Cultiver Bed Linen Review for 2022
Do Cultiver sheets mean you’ll never get out of bed again? Probably.
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In this guide
If there’s one positive to this pandemic it’s that life has slowed down a little. Slow mornings and late evenings have meant more time spent in bed. For me (Cosier hands-on reviewer Ali, hi!) and mine, the extra time at home has encouraged us to invest in a few luxuries that we miss from travel. Think espresso coffee and hotel linen. So, I was excited to be given the chance to try out Cultiver’s range of flax linen bedding.
- The amazing colour range. So many earthy pastels that would look luxurious on any bed.
- The breathability and temperature regulation of the flax linen.
- Build your own customised set. Thank you Cultiver for your Insta inspiration.
- Flax linen is an environmentally sustainable choice, using less water and pesticides than other fabrics.
- The sheet and duvet bundle doesn’t include a top sheet. This needs to be added to your cart separately.
- Cultiver doesn’t offer a lifetime guarantee on their products. They have complimentary returns and exchanges, but these must be started within 30 days of receipt and the product must be unused and unwashed. Their website does note that they’ll rectify faulty products however, as a consumer it would be great to have more explicit reassurance that faults arising within a product’s reasonable lifetime would be taken care of.
Buying process
Cultiver has an easy to use tool on their website which allows you to build your own sheet and duvet set in colours of your choice. Their size chart was handy and worth referring to as bed sizing is not as universally consistent as we would like to believe. I liked that they had an option for an extra deep king mattress.
The bundle comes with a fitted sheet, duvet cover and two standard pillowcases, with the choice to add extra pillowcases at the end. A minor negative was that their bundle doesn’t come with a top sheet, so you need to add this separately if required.
The most difficult part of the buying process was deciding on colours. Cultiver has a beautiful range of earthy pastel tones from which you can choose – up to 17 choices were available in queen and king sizes. If you need inspiration, their Instagram has so many examples of pared-back and luxurious styling. Colour swatches can also be requested for the cost of shipping.
Unboxing
The package arrived on our doorstep less than 48 hours after placing the order. This was a pleasant surprise, given I had been waiting almost three weeks for other online deliveries. The product arrived in a simple non-descript cardboard box with the Cultiver name stamped along one side. I loved their simple and elegant branding.
What’s in the box
Opening this box felt similar to unwrapping a luxury birthday gift. The inside of the box was printed with a charming floral image and the contents were wrapped neatly in paper. Each component came with its own drawstring bag made of the same colour and material. I’ve already made good use of these bags for storing household goods and as packing cells when we go away. The box also contained an envelope with cards detailing how to care for our new sheets. Cultiver’s branding is simple, elegant and luxurious. Every element felt carefully curated and of a high quality. And the absence of any plastic got a big tick from me.
Look and feel
After all the agonising over colours, I wasn’t disappointed. I’d chosen the natural colour for the fitted sheet and pillowcases, and forest green for the duvet cover and extra pillowcases. The colours were an accurate representation of those on their website and complimented each other. My previously bland bedroom now felt more reminiscent of a boutique hotel. The naturally wrinkled nature of linen also meant my bed now looked as good made as it did not (its usual default).
As a long-time cotton sleeper, I wasn’t sure how I would find the feel of flax linen. Because the threads of linen are generally thicker and longer than cotton, I had heard they could take a few washes to soften up. Cultiver employs a natural enzyme wash to speed up this process so their sheets are ready to go from day one. They felt amazing to sleep on. The feel was soft, but not silky. Slightly coarse, but not rough. Cultiver’s linen doesn’t hug your skin in the same slippery way that cotton does which seemed to allow better temperature regulation and breathability. For those like me – who like a little bit of weight but easily overheat during summer – this linen will provide the perfect solution. I ditched the duvet over the hottest weeks of summer and slept effortlessly during these nights with just a top and bottom sheet.
User friendliness
The fitted sheet has a relaxed fit and comes with a continuous elastic seam for painless bed making. The relaxed fit is meant to accommodate a range of mattress depths, so this is something to keep in mind if you’re really fond of ‘tight’ corners. I found it easy to insert the duvet inner without assistance. I loved the elegant buttons which were spaced perfectly to keep the inner from peeking out. These were well sewn on and have withstood every wash to date.
Performance
Forget the iron with these sheets (if anyone other than my nana still irons sheets?). Cultiver’s softly wrinkled bedding looks as inviting two months down the track as it did on day one and feels softer each day. The sheet, duvet cover and pillowcases have all washed well and their colour continues to look as vibrant as when I opened the box (as for all dyed or colour products, do take care to avoid excessive sun exposure to maintain this). Flax-linen has a reputation for durability and should last much longer than traditional cotton. Cultiver sources its flax from Europe and their manufacturing partners are OEKO-TEX certified, which means their materials are free of harmful pesticides and chemicals. Compared to cotton, flax crops are much more sustainable, using less water and producing a number of useful by-products such as flaxseed oil.
The final word
Not going to lie - Cultiver’s beautiful range of linen has got me hooked. I seriously contemplated taking these sheets away with us on holiday. They introduce timeless luxury to any bedroom. Five more minutes will never be quite enough time spent under these sheets.