Bath Towels

Archived Q&A and reviews ▼

Archived Q&A and Reviews

Bath towels that stay soft and fluffy

April 2005

I'm looking for recommendations for brands of towels that stay soft and fluffy after repeated washing. Recommendations for where to buy the perfect bath towel would be great also. I feel like I am always on a search for a really soft towel and when I think I've found it, as soon as I wash it, it's just like the rest- flat and a little rough. I don't mind paying a bit if the quality is really worth it. Thanks!

I recently purchased the Hotel brand towels from Macy's. They are the softest towels I have found, have laundered well, and I really like the feel. You can watch for sales, as they happen often, making them affordable. Barbara

I have had great luck with Ralph Lauren towels; My son actually commented on them the other day! Macy's usually has a great selection and often a sale to boot. Also, when you wash the towels, use baking soda along with your detergent and don't use fabric softeners or dryer sheets. Good Luck! We love soft towels too!

Recently, I was also looking for towels that stay soft, and found out about ''micro cotton'' towels, with ring spun combed loops. My mother lives in the South and found Noble Excellence ''Micro Cotton'' towels from Dillard's which were impressively soft. Locally, I found that Macy's carries Hotel Collection ''Microcotton'' Luxury towels and have been very pleased with them. Earthsake and Bed, Bath, and Beyond also seem to have micro cotton towels. Another soft towel fan

It's probably not the specific towels that are the problem. They are probably treated with ''softening'' chemicals that wash out, and it can be hard to get all of the detergent out of towelswhen you wash them; that makes them hard and rough. Try using less detergent in your towel load, and add vinegar to your final rinse. I've started using Bio-Kleen detergent (very little), and using vinegar in the rinse cycle, and I can't believe how soft all of our cotton items are now. R.K.

i've been very happy with restoration hardware's paradigm towels. we've had them for a few months and they're still soft and thick. the regular bath towel is also bigger than normal which is nice. finally happy with my towels

I got a bunch of great towels for my wedding almost 2 years ago. They have stayed soft and fluffy and they come in the extra big bath size. They are made by Charter Club and the tag says Micro Cotton, as I recall they were advertised as deluxe hotel-style towels. They were purchased at Macys. Miranda

Believe it or not: JC Penney. The softest towels I have right now are the JCP store brand Egyptian cotton. They've stayed soft longer than the Lands' End and Martex versions that cost three times as much. They do give off a lot of lint until they've been washed a few times. (Little green bits of fuzz all over your face, so nice!) But they stay soft! Holly

You can get detailed reviews of bath towels on Consumer Reports' website (there is a fee to join but I use it so much all year long that it seems very worthwhile to me). They do major laundry tests for softness, color, shrinkage etc. We have Royal Velvet by Fieldcrest and they're still nice n' soft years later, but I don't know where they came from -- they were a wedding present! Hopefully Helpful

I splurged on new towels this year after using shreds for too long. On my mom's advice, I tried a few from Resoration Hardware. Although they are fairly expensive ($28/bath towel), they are the most amazing towels ever. I swear, I felt like I had never really been dry before. Completely worth it!! Finally dry

For soft fluffy towels in great colors, I'd recommend ordering the ''Renaissance'' towels from Curran (http://www.curranonline.com/towels.php). Their prices are pretty good considering the quality. The two hitches are that you have to buy a pack of 6 (which isn't really a problem if you're bathing a family of 4!) and they're not returnable -- so definitely call and ask for swatches before ordering. The salespeople are very friendly and happy to send out as many swatches as you need.

I'm a bit of a towel snob...but have never found any that stay truly soft AND fluffy. I have a set from Restoration Hardware that stays really full and thick after repeated washing. Soft? Well, they're not scratchy, but they're not all snuggly like they were at first. I also have a set and the tag says: Abyss, from the Steven Drew collection. I've seen them online, so you could google them. They are actually pretty soft after almost 3 years, but the loop is really long, so while they're somewhat thick, they're never fluffy. I think maybe the issue is that you're not supposed to use fabric soften on towels because it reduces absorbency, so maybe that's why they don't feel soft? Towel Geek

Hey...read about an awesome turkish towel sale going on in the sf chron home section. It's until May 15. I haven't had a chance to go yet but these towels sound like great quality for an amazing price: In Turkish tradition The Turkish Towel Outlet is dropping prices for its spring sale at its Berkeley outlet today through May 15. The company received the best product award at the New York Home Textile show a few weeks ago, which may be why Ralph Lauren, Waterworks, Laura Ashley, Versace and others sell these towels under their own private label. Expect to save up to half off wholesale during this spring event. Think weddings and pick up a set or two of bath linens for a luxurious gift. I forgot to grab the address but you can find this entire article on sfgate. I know it's on Gillman in Berkeley.

Seeking SOFT deep purple towels & bath mat

Dec 2004

I am searching for deep purple (e.g., eggplant) very soft bath towels with matching hand towels & washcloths and bath mat (goes on the floor for when you step out of the shower). I have looked at Bed, Bath & Beyond and didn't find any there. I would love to be able to actually get to feel the towels before buying them, but am willing to purchase online if a place has a great return policy should I decide I don't care for them when they arrive. Any recommendations? We're in Walnut Creek, but anyplace in the East Bay would be great. Thanks much. Lori

well golly gee, someone recently gave me bath towels and a bath mat that I think meet your description exactly. I'm not even sure if I want them, so they are still sitting in a bag, unused. The towels and mat are a stunning, deep purple, and everything is very plush. I believe my friend got them at sears. There are bath towels, face towels, and wash rags as well as the bath mat. It's by far my favorite color, but they don't match my bathroom particularly well, and I already have so many towels (all random colors and patterns), so I'm still deciding what to do. Check sears, but I also might be willing to sell or trade or something like that if sears doesn't have them anymore. Nanu

Try the Garnet Hill catalog, or online. Soft, and spectacular colors. heidi

Lands' End has great towels, at reasonable prices, and you can make returns at local Sears stores. But my favorite towels right now are from -- surprise! -- JC Penney. Dirt cheap, incredibly soft, hard-to-find deep green color; I've had them long enough now to know they're wearing well. I've no idea whether purple is available at the moment but it's worth a look. Holly