frugal towels?
Logan Shaw
Where's a good place to buy frugal towels? And what kind (brands, styles)
are good?
I've noticed that if you buy cheap towels, you end up with ones that don't
actually absorb water, aren't comfortable, and have problems with pilling
and shedding. These things are no good. I want to save money, but
too-cheap towels are essentially totally useless and worthless, and it's
a form of false frugality to spend even a single dime on something you
can't really ever use.
At the same time, you can way overspend. So where's the middle road?
For that matter, how do you tell a cheaply-made towel from a quality one,
other than that the cheap one usually costs less?
- Logan
clams_casino
Can't provide a source for low cost towels, but I can suggest that one
should minimize the use of fabric softeners if you expect the towels to
absorb water. Fabric softeners are basically just waxes which may make
a fabric feel softer (slick, waxy feel), but that same wax will repel
water.
Rod Speed
> OK, here's an actual non-spam, real question about frugal living.
How dare you ?
> Where's a good place to buy frugal towels? And what kind (brands, styles) are good?
> I've noticed that if you buy cheap towels, you end up with ones that don't actually absorb water,
Yeah, thats one hell of a problem.
> aren't comfortable,
Presumably you mean they feel coarse and harsh, like using hessian etc.
> and have problems with pilling and shedding.
Never had any that do that.
> These things are no good.
True.
> I want to save money,
Its arguable if that matters much, even with relatively
expensive towels, its unlikely to be a significant annual cost.
> but too-cheap towels are essentially totally useless and worthless,
Thats overstating it, but certainly very undesirable.
> and it's a form of false frugality to spend even a single dime on something you can't really ever use.
Sure, but they usually arent as bad as that.
> At the same time, you can way overspend.
Like I said, thats arguable.
> So where's the middle road?
I have enough trouble just finding towels that dry as well as they should do.
I wouldnt really care what they cost, because they should last a long time.
> For that matter, how do you tell a cheaply-made towel from a quality one, other than that the cheap one usually costs
> less?
Dunno. And its not very satisfactory buying one and trying
it and returning it if doesnt turn out to be very satisfactory.
Rod Speed
I dont use those at all, and still have one hell of a problem finding
towels that dry that well, even when I dont buy the cheapest.
val189
This is one type of purchase I don't skimp on. If you buy at a
reputable store, wait for 'white' sales and buy the top of the line,
they should last for decades. Do NOT use fabric softener in a towel
load. Also, I wouldn't buy the dark colors, like navy, maroon etc -
they tend to show lint from the lighter towels you might be washing.
Green also seems to be door which fades easily.
Chloe
news:e2b7c83c-c15d-4d6c...@f63g2000hsf.googlegroups.com...
You can tell they're good quality when they're heavy and soft. The advice to
wait for sales is good, but you can also find good buys at stores like T J
Maxx, Tuesday Morning and Steinmart which sell "past season" merchandise.
And even those stores sometimes mark towels down. You may not always be able
to find matching sets, but I've never had a problem with using towels in
differing coordinating colors: in fact, I kind of like the look.
You also might want to avoid white because it's hard to keep it fresh
looking without using a lot of bleach--which can be hard on the fibers over
time.
Just a side tip about lint: I don't sort my laundry into whites and colors,
but I do sort it by light and dark. That seems to be sufficient to avoid
most of the lint problems.
Rod Speed
No you cant. I used that for the last one I bought, and got a brand name as well, but
while it drys better than the worst of the cheapest towels, it still doesnt dry well enough.
Lou
"Logan Shaw" <lshaw-...@austin.rr.com> wrote in message
news:4841b2d1$0$7044$4c36...@roadrunner.com...
Preumably, you're talking about bathroom towels, not the ones you use to dry
dishes. I can't provide you with a place to buy them, but Fieldcrest is a
good brand. I don't even know what a good price is currently - my wife and
I buy these towels once every 15 - 20 years.
Lou
"val189" <gweh...@bellsouth.net> wrote in message
news:e2b7c83c-c15d-4d6c...@f63g2000hsf.googlegroups.com...
> This is one type of purchase I don't skimp on. If you buy at a
> reputable store, wait for 'white' sales and buy the top of the line,
> they should last for decades. Do NOT use fabric softener in a towel
> load. Also, I wouldn't buy the dark colors, like navy, maroon etc -
> they tend to show lint from the lighter towels you might be washing.
> Green also seems to be door which fades easily.
Next time you're in the neighborhood, stop by and I'll show you my 20 year
old dark green towels.
Rod Speed
> Rod Speed <rod.sp...@gmail.com> wrote>>>> Logan Shaw <lshaw-use...@austin.rr.com> wrote
>>>>> OK, here's an actual non-spam, real question about frugal living.
>>>>> Where's a good place to buy frugal towels? And what kind (brands, styles) are good?
>>>>> I've noticed that if you buy cheap towels, you end up with ones that don't
>>>>> actually absorb water, aren't comfortable, and have problems with
>>>>> pilling and shedding. These things are no good. I want to save
>>>>> money, but too-cheap towels are essentially totally useless and
>>>>> worthless, and it's a form of false frugality to spend even a
>>>>> single dime on something you can't really ever use.
>>>>> At the same time, you can way overspend. So where's the middle
>>>>> road? For that matter, how do you tell a cheaply-made towel from a
>>>>> quality one, other than that the cheap one usually costs less?
>>>> This is one type of purchase I don't skimp on. If you buy at a
>>>> reputable store, wait for 'white' sales and buy the top of the
>>>> line, they should last for decades. Do NOT use fabric softener in
>>>> a towel load. Also, I wouldn't buy the dark colors, like navy,
>>>> maroon etc - they tend to show lint from the lighter towels you
>>>> might be washing. Green also seems to be door which fades easily.
>>> You can tell they're good quality when they're heavy and soft.
>> No you cant. I used that for the last one I bought, and got a brand name as well, but
>> while it drys better than the worst of the cheapest towels, it still doesnt dry well enough.
> You must dry yourself fancy style.
Nope. And I havent changed the way I dry myself either. If I use the old
towels that are now a tad threadbare, they still dry as well as they ever
did. The problem is that I cant find new ones that are as good as them now.
But I havent tried going to a specialist shop and asking someone
who looks knowledgable, an older woman, for a towel as good
as the old ones and that I dont care about the price.
> I just give a towel a simple rub over and hang it up (head, body,
> genitals. I don't bother with legs, too far away), any excess
> moisture soon evaporates, so i don't get fancy with them.
Its a lot warmer where you live.
> I've never taken stock of our towels (that's the wife's business)
Ask her about the problem for me.
> but i'd figure they'd last for a generation without too much drama.
The previous ones did last about that long and just got a bit threadbare.
The Real Bev
> "val189" <gweh...@bellsouth.net> wrote:
>
>> This is one type of purchase I don't skimp on. If you buy at a
>> reputable store, wait for 'white' sales and buy the top of the line,
>> they should last for decades. Do NOT use fabric softener in a towel
>> load. Also, I wouldn't buy the dark colors, like navy, maroon etc -
>> they tend to show lint from the lighter towels you might be washing.
>> Green also seems to be door which fades easily.
>
> Next time you're in the neighborhood, stop by and I'll show you my 20 year
> old dark green towels.
I have no idea how old my black towels are, but I love them. I also
have 45-year-old jacquard towels (haven't seen those new for a LONG
time) that, except for the ragged edges, do their job just fine.
I used to sell towels at Sears back in the dark ages. Fieldcrest and
Martex are good brands. Whatever Costco sells is probably good. Cannon
is good, and less expensive. Better-quality all-cotton store brands
(Sears, Penney's etc.) are good. The ones that come in boxes and are
marked HIS and HERS are bad.
Except for the jacquards, all my towels are from yard sales. I buy for
price, perceived quality and color. Last bath towels I bought (the
black Fieldcrests) were maybe a buck each.
--
Cheers,
Bev
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I never understood why anyone would go to the trouble to write a novel
when you can just go out and buy one for a few bucks." -- lpogoda
Samantha Hill - remove TRASH to reply
>
> I've noticed that if you buy cheap towels, you end up with ones that don't
> actually absorb water, aren't comfortable, and have problems with pilling
> and shedding. These things are no good. I want to save money, but
If you buy towels with 100% cotton pile and DO NOT USE FABRIC SOFTENER
LIQUID OR SHEETS ON THEM (caps added for emphasis), you will have
maximum absorption.
