I did hear from Jason at Linoto on Sunday via phone.
I want to finish out the story of all that has transpired. Iâm relaying this last bit of information as purely factual and without any commentary or inflection; just the conversation between the two of us.
In regard to the amount of time it took to receive replies from Linoto, Jason stated that they were a small 6 person company, he is the only one who checks and answers the emails, and he was ill with the flu during this time period. I replied that I appreciated and shop from small companies, was sorry for his illness, but that I would have been understanding and patient had he or another employee shot me a quick email stating that he was ill and would get back to me later. I also mentioned that, from a consumerâs standpoint, silence âlooks badâ and makes it seem like I am being ignored, while a quick reply informing me of his illness would be appreciated and acceptable.
In regard to the hole in the sheet, Jason informed me that there was NO defect in his linen products, and that the linen used to make my sheets came from Belgium and was the same purchased by Sferra for their linen products. He wanted to make it clear that there is not a defect in his production process OR his material. He mentioned that the reviews I had read of the other customers who had holes were in his non-Belgian sheet line and that he had replaced some of those sheets for the customers.
Lastly, he informed me that this was a case of âmanaging expectationsâ for the longevity of linen and that a fitted sheet that you wash every week and sleep on underwent greater duress than your great grandmotherâs linen tablecloth that was seldom used and passed down for generations. He then stated that he saw no recourse but to replace the fitted sheet for me unless I saw another action. I replied with the questions of âcan I expect this to happen again in 2 years?â and âwould using a non-fitted sheet for a bottom sheet alleviate some of the pressure (tautness) that may contribute to the wear?â He stated that he did not know if it would happen again in two years, reminded me that I needed to âmanage my expectationsâ in regard to linen, and thought that a non-fitted sheet would not make a difference to its longevity and durability.
Lastly, I replied that I originally sought a replacement, however this may well be a case of âmanaging my expectationsâ and, in light of that, perhaps linen sheets âjust werenât for me,â so was leaving the decision entirely up to him about whether he wanted to replace the sheet. Jason assured me that he would replace the fitted sheet.
Iâm glad that he was able to connect with you. I did receive a response from me email to him as well.
Unfortunately, this is sometimes the case with small companies, where only one person is available to handle specific tasks, and can be especially difficult under certain circumstances (illness, death in family, etc.). I agree that I also like to receive feedback as soon as possible, and you said you sent two emails within seven days to get one reply, and then waited a few more days for the next reply. Obviously some larger companies have more staff to take care of this than smaller ones, but in the end Iâm glad that you two were able to get in touch with each other.
While this is not a forum on linens, the small amount of learning that Iâve been able to conduct the past few days shows a quite large variance in the length of time that, generally, a linen fitted sheet lasts, and it is usually a much shorter period of time as compared to the top sheets. Just like with a mattress, there are a multitude of variables involved, with everything from the frequency of washing, the water temperature, detergent being used, activity upon the sheetsâŚeven down to the length of someoneâs toenails! And to think I thought I had it hard providing information about mattresses. And of course, this is not taking into account the type of linen being compared.
Iâm glad to hear that they are offering to replace the fitted sheet to you. âManaging your expectationsâ is a phrase I also like to use, and hopefully in your conversation the information you exchanged will help you to be comfortable with your own expectations about this particular product from this company. In cases like this, the producer of the product will generally be your best guidance as to the performance of the product over time.
Thank you, again, for assisting with my issue, Phoenix. Iâm pretty sure that the amount of time you spend helping others on this forum exceeds the amount of time I work each week! Just as I enjoy a quality product, I also enjoy quality service. I must say that the assistance you provide and the knowledge you have aggregated and provided to us for free is truly exemplary. So, well done! All of us forum members should chip in and get you a Christmas gift basket!
For my own care of the linen, my sheets were washed about every 10 days (should account for about 85-90 washes total in the time allotted) in a front loading machine on Permanent Press in cold water with LeBlanc Linen wash. Drying was always by clothes line (wonder if winter weather has any effect on degradation) and never by dryer; pretty much followed the manufacturerâs recommendations to the âT.â Bed usage typically accounted for sleeping, reading, and TV watching (yea yea, youâre not supposed to do that in bed). Only factor I could surmise that may have led to any increased stress on the fibers would be that the sheet was typically âtautâ on the bed. Jason had replaced my originally ordered fitted sheet as it did not fit the bed; the new sheet did fit, but with caveat of being a rather tight fit requiring a certain order as to which corner it went on first.
Believe it or not, I did wonder about the nail thing even before the hole developed.
Itâs also possible that linen might wear on itself due to its rough texture. I can wash my sheets and make the bed in a just-cleaned immaculate room and Iâll see a thin coating of dust on the furniture within 20 minutes of making the bed. Just theories.
Anyway, thanks for your assistance. Iâm considering a CozyPure Mattress with some nice Egyptian cotton (can you get the real stuff in the States?) in the future. I just want to sleep like when I was a kidâŚ
I did come across something â a book by Chery Mendelson called Home Comforts. There is a section in this book that speaks to bedding and does talk about linen. She mentions to avoid detergents with whitening agents and to use ones that are mild. UV can degrade linen over time, but it is more resistant than cotton. I havenât read the whole book but it seems quite interesting and is full of information.
I think this conclusion is the most logical. I have ruined a few fitted sheets that were very tight on a mattress by the way I grabbed them to pull over the âfinal cornerâ. Over time I weakened the area where I always grabbed it. Added to this, with the sheet being taut, extra stress was placed on it when my body weight was applied.
Hah â this causes more holes in sheets than most people realize. Nails can be sharp! :blink:
