How to Keep Your Bamboo Sheets White

How to Keep Your Bamboo Sheets White

Buying white bed sheets can seem intimidating. Is the airy aesthetic worth the constant vigilance for stains and discolouration?

The short answer is yes.

White bed sheets are an everyday luxury to be enjoyed, not feared. If you are considering upgrading your bedding game with a set of white sheets but worried they will gradually turn yellow, then we have excellent news.

Here is your ultimate guide to keeping white bamboo sheets bright, soft, comfortable and stain-free for years.

What causes stains on white bed sheets?

Bamboo bed sheets absorb moisture from your body. All sheets do; however, 100% bamboo fabric absorbs more moisture than inferior materials like cotton and polyester blends.

While you sleep, your sheets soak up a lot from the surface of your skin:

  • Sweat, especially for hot sleepers
  • Oils
  • Skincare products
  • Moisturising creams

The moisture particles travel through bamboo’s naturally absorbent fibres, eventually evaporating into the night air. But some residue is left behind.

Discolouration is common. You might even be surprised to learn that dyed sheets are more prone to discolouration than natural sheets, because the fibres open up to receive dye during the application process.

How to remove discolouration and stains from white bamboo sheets

In most cases, sweat and body oil disappear in the weekly wash cycle. However, built-up or stubborn stains can linger even after a wash. In these cases, you can rescue your white sheets with a gentle spot treatment or by soaking your sheets before washing.

Regular washing

Washing bamboo bed sheets every 1-2 weeks is an effective, easy way to keep sweat and oil stains from building up. Follow our guide to caring for bamboo sheets to get the best results and keep your sheets astonishingly soft for years to come.

Pre-soaking

Try soaking your white bamboo sheets before the next wash if you notice discolouration between washes. Add a small amount of mild detergent to a tub and let the sheets soak for a few hours.      

The longer you leave your sheets to soak, the cleaner they will come out. Run a cold wash cycle after soaking, and you should be stain (and worry) free.


Stain remover

Using harsh stain removers or bleach will damage the fibres that keep your bamboo sheets soft, strong and absorbent. So while you might succeed in removing a stain, we don’t recommend using harsh stain removers.

Instead, soak the stained area for 15 minutes with a small amount of 3% hydrogen peroxide, an antiseptic versatile enough to double as a mild bleaching agent.

Spot treatments

Treating minor stains like pet stains, or synthetic oil might require a different approach if hydrogen peroxide is not working. In these cases, mix white vinegar with water in a 1:4 ratio. Soak the affected area for a few minutes before washing as usual on a cold cycle.

Enjoy bright, white sheets for longer

There are few feelings than slipping between soft, cool, comfortable bamboo sheets at the end of a long day. Except, perhaps, knowing that you can enjoy that feeling without worrying about life getting in the way.

Find more tips on caring for bamboo bed sheets on our blog, or discover OLARA 100% natural bamboo bedding sets in five colourways, including white and natural.

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