Care Tips for Fine SFERRA Bed Linens

Since 1891 SFERRA has been the purveyor of the world’s finest luxury sheets, distributing beautifully refined linen to the hospitality, private label, retail, and wholesale industries. Serving more than 1,000 of the finest luxury and home lifestyle stores worldwide who carry their premium Italian-woven sheeting and top-of-bed supplies, SFERRA is proud to count Neiman Marcus, Bergdorf Goodman, Horchow, and Bloomingdale’s among its stable of discerning customers. SFERRA fine linens are also sold internationally in Canada, Europe, South America and Asia.

As an educational service to its luxury boutique market, SFERRA provides SFERRA UNIVERSITY. “SU” readers are encourages to ask questions about the products and product care. Below is a question posed by a SU reader:

Q: What is the best way to care for your bed linens?

A: Caring for your bed linens can be easy if you follow some simple suggestions. In return, you will prolong the life of your bed linens and preserve their beautiful appearance. While SFERRA bed linens are made from natural fibers that generally can be machine-washed at home, please be sure to read the care label on each item for best results.
Washing – Pre-wash your linens before first use. Separate your linens from other items in the wash, especially those containing polyester, which tends to create pilling, and items with heavy zippers, which can damage the fabric. Separate light and dark colors. Avoid overloading the washing machine, which can cause fibers to break down from excessive abrasion and agitation. You can wash most linens in warm water on a gentle cycle with a cold-water rinse, but be sure to check the care label.
Detergent – Use a mild detergent without added bleach, whiteners, or fabric softeners. Do not pour detergent directly on textiles; rather, add it to the water as the wash tub fills or dilute detergent with water, then add linens. Unless linens are very soiled, you only need to use half the recommended amount of detergent.
Bleaching – Chlorine bleach will weaken fibers and cause the fabric to yellow. If white fabrics need bleaching, use only an oxygen-based bleach.
Drying – While line drying outdoors is gentle, safe, and imbues linens with the fresh scent of the outdoors and natural bleaching of the sun, it is not always practical. You can machine dry most linens on low heat, but be sure to check the care label. Shake out damp linens before placing in the dryer. Never use a high heat setting, which will weaken the fibers, damage the fabric, increase shrinkage, and shorten the life of your linens. Remove items from dryer promptly, while still damp, to minimize wrinkles. Smooth and fold, or press with an iron, if desired.
Ironing – Check to make sure your steam iron is clean – mineral deposits could cause brown spotting. Iron linens while still damp. To restore the lustrous face of sateen fabrics, iron on the reverse side. For embroidered linens, iron them on the reverse side atop a towel to preserve the three-dimensional effect of the embroidery. Use a press cloth to protect delicate lace and cutwork.
Shrinkage – All natural fibers will shrink to some extent, but in most instances we generously overcut our products to allow for shrinkage. Do not wash or, especially, dry linens on a hot setting, which is most likely to damage the fabric and intensify shrinkage. Always follow instructions on care label.
Storing Linens – Store bed linens in a cool, dry, well-ventilated area. Linens stored long-term should be wrapped in white cotton, muslin (old pillow cases work well) or acid-free paper. Avoid storing linens in plastic bags or boxes, which can cause permanent yellowing; natural fibers need to breathe. Cedar chests can also yellow or streak fabrics.

For more information on wholesale fine linens by Sferra call us at 1-800-877-4667 or visit our website. At InnStyle we will provide you with the correct product for your particular property – all at wholesale pricing—with the personal service that you deserve.

Considering Opening Your Own Bed and Breakfast? There are Many Things to Consider First

So you’re thinking about opening up your own bed and breakfast establishment? Congratulations!! You are among a growing number of entrepreneurs who have accepted this calling. So much so that the innkeeper industry, which only had approximately 1,000 properties and hosted a million guests in 1980 has grown to 28,000 properties hosting 50.5 million guests annually by the turn of the millennium, according to the Professional Association of Innkeepers International (PAII).

Certainly your imagination is filled with images of a perfectly restored historic home, romantic rooms that are tastefully appointed, lovingly rejuvenated and re-purposed antiques, the smell of fresh coffee and warm cinnamon buns made from your grandmother’s secret recipe wafting through the kitchen and up the stairs, gently waking your smiling guests…

But wait! The Lavender Room has a clogged toilet and the gentleman from the Queen Ann Cottage just spilled Pinot Noir on your homemade chintz pillow case!

The life of a bed and breakfast owner is undoubtedly a mixed bag of developing and nurturing positive visitor relationships and, well… dealing with flawed and often demanding human beings, known in the industry as “guests”.

Here are just a few of the many important considerations you must be clear on BEFORE you commit to making inn keeping your life’s work:

Look at your home objectively, as if you were a guest in your own home. Sleep in each room and be sensitive to annoyances such as street noise, barking dogs, squeaky bed frames, glare from outside security lights and signage, ticking clocks and other potential irritants. Is there adequate closet space, climate control, space to move around?
There is a growing demand among those who frequent B&B’s for private baths. Although this may not be a deal breaker for all potential guest/customers, adequate sharing arrangements must be made and the rules made clear to guests. Ultimately you may lose free bathroom access in your own home.
How will security be handled? Will you supply keys for the front door and individual rooms, or set times by which the front door will be locked. What if a guest loses a key? Will you require an upfront deposit or charge a lost key fee after the fact? There is not right or wrong answer; you must however have established policies regarding security.
Are there enough year-round activities available to your guests to keep the vacancy rate low and the profit flowing 365 days a year.
And speaking of 365 days a year… are your ready to forfeit your own privacy as many days?

Once you have made the decision to enter the hospitality industry, let the knowledgeable staff at InnStyle be your source for everything you will need for establishing your B&B or inn. Call us at 800-877-4667 and ask for our B&B or Inn start-up guide. Inquire about our wide variety of wholesale bed and breakfast and inn supplies and services. Let us assist you in selecting the perfect bedding and linens to suit your unique needs, saving you time and money. We will guide you about the items and quantities to make your opening day run smoothly. Of course we will send you samples to see, test and touch.

We are certain you will not find another company as accommodating as InnStyle in providing you with the personal service you need to provide the accommodations your guests expect.

Choosing Bedding for Use in a Bed and Breakfast Need Not Evoke Angst

With so many choices available when purchasing bedding for the bed and breakfast or hospitality industry, it can feel overwhelming to the point of complete brain-melt down, thus contributing to a case of decision-avoidance-syndrome. Buying bedding need not be such a drama-inducing experience however, as long as one adheres to a few simple and basic bedding caveats.

At first blush, “loft” seems like bedding industry specific term meaning, well… I didn’t quite frankly know. Loft, I’ve come to discover however, is not such a mystery after all and simply refers to the quality, aka “fill power”, of the down products used in bedding stuffing. For example, a down comforter that possesses fluffy masses of high quality down, with comparably fewer ounces of inferior quality types of down, is said to have high “fill power”, otherwise known as “loft”. This higher quality comforter is subsequently lighter and warmer than an inferior comforter with less fill power.
When deciding on a blanket purchase, one needs to be clear about the intended use of the blanket. For example, for use in the summer months choose among easy-to-care-for cotton or thermal varieties. These types allow air to pass through and are more comfortable for the warm-weather guest. For cooler weather, the finest-quality and warmest choice would be merino wool. Synthetic blankets on the other hand are less expensive, easier to wash, and are non-allergenic–but offers less in terms of warmth.
Flannel notoriously shrinks. When purchasing flannel sheets, make sure the label indicates it has been pre-shrunk. Otherwise, unless your mattresses go on a diet, the sheets will cease to fit over time.
For the crafty inn keeper, avoid the expense of purchasing a fancy duvet cover by easily making your own. Purchase two flat sheets and simply sew them together on three sides (inside-out, of course!). Sew grommets into the forth side and complete the look by enclosing the comforter with decorative ribbon. Viola! You have created an inexpensive, practical and easy to maintain duvet cover your customers will notice and appreciate.
When filling a decorative sham, buy an inexpensive queen-size pillow. The result is a decadently over-stuffed sham, with an aesthetic quality that only looks expensive.

