price. Yes, the elastic is good now, but often this is what fails on sheets with regular washing. Some of my other, more expensive deep fitted sheets include other elements to ensure your sheet won't budge from your mattress, including rubber grips along the sides and corners. One of my very favorite sheets I have is from Rise & Fall, which fits deep mattresses as standard and has these strong grips along each side of the sheet's elastic. However, for the price tag difference: £70 vs Habitat's £28, I'm more than happy with how Habitat's sheets hold up.
Comfort
When I first took these sheets out of their packaging, I was a little surprised they had a sateen sheen to them. It's not my favorite finish to look at (or feel if I'm honest), and it hadn't referred to them as such. However, they're undeniably soft to the touch, but keep just enough structure so that your bed doesn't look messy once they've been slept in.
With a 400 thread count, these sheets are somewhere in the ideal range for comfortable bedding (higher than 600, say, and they can start to feel a little stiff). There's a lightweight quality and breathability to the Egyptian cotton sheets that make them a dream to sleep in, too. They feel cool to the touch, which is a good sign that you're about to sleep in something that helps regulate your temperature.
A lot of bedding brands are now offering deep fitted sheets, while others have incorporated them as their standard for their sheet ranges. If you want something with a bit more design flair than this standard white fitted sheet, here's what I'd try.
M&S's deep sheet is cheaper and available in more colors, but isn't a 100% cotton sheet.
John Lewis' deep sheets might also be Egyptian cotton, but they have a lower thread count.
If you're willing to spend on a fitted sheet, this one from Rise & Fall would be my recommendation.
Of course, this is a very practical approach to bedding, and you might not find deep fitted sheets for every bedding trend you want to embrace, but a sheet that won't stay in place is no one's friend.
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