How to fold (and store!) your bed sheets

You’re done! This fold isn’t always neat, but it’s quick and easy, and a good enough fold to easily see and store your sheets. Especially for sheets that I keep in a tote bag—more on those below—and given the sheer volume of sheets in my house, I’m happy with good enough.

Finally, if you’re feeling stressed when folding your sheets, you’ll need to loosen up a bit and keep in mind the material of the sheets you’re folding. More structured sheets like percale can be a little easier to hold together when you fold them, while softer sheets like bamboo and synthetic nylon can feel like you’re trying to shape them out of water. With a little patience, though, you can get a pretty solid square, or a square enough if you’re impatient and still have six more sets of sheets to fold like me.

Off the shelf

Photo: Nena Farrell

If you still hate the look of your sheets no matter how you fold them, you might want to try a sheet bag or bin. These are handy for storing sheets under the bed if you don’t have a linen closet or for storing sheets that aren’t in use during the season.

You can also store your sheets in a dust bag, but not all sheets come with dust bags, and some are clearly designed only to hold machine-pressed sheets inside. (I do like Quince’s dust bag, though.) You can also replicate this experience by stuffing all your sheets into a single pillowcase, which is an easy way to keep them all together. But they won’t fold neatly into any bag.

Best Bed Sheet Storage

The best sheet organizers are $2. Seriously. I added three of these Ikea storage bags to my order and was surprised by how much I liked them. They’re the perfect size for two sets of heavy flannel sheets, or you could stuff three sets of lighter bamboo or cotton sheets in there.

Most people I asked said they had about three sets of sheets, so one bag is enough if you have two sheets to store and one to put on the bed. And they cost $2! Buy a dozen for the whole family! Or buy six and it’s only $12! They’re a little small for a comforter or pillow, but they’ll hold a light blanket.

Great blanket or bed sheet storage

The Company Store tote bag is beautiful and comes in a variety of sizes, so you can pick one up for your sheets, pillows, or comforter. I easily fit four of my bulky linen sets inside with a little extra room (though not enough for a fifth set), and have also used it to store comforters. I like that it opens halfway down the side so I can see most parts of the bag without disturbing the contents, and there’s a little labeling spot so I can note what kind of sheets or bedding are inside.

The Container Store makes a similar bag but a little cheaper— Zippered Under Bed Storage Bag ($25)—I also like it for bedding, but the Company Store material is a little nicer, and I like that I can buy multiple sizes for different rooms but have all the storage pockets organized. Both have handles and labeling spots, and can fit larger bedding.

Save to skip

I used vacuum bags for my sheets when I moved, but I will never use them again. Why? All my sheets have a horrible plastic smell that comes out of the vacuum bag. They are all clean before they go in the bag, but I like to wash each set before I sleep with them again. Plus, vacuum bags can be surprisingly heavy and have a weird, awkward shape once you suck all the air out. Choose a fun bag instead, I beg you!