Linen has made a comeback. Cultivated since Europe’s Bronze Age, the Romans used flax for food and textiles. Today, there’s a resurgence in the popularity of flax linen, with designers applying swathes of colour and creativity to create waves of stunning homewares and textiles that are low impact and sustainable—healthier for the environment and our bodies, too.

At Sömn Home, linen’s infinitely sustainable quality made it a go-to in our mission to create circular homewares and textiles. Our 100% linen sheets and bedding sets break down seamlessly at the end of life. Combined with mindful production processes, which for us include carefully selected dyes and wind-generated electricity, linen has the potential to be carbon-negative, especially since the flax is made from sequestered carbon during growth and cultivation stages. Unsurprisingly, the fabric’s surging popularity has led to an influx of imitations–typically poly blends and synthetics. To determine if your linen bedding is the real deal, we’ve compiled a list of helpful tips. 

1) Touchably softer with time

At Sömn, our premium bedding is constructed for comfort. While box-fresh linen can feel coarse, our linens are made from 100% pure European flax and long staple yarns spun using a low-impact process for a refined luxe feel. Grown and processed without harsh chemicals or pesticides, there’s nothing to rub you the wrong way. Additionally, washing smooths the natural fibres for added softness with time and a handsome durability, slightly springy to the touch.

2) Untamed, bohemian beauty

Sömn sheets, crafted from 100% pure linen, possess a soft, lived-in silhouette with subtle natural creases and rumples, which are the signature of our high yarn quality and stone washing process. Low-quality linens often feel stiff with heavier creases. Authentic linen will always crease because there are no synthetic fibres to snap it back into shape. However, the tactile difference is palpable. At Sömn, our linens offer machine-washable, no-iron necessary, all-season comfort for more luxury with less upkeep. Just wash, dry, and enjoy.

3) Weight and see

Linen has a low thread count and GSM – grams per square meter—the metric by which fabric is weighed. However, the fabric remains strong and durable, resistant to tears even when wet. At Sömn, we opted for medium-weight linen constructed from pure Baltic flax for heritage-quality bedding made to last for years. Combined with hand-quality sewing and finishing details, Sömn’s sheets offer a comforting weight with greater strength and breathability than natural cotton.

4) The mark of perfection

Hold your sheets to the light. If you notice tiny variations—small lumps where the threads thicken, there’s a good chance you’re looking at the real deal. Known in the industry as slubs, these barely perceptible bumps are the mark of true plain-weave linen. Lower-end linen sheets will appear thinner, with a cardboard paper-like texture. Run your hands over the sheets and marvel at the imperfect perfection of pure linen bedding.

5) Cool to the touch

One of flax linen’s most remarkable properties is its naturally temperature-regulating. Pure linen, created from genuine European flax, feels slightly cool to the touch—it’s naturally sweat-wicking, capable of absorbing moisture and then releasing it into the air again. When used in bedding, premium linen also contains antibacterial and hypoallergenic properties for deeper comfort and ease of mind, a dreamy combination for a truly peaceful sleep.

Linen sheet sets, pure in nature and form

At Sömn Home, we aim to create next-generation luxury bedding and homewares to make our world a better place. We‘re pleased to see flax, cultivated for thousands of years, become a real trend in sustainability. We believe modern manufacturing processes and increased demand for authentic flax linen will play a significant role in bringing sustainable products of uncompromising quality and beauty into our lives for the benefit of our own well-being and that of the planet.