I spent £200 on a luxury bedding refresh, but you can get the exact same set for £50 less

Piglet In Bed's Gingham Linen Blend Bedding gave me the best night of sleep I've ever had. It's cosy, breathable, all-natural, and super soft. Whilst it might be on the pricy side, with their Black Friday sale in full swing, you can buy my favourite pieces for a deep discount. 

Once upon a time, all bedding was made from linen (derived from the flax plant). This beautifully soft, naturally breathable yarn made sweet dreams easy to achieve. However, over the last year, the price of linen shot up and so has demand, making it tougher and tougher to find the sheet spot (sorry) for the best bedding. 

Just when I'd lost hope in finding my dream bed linen, I stumbled across Piglet In Bed. The brand was only founded in 2017, but they've taken the world of sheets by a storm. My wish for soft, breathable bedding — an easy way to make your home cosy — has been granted, over and over again. 

With the help of this magical brand, I’ve finally enjoyed a refreshing night's sleep in some cosy sheets. I got my happy ever after and you can get the same for £50 less. 

Today's best deal

As I've mentioned, Piglet In Bed's Black Friday sale has launched, which means that the cheapest place to invest in these luxurious sheets is from the brand themselves. This means that you'll get all of the lovely, luxury experience, but without paying the full price.

I can't see my bundle in the sale, but you can buy the Gingham Linen Blend Pillowcases for £36; the Gingham Duvet for £111.20, and the Gingham Fitted Sheet for £82.70.

Whilst I do love a completely coordinated look, Piglet In Bed encourages a mix-and-match approach. Have a scroll through their offering, because there are some deliciously cosy, seasonal block colours as well as some other gorgeous designs.

The details

Who would this suit?

All of Piglet In Bed's linen has this irresistible countryside charm about it. I've seen lots of people label the rustic colours and soft sheets 'cottagecore' and they're spot on. The low-maintenance bedding looks great unironed and goes beautifully with warm, homely colours. If you're looking for something cozy, you won't find better designs than Piglet In Bed's.

On a more practical level, they use a cotton-linen yarn blend which is perfect for hot sleepers or those with sensitive skin. I'll go into more details of why they might choose a blend, but essentially, you get to keep the gorgeous feel of linen, but without having to pay a crazy amount for it. All of the dyes are free from harmful chemicals and the bedding is OEKO TEX 100 certified, which means that your sheets will be pure enough for even the most sensitive sleeper.

While we think about who this suits, there is the inescapable matter of price. Whilst Piglet In Bed do sit firmly in the luxury category, but I don't think it's actually too difficult to justify the price tag. Linen and cotton are really durable threads, especially when they haven't been bleached or treated overly harshly. That means that these sheets could be a lifetime investment for you, meaning they work out as a bargain. Given that there's a Black Friday sale on, there's never been a better time to upgrade your bed linen.

If you need a little more tough love on investing in your linen, with bedding, you really get what you pay for. High-quality linen will stay breathable, strong, and beautiful for a lot longer than your polyester sheets. If you have night sweats, you really should invest in some naturally breathable bedding. You'll get better sleep and have a much nicer time sleeping on these. And, I really think sleep if worth it. You spend the equivalent of two whole days a week asleep, which is worth a lot, if you ask me.

What is the composition and why does that matter?

The Piglet In Bed Botanical Green Gingham Sheets are crafted from 55% European linen and 45% long staple cotton. Both linen and cotton bring beautifully breathable, naturally moisture-wicking qualities to the table. There was once a time when the brand crafted their sheets from 100% linen, but they’ve made the switch for a few reasons. 

For one, if you mix linen with cotton, you get to enjoy the effortlessness of linen, but with the softness of cotton. You'll have probably already experienced the scratchiness of fresh linen, which, softens wash after wash. When you blend linen with cotton, the rewards are instant: your bedding is soft but still breathable. Bibbidy bobbity boo. 

The second reason that this is a blend, I imagine, is price. Linen is only getting more and more expensive, especially if you want the ultra-durable, premium European flax linen that these bed sheets are made of. To keep these sheets in the realm of affordability, the brand has made the swap and I think they did us all a few favours in so doing.

Piglet In Bed go a long way towards nurturing all of these properties, so they pre-wash the sheets to keep them extra soft on the bed. They also make sure that the cotton and linen is OEKO-TEX Standard 100 Certified, which is a business award code for super high quality and safe for sleeping on (you'd be horrified at the chemicals that some brands use).

There are some other aspects of the sheet composition that I think ought to be shouted about. All of the bold colours are created without the need for any harmful chemicals and dyes, so the sheets are as safe for your little piglets as they are for the, erm, pot-bellied older pigs of the family. The buttons are made from coconut shell, a sustainable alternative that's considered to be better for the forest than any other options. Piglet In Bed doesn't really shout about this (they're too modest), so I've taken my turn to.

Unboxing

If you haven’t already guessed, almost everything about Piglet In Bed makes me feel like I’m living in a fairytale. When the green gingham bedding arrived on my doorstep, I had to stop myself from looking around for the stork that dropped it off.

All of Piglet In Bed’s packaging is sustainable, thoughtful, and beautiful. My cardboard box was lined in a light pink, offsetting the gorgeously rich colours and print of this set. The duvet cover and pillows come folded and wrapped in twine with a nice note (that I’m promised gets sent to every customer) thanking me for joining the Piglet In Bed community. It’s a choice that I certainly don’t regret.