When purchasing hospitality supplies in general, and bed and breakfast supplies specifically, there are purchases that you must splurge on, and purchases that you can skimp on. The trick is to understand how these decisions will impact the comfort and satisfaction of the inn customer, which ultimately impacts the comfort and satisfaction of your wallet.

For more information on our bedding or any other wholesale supplies we offer, please contact us at 267-354-6020 or toll-free at 1-800-877-INNS (4667).

Bed Bug Protection and the Bed and Breakfast Supplies Industry

Warning: This Post Is Not For The Squeamish

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania has much to be proud of.

It is a unique city comprised of neighborhoods, each with its own identity. The quality of life is affordable. Sports fans are the most fiercely loyal (and unabashedly honest) in the country. Several of the nation’s finest colleges and universities calls Philadelphia home. The art and music scene is world-class. There are countless fine-dining experiences and even more amazing neighborhood restaurants and cool diners to satisfy any palate.

Hoagies. Cheesesteaks. Pretzels.

And then there’s the history. It goes without saying.

However, Philadelphia has just been bestowed a rather dubious “honor”, overtaking New York City, as being the most bed bug infested city in the nation, according to pest control giant, Terminix. Miami, Houston, Dallas, San Francisco and Washington DC have also been named as cities with a growing bed bug infestation problem.

In Philadelphia, as well as across the country, the rampant bed bug issue has become a major source of concern for the hospitality industry. Once eliminated by the use of DDT (which was banned for use in the US in 1972), bug bed infestation has grown steadily due to greater international travel, the use of non-effective treatments to which the pests have now become resistant, and a general disregard of the advancing epidemic over the years.

InnStyle, the source for innkeeper supplies and linens since 1952, offers many solutions to the bed and breakfast and the hospitality industry. For example, InnStyle carries products to enclose and defend vulnerable soft surfaces from the pests, such as mattress and box spring encasement, anti bed bug sheets and pillow protectors. InnStyle also carries Rest Easy Bug Spray, an environmentally green and all-natural product proven to kill bed bugs and prevent infestation. It is easy for hospitality staff to use and has a natural cinnamon scent.

InnStyle also offers tips on how to defend the hospitality property from this bed bug epidemic. Please visit their website to take advantage of this helpful tip sheet at: https://www.innstyle.com/images/BEDBUGSmay609.pdf.

With diligent attention and protective products from InnStyle, the hospitality property or bed and breakfast proprietor need not fear that these pests will negatively impact their business.

Even in Philly.

Contact InnStyle for more information on how to protect your property with Bed Bug Protection – Call us at 800-877-INNS (4667)

The Hospitality Industry And the “New Economy”

With the economy reportedly heating up as rapidly as the weather, the financial forecast for the hospitality industry is hotter than it has been in years. This is not to suggest however, that innkeepers and hoteliers can now sit back and wait for business to effortlessly roll in the door. In the wake of the new economy that has emerged since the recent recession, travelers have different (higher) expectations of your value proposition. Upping the ante even more, advances in technology, mainly social media, have put travelers in the driver’s seat, thus ensuring that those in the hospitality industry who fail to heed the traveling public’s discerning demands will be left behind the progression.

