The Best (Elegant) Patterned Sheets
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Ever since MillerKnoll creative directorKelsey Keithtold us about the patternedsheetsshe uses in her daughters’ rooms forSecret Strategist, we couldn’t stop thinking about how we’d style them in our ownkids’ roomsand how great they’d look for adults, too. So we asked Keith for more favorites — and reached out to some other people with good taste about how they’re combining florals, stripes, and color to create the layered bedscape of their maximalist dreams. Below, recommendations for patterned bedding that would look just as nice in a grown-up’s room as it would in akid’s. A tip: Try pillowcases and shams if you’re just beginning to experiment with adding color to your bedroom. All prices are listed for queen size, unless noted otherwise.
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Keith, who grew up using Marimekko sheets, prefers “bold, high color and high contrast” bedding over subdued pastels for her kids. She particularly likes the florals and stripes from the French company Lucas du Tertre, both of which are sophisticated even for adults. She also likes thetone-on-tone striped beddingfrom this Etsy seller; this orange print from Lands’ End, whose sheet she says says “will last forever”; and thispuckered, checkered seersuckerfrom Juna, a Scandinavian brand that makes Oeko-Tex-certified bedding. Her other favorites are “unusual and funstripesand checker patterns and bonkersfloralsandpatterns” from the Australian brand Kip&Co (she warns that inventory is in and out) and an “excellentpercale sheet in saturated solid colors” from Merci that make a solid base for layering on the prints. Keith’s favorite Marimekko prints are vintage (whichyoucanfind secondhand), but she also likes to supplement existing bedding with new Marimekko pillowcases, like the striped one above orthis pink bolster.
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Rachel Jones Bellas and Michelle Friend Sternlicht ofDarling Shop, a children’s boutique in Brooklyn Heights, love these striped sheets from Coyuchi. The indigo sheets are patterned with two different tones of orange, offering subtle variation in color. They are made from crinkled percale, atextured cottonthat Strategist deputy editor Simone Kitchens and I both personally love, which adds to the look. They would pair the sheets with this turmeric-and-yellow scalloped pillowcase.
Rachel Tashjian, senior style reporter at CNN, likes a blue-bedding moment. She owns sheets from Vermont Country Store, Garnet Hill, John Robshaw, Ballard Designs, and 21 Tara, all in different shades of blue. “I sort of mix everything together to get my own version of that ‘loosey-goosey, slapdash-but-actually-pained’ combination of florals Upper East Side women do with Porthault linens,” she says, citing@medora2014’sInstagramas well as editorMarian McEvoy’s bedroomas inspiration. To keep it from looking too precious — and to accommodate her husband’s “extremely Shaker tastes” — Tashjian uses a plain white John Robshaw quilt. Plus, having “a very old-school pencil-post bed helps too.”
Carly Boonparn ofParachute Brooklyn, the children’s-clothing store in Greenpoint, recommends sheets from Aelfie. “We love bold colors and playful prints over here,” she says. “Their designs are really fun and graphic with bright colors and a slightly offbeat feel that works just as well for adults as it does for kids.”
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Kitchens recently bought a bunch of patterned sheets for her daughter, all of which she says would work for an adult. She mixed and matched sheets and pillowcases from Natural Life and threw in some bedding from the Company Store. Kitchens is also testing this sweet floral pattern in blue from Piglet in Bed and has her eye on these block-print shams from Jaipur.
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The Green Spoon’s Fanny Singer uses block-printed Indian quilts on her daughter’s bed but recently got some sheets from Nestig to go with their new bed frame and canopy. “They’re not quite the bombastic ’70s-era florals I’ve had my eye on, but the quality is great — soft but also crisp and substantive and GOTS-certified,” she says. And on Kitchens’s recommendation, she also got a set from Natural Life in mauve. (They both warn, though, that the fabric is on the thinner side.)
Textile artistSarah Nsikakuses the Anokhi block-printed sheets she discovered in Jaipur but also likes the “streamlined but still high quality and classic” bedding from Toast and the “more modern but still beautiful color options” from Tekla. Kitchens also owns the ticking-stripe sheets and duvet cover from Toast and agrees that they are very nice.
I personally love the bedding from Biscuit Home, which I think of as a more accessible way to get the Porthault vibe. I have the Dorothy sheet set and duvet cover, a beautiful blue print of what I think are hellebores with red accents. (Strategist senior editorHilary Reidalso owns this print.) The sateen cotton is extremely soft. I would go for any of the brand’s other prints, like thesplatter paint,large-scaleflorals, and evendotsandstripes. The scalloped shams would be an easy piece to start experimenting with.
Last year, Tashjian wrote intoSecret Strategistasking about all the bedding in the TV showDying for Sex, some of which we were able to identify, including a coverlet from Oddbird, Kerry Cassill pillowcases, strawberry sheets by Rifle Paper, and this gorgeouscotton and silk quiltfrom Slow Roads.
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Here’s another bold option, this time from Anthropologie (whose patterned sheets are also aStrategist favorite). Megan O’Neill, owner of shoe companyNaylaand the host of theSoft Lifepodcast, first told us about them inSecret Strategist. “The boys’ room is painted this really bright blue, there’s a cool fluffy blue rug, and they also haveAnthropologie sheetsbecause they’re so colorful,” she told us.
More patterned sheets we like
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The Strategistis designed to surface useful, expert recommendations for things to buy across the vast e-commerce landscape. Every product is independently selected by our team of editors, whom you can read abouthere. We update links when possible, but note that deals can expire and all prices are subject to change.
