Lavish Linens: How the Finest Italian Sheets Stack Up

We'll admit it: We are name-droppers here at Oyster. We love us some some soft Frette and Sferra sheets.


So what exactly makes for soft, plush, feels-like-you're-sleeping-on-a-cloud linens? As we learned from the hilarious Aziz Ansari, thread count isn't everything. Hotels love to brag about it, but other factors like fiber quality, yarn size, and finishing matter just as much. With the luxury brands below, travelers can be sure to get a decadent night's sleep on a high-quality weave.


The best sheets tend to come from Italy, so to help you distinguish these brands we associated each with an elite Italian sports car.


Anichini

• If these sheets were a sports car, they'd be: A Maserati -- grown-up luxury with a lot under the hood
• What makes them special: One of the few companies to use top-of-the-line materials like voile, silk twill, and double weight sateen; specialty fabrics like Muga silks from Assam and Tibetan cashmere add a touch of the exotic
• Where you can sleep on them: Koa Kea Resort Hotel Poipu Beach; One Bal Harbour Resort & Spa
  
  
  Pratesi
  
  
• If these sheets were a sports car, they'd be:A Pagani -- the most expensive car you've never heard of
• What makes them special: Got its start over 100 years ago making linens for the Italian aristocracy; invented "Paradise" cotton linen, with thread so fine it takes a week to make 10 meters
• Where you can sleep on them: The St. Regis Washington, D.C.

400-thread-count Mascioni sheets make the Plaza's beds feel heavenly soft.


Mascioni

• If these sheets were a sports car, they'd be: A Lancia -- classic, understated luxury
• What makes them special: Develops new techniques at in-house lab; complex finishing treatment results in less wrinkling and increased durability
• Where you can sleep on them: The Plaza; Fairmont Heritage Place, Ghirardelli Square
  
  
  Sferra
  
  
• If these sheets were a sports car, they'd be: An Alfa Romeo -- bold, stylish, and relatively accessible
• What makes them special: Started in 1891 as a producer of Venetian lace cuffs and collars; design team gets inspiration from travels to Italy, India, France and Germany
• Where you can sleep on them: Surrey Hotel; The Cooper Square Hotel; Thompson Hotels (60 Thompson; Thompson LES, etc.)
  
  
  Frette
  
  
• If these sheets were a sports car, they'd be: A Ferrari -- also the most recognizable brand name in its category
• What makes them special: Became Official Purveyors to the Italian Royal family in the late 1800s; has produced custom linens with family crests for over 500 aristocratic families; provided table linens for banqueting rooms on the Titanic
• Where you can sleep on them: Over 8,000 hotels around the world, including The Pierre; Mandarin Oriental, Boston; Crosby Street Hotel; The Beverly Hills Hotel; and Fifteen Beacon
  
  
  Fili D'Oro

The Peninsula, one of LA's top luxury hotels, outfitts its beds with 300-thread-count Fili D'oro sheets.

• If these sheets were a sports car, they'd be: A Lamborghini -- also an exclusive luxury product of northern Italy
• What makes them special: Uses traditional Northern Italian weaving techniques; materials made with fine Egyptian cottons and Flanders Flax
• Where you can sleep on them: The Peninsula Beverly Hills; Mandarin Oriental New York; The London West Hollywood
  
  
  Rivolta Carmignani
  
  
• If these sheets were a sports car, they'd be: A Bugatti* -- elite, well-made, and powerful
• What makes them special: Bed linens are made of pure Egyptian cotton, pure linen, or union linen; designed to withstand frequent washings
• Where you can sleep on them: The Carlyle; Four Seasons Washington D.C.
  
  
  *Bugatti is now owned by Volkswagen and is technically German, but it was founded by an Italian.
  
  
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