Examples of the consequences of the new economy on the hospitality industry include:

After years of delaying capital expenditures, the new economy demands that innkeepers and hoteliers renovate, upgrade and otherwise beautify their property. In this age of Facebook, Yelp, Pinterest and Instagram, one poor review with a corresponding picture to support the claim, can cause a business owner countless reservations and dollars.
Online bookings will continue to grow and become the mainstay of the industry. More than 114 million people will research travel online this year, with 94 million actually making a reservation online. This accounts for more than 50% of all travel being booked online exclusively. This number is expected to continue to rise every year. A well-designed website with an easy to navigate reservation system is an essential tool for anyone in the hospitality industry to survive in the new economy.
More and more travel research and bookings are taking place on mobile devises. According to Forrester Research, mobile channel bookings increased four-fold between 2008 and 2010. Google is projecting that mobile access (i.e. tablets and smartphones) will overtake PC access by 2013. It is imperative that innkeepers and hoteliers optimize their websites for mobile usage in order to capture these mobile transactions.
Social media has revolutionized how business is conducted. 22% of the travel industry currently uses social media as a revenue generating tool. This number is projected to rise to 27% within the next 5 years. Furthermore, social media presence is integral in search engine algorithms, with Facebook’s posts integrated into Bing search and Google+ integrating into the Google search engine. It is crucial that innkeepers and hoteliers embrace social media as a means to drive traffic to their most important business asset—their web presence.

New technology demands that the hospitality industry become “social” and engages their customers online as a major component of their marketing strategy. The onus is squarely on the innkeeper or hotelier to convince the potential customer that they offer the best value for the travel dollar via the internet; by virtue of a well-designed website with a mobile application and an intentional social media presence. The good news is that these hard-won loyal customers will then become your best, most vocal “sales team”, spreading the word via viral marketing that yours is the best destination for their travel-dollar.

For Personal Service at Wholesale Pricing, contact InnStyle. From wholesale bedding to fine linens we can help you upgrade and beautify your inn or hotel.
Call us at 800-877-INNS (4667)

Pilling Got You Down? Consider Percale

Percale is defined as a fine woven cotton cloth, used primarily for sheets and industrial uses, has 17th century French origins (ooh la la!). The word itself is believed to be derived from the Persian pargālah, meaning rag.

Why is percale weave, such as Grande Hotel, Orlo, Celeste or Sereno, a good choice for customers who yearn for the smooth, sleek feel of pill-fee sheets? The answer is simple, if one has just a little education on the nature of fabric. It is a common, yet mistaken belief that the answer relates to the fabric content (i.e. cotton, polyester or a blend thereof). Not true. Rather, the solution is hidden deep in the core construction of the fabric and in the length of the fibers themselves. Simply put, the longer the fabric (known in the industry as long staple) and the tighter the twist of the yarn, the more resistant to pilling.

Here’s why:
Pilling occurs when fibers in the fabric break, tangle, and “ball up.” The shorter the fibers used in the fabric, the more likely the chance for breakage, leading to tangling and inevitably to pilling. The shorter and more brittle the fiber, the more breakage (pilling) will occur.

And what exactly causes fiber to break and getting intertwined in itself? In the case of lesser quality sheet (i.e. that which is constructed with short, brittle fibers) the simple act of using the sheets as intended, that is sleeping, causes fibers to snap, twist and pill. As an individual sleeps, the predictable act of tossing, turning and moving against the short, weak fibers creates friction which, over time, causes fibers to break. This is why fitted sheets tend to pill more heavily at the foot of the bed, the very place where the most abrasive and recurrent movement occurs.

It should be noted that even high quality sheets, such as Sferra’s fine linens, can pill without given correct care. Sferra uses only long staple (long length) fibers; however, even the finest of fabrics can pill without proper handling and laundering. The most common “abuse” such fine linens endure is the use of chlorine bleach and excessive fabric softener (which can weaken the fibers), followed by drying at high heat levels (which can cause fibers to break). Weakening + Breakage = Pilling.

Fine linens must be handled like the investment that they are by following the prescribed care instructions. For the care of Sferra’s fine linens, we recommend a short wash cycle with gentle detergent. Then, use a low-heat setting during the drying cycle and remove the bedding while still slightly damp. Please take note that even the agitation of the washing machine or the tumbling of the dryer can cause breakage, so never overfill the washer or dryer to avoid additional friction during these cycles. Also, avoid laundering your sheets with other items, such as towels, for the high nap on a towel may cause a breakdown of the cotton fibers. To be safe, launder sheets separately.

