What to Look for in Organic Sheets

Organic means many things. It's often used to confirm that food was grown without toxic pesticides and chemicals, and doesn't have things like growth hormones or GMOs, in order to label it as organic food. For bedding, it should mean both that organic materials were used to make the fabric—no toxic pesticides used in farming, etc.—and that they were produced organically with nontoxic chemicals.

You'll want at least two certifications to prove this. Most sheets have a Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) certification to certify that the material sourced is organic (it'll say organically grown cotton, for example, but should have a certification to back it up), and you'll usually see either an Oeko-Tex or a Made Safe certification certifying that the process to make them was a safe and nontoxic one. If you only see an Oeko-Tex certification, that means they were manufactured organically, but not sourced organically. You're more likely to see a sole Oeko-Tex certification than any others, which is still a good certification, but not enough to be a fully organic bedsheet.

Is it the same as eco-friendly? It depends on what eco-friendly means to you. Some processes are more eco-conscious, like lyocell's process over nylon and rayon based on chemical output, but producing anything has costs on the planet. These organic certifications usually only confirm toxicity and chemicals included, not necessarily how much waste was left over or whether the chemicals can be reused.

Honorable Mentions

There are a lot of great organic sheets out there. Here are a few more organic bedding sets we tested and liked.

Boll & Branch Signature Sheet Set f...