The bedding feels nice and thick, almost like flannel, but it’s a little lighter. I just knew it was going to be a dream to sleep on, but I had to pace myself. There are lots of other nice touches that need to be appreciated before I can get my sleeping beauty on.

How does it fit on the bed?

Making the bed can be a workout in and of itself, but with the soothing softness of these sheets, I was ready to curl up in them right away. I have a king-size bed, so chose the relevant duvet and pillowcase set. 

You’ll be pleased to know that the duvet is generously sized, so you won’t need to fight to fit even the plumpest duvet into its sheet. Once you've got the duvet in place, there are some gorgeous, yet durable wooden buttons at the base of the sheet, securing your duvet in place. I was concerned that the extra fabric that made it easy to make the bed could leave my duvet a bit lumpy and sparse inside overnight, but it didn’t. My duvet stayed looking (and feeling) fresh, night after night. I would have expected nothing less from my fairytale brand.

The pillows are held in place, envelope style, which is a classic. These easily encased the pillows, even my thicker ones, leaving my bed looking irresistibly cosy and yet smart at the same time. It’s magical. 

What is it like to sleep on?

I’ve already alluded to the fact that the sheets stayed in place and that the composition is pretty Goldlocks-style-perfect, but I have to give you some more details. I just can’t resist. Piglet In Bed has somehow managed to create a material that feels soft and thick, like flannel, but which is also breathable enough to sleep under. 

I’ve had the pleasure of using these from the transition between summer and winter. When we were facing heat waves, I used the duvet cover as a sheet, without any of the actual duvet filling inside. It felt cool to touch and was naturally breathable enough to keep my skin feeling fresh, even if I got hot in the night. 

Then, as a nip came into the air, I brought my duvet out of the cupboard and stuffed it inside the sheets. This feels (and looks) cosy, keeping me warm, night after night, So, it’s fresh, but cosy, soft, yet durable, and effortlessly stylish. Is it magic? Possibly. Is it perfect? Definitely. 

How to clean the bedding

Doing the laundry is never the most exciting part of all this, that award goes to the sleeping. However, it's important that you know how to wash your bedsheets to keep them fresh and to make them last longer too. 

Piglet In Bed has, very kindly, written a complete guide on how to wash bed linen, so I followed this like it was gospel. I washed the sheets at 40 degrees, which the brand says is "warm enough to remove dirt and natural body oils and less energy consumption than higher washing temperatures". They recommend choosing a detergent that matches your bedding i.e. don't use a brightening detergent on coloured bedding. I always use Ecover, since I know that this is gentle on the fibres, the planet, and my skin, so it feels like a good all-rounder. It did a great job in the wash and, even though Piglet In Bed don't recommend using fabric softener, this dried really naturally fluffily, if that makes sense. 

In the summer, I was drying these sheets outside, again, because it's better for the fibres (and my bills). However, Piglet In Bed say that these sheets are fine to tumble dry on a low setting or on a heated airer. 

I actually didn't iron my sheets either, even though I'm a religious ironer of cotton. I liked the way that these fell naturally. The creases felt very authentic, without looking unkempt or scruffy. It's a cosy aesthetic.

How does it compare?

I'm yet to find a linen set of sheets that feels as luxurious as Piglet In Bed's bundle. However, I am also painfully aware that luxury doesn't come cheaply, especially if you're used to sleeping on polyester, or even cotton. Having done some digging around, I have to say that Dunelm's Linen Duvet Cover Set is a great, cheaper alternative. The simple range of designs looks really stylish and I think it could stand up against most of the other premium linen brands out there. 

The Dunelm set is just as low maintenance and lovely as Piglet In Bed's. In fact, it's actually 100% linen, rather than a cotton blend, which some people might prefer. Most of the sacrifices that you make are invisible: your linen isn't European, the dyes aren't natural, and your sheets won't be pre-washed. Most people can live with that, I think.

If you like the sustainable credentials of Piglet In Bed and you don't want to sacrifice on those, Rise & Fall's linen is about £60 cheaper (I know, it's still expensive). The brand offers elegantly luxurious, 100% European flax linen that only gets softer and softer with each wash. The brand is certified as a B Corp, which means that it's met some seriously high standards for social and environmental performance, including the fact that Rise & Fall only use renewable energy in its production process. The difference between this and Piglet In Bed is really only aesthetic and that these sheets come up ever so slightly bigger.

Should you buy it?

With a Black Friday sale live right now, you're not going to find a better price or time to invest in some linen. Those suffering from night sweats, skin sensitivities, or a restless interior design eye will love these sheets. I wouldn't regret buying these at full price, so the only thing you'll kick yourself for is missing the sale.

How we test

At woman&home, all of our experts know that a sweet night of blissful sleep doesn't happen by chance. That's why all of our expert testers are sleep-geeks, who live to sleep and sleep to live.

Before I even started sleeping on these sheets, I did a lot of research. I went into the Bath store and spoke to the staff about the sheets. I quizzed other pattern cutters and material specialists on what makes good linen, why people blend linen and cotton, and what's a reasonable price point. Once I felt that I was some way towards expertise, I felt ready to review the sheets.

I slept on these sheets for months, through cold spells and heat waves. I track my sleep, so I could check up on my quality, whilst making notes on the temperature at which I slept, how deeply I slept, and what it felt like on my skin across every day of the month.

I also slept on lots of other bed linen, so that I could accurately compare this to other premium, less premium, and budget sheets. That way, I can give you a good sense of having shopped around, without you having to do any of the leg work.

At the end of the review, I come to a conclusion on whether I think you should buy it. I give you all the information that I think you should know, including any other options.