Your fine linens will give you years of satisfactory, sleek, smooth use by following a few simple rules. Although its origins maybe in the word “rag”, if handled correctly, your fine percale linens will not be reduced to such a state. Even the most discerning Persian would agree.

For more information on our cotton Percale sheets or our best selling 600 thread count ‘wrinkle free’ sheets please contact us at 267-354-6020 or toll-free at 1-800-877-INNS (4667).

Why Fabric Softener is Not Recommended for Use in the Hospitality Industry

Fabric softener is a conditioner, made of oils, waxes and fragrances, designed to coat fibers with a thin layer of chemicals, making fabric softer to the touch and preventing static cling. In use since the 1930’s, the demand for fabric softener increased dramatically in the 1950’s with the introduction of synthetic fibers and detergents, as well as the modern washing and drying machines. The result of these advances was clean but scratchy fabrics that were less than appealing to wear, or in the case of sheets, sleep between.

Although popular for home use, Fabric softeners may not be a good choice in the hospitality industry. The build-up of chemicals left behind by repeated use of fabric softener can damage the fabric, causing yellowing and reducing the absorbency of towels. Most good quality all-cotton towels do not need to be treated with fabric softener and with repeated washings and dryings, will become softer naturally.

The chemical build-up of fabric softener also clogs the pores of Egyptian cotton sheets, preventing them from breathing, thus decreasing the luster and gloss that customers come to expect when staying at a quality hotel or bed and breakfast. Like towels, sheets will become softer with repeated laundering without the assistance of the clogging, water-repelling residue found in fabric softeners.

One way to expedite the softening process of towels and sheets, without resorting chemical agents, which is often highly scented and thus toxic to many sensitive customers, is to “beat” your laundering despair away – literally. Plastic dryer balls, available to purchase through distributors that provide bed and breakfast supplies, wholesale hotel supplies and hospitality supplies (or in most large chain stores), are a perfect alternative. These balls pummel the fabric while in the drying process, increasing fluffiness and reducing static cling as it tumbles.

Another excellent method to soften clothes without commercial fabric softener is using 1/8-1/4 cup vinegar in the last rinse…it softens and leaves linens fresh without any scent or fragrance as it removes any detergent left in the laundry.

Choose Oxygen-Based Bleach when Laundering Sheets for Hotel and B & B Use

There is no doubt that cotton is the most used textile fiber in the world, especially when it comes to the manufacture of bed sheets. As any inn-keeper or hotel supplies manager knows, guests love slipping into bed when a set of crisp, freshly-laundered cotton sheets await. The ratings given by guests about the cleanliness and quality of your sheets can make or break a business, thus the choice in how to launder sheets for your guests is a vital one. It begs the question, what is the best and most efficient way to keep my sheets clean and bright, with that firm yet soft feeling that my guests demand, while increasing the longevity of my sheet-investment?

The answer is simple: Don’t use Chlorine bleach! Bleaching weakens the cellulosic fibers, actually causing whites to deteriorate and look yellow and dingy (of course it goes without saying what becomes of colored fabric when bleach is introduced). Because of the damage to the fabric over time on a cellular level, the life of the sheets is shortened, thus requiring more frequent replacement than if bleach wasn’t used. Also, conventional bleach products are a harmful respiratory irritant that can cause burns to the skin and is dangerous when used in a bed and breakfast that hosts children and pets (birds can die from the fumes of bleach).

What then can someone responsible for hospitality supplies choose to launder sheets that will maintain the desired look and feel? Oxygen-based bleaches are an excellent alternative. They are chemically different than chlorine bleach and they are safer workers and customers with chemical sensitivities, is gentle to the skin and friendlier to the environment.

Oxygen bleach works very well in removing soil and organic matter and doesn’t damage the fabric, even after repeated use, and is safe for whites and colors. Oxygen bleach comes in power or liquid under many different brand labels and is the preferred choice in commercial sheet care.