Rod Speed
Wrong. Thats true of both the towels that dry fine and those that dont.
phil scott
good will thrift store. i bought two new high quality thick king
sized comforters there for about 50 dollars, would have cost over 100
or 200 at a retail store.
imascot
Good towels should be somewhat heavy. Cheap ones often have big loops spaced sort of widely
apart, and sometimes you can see light through them if you hold them up to the light (really). Look
for some mention of the type of cotton, like Egyptian or pima. I have seen a measurement of
grams/square meter used by sellers of towels, such as Lands End and SmartBargains, but I'll wager you
will not find this measurement in a regular store.
J.
Rod Speed
> Logan Shaw <lshaw-...@austin.rr.com> wrote in
> news:4841b2d1$0$7044$4c36...@roadrunner.com:
>
>> OK, here's an actual non-spam, real question about frugal living.
>>
>> Where's a good place to buy frugal towels? And what kind (brands,
>> styles) are good?
>>
>> I've noticed that if you buy cheap towels, you end up with ones that
>> don't actually absorb water, aren't comfortable, and have problems
>> with pilling and shedding. These things are no good. I want to save
>> money, but too-cheap towels are essentially totally useless and
>> worthless, and it's a form of false frugality to spend even a single
>> dime on something you can't really ever use.
>>
>> At the same time, you can way overspend. So where's the middle road?
>> For that matter, how do you tell a cheaply-made towel from a quality
>> one, other than that the cheap one usually costs less?
> Good towels should be somewhat heavy. Cheap ones often have
> big loops spaced sort of widely apart, and sometimes you can see
> light through them if you hold them up to the light (really). Look for
> some mention of the type of cotton, like Egyptian or pima.
That didnt help with the last one I bought. It still doesnt dry as well as the
old ones used to and still do, even now that they are noticeably threadbare.
> I have seen a measurement of grams/square meter used by sellers of towels, such as Lands
> End and SmartBargains, but I'll wager you will not find this measurement in a regular store.
This latest one would do rather better than the old ones on that test, but still doesnt dry as well for some reason,
Evelyn C. Leeper
Someone told me that one should stick to white, because the fibers in
the colored towels (especially the darker ones) have already used up
some of their absorption on the dyes. I can't swear this is true.
--
Evelyn C. Leeper
A great many people think they are thinking when they are
only rearranging their prejudices. -William James
Nicik Name
"Logan Shaw" <lshaw-...@austin.rr.com> wrote in message
news:4841b2d1$0$7044$4c36...@roadrunner.com...
> OK, here's an actual non-spam, real question about frugal living.
>
> Where's a good place to buy frugal towels?
Logan Shaw
> imascot <im...@mycomputer.now> wrote:
>> Good towels should be somewhat heavy. Cheap ones often have
>> big loops spaced sort of widely apart, and sometimes you can see
>> light through them if you hold them up to the light (really). Look for
>> some mention of the type of cotton, like Egyptian or pima.
> That didnt help with the last one I bought. It still doesnt dry as well as the
> old ones used to and still do, even now that they are noticeably threadbare.
I wonder if there is something about towels which causes them to dry better
after they've been worn in a bit, sort of like how an old pair of jeans is
more comfortable than a new one.
- Logan
Rod Speed
Yeah, like any cloth type article, you do need to get the sizing thats
used in the manufacture out, but I've already washed that one quite
a few times and the previous ones that are even worse lots of times
and they still end up much worse than the old ones, even now that the
old ones are very visibly worn and quite threadbare in the worst bits.
m...@privacy.net
>Also, I wouldn't buy the dark colors, like navy, maroon etc -
>they tend to show lint from the lighter towels you might be washing.
>Green also seems to be door which fades easily.
So what is best color to buy?
Rod Speed
> val189 <gweh...@bellsouth.net> wrote
I think it makes more sense to buy strong colors and not
buy any lighter towels at all, so you dont get the lint effect.
The big advantage of the stronger colors is that you
dont have to fart around with marks on the towels
when you use them after working on the car etc.
They do have real downsides if you wash them with the other clothes tho.
The Real Bev
Lint-color.
Daughter buys white shop-towels at Costco for the kitchen. Bleach the
hell out of them and when they get too grungy looking use them for rags
or throw them away.
--
Cheers,
Bev
==============================================================
Everyone crashes. Some get back on. Some don't. Some can't.
The Real Bev
> m...@privacy.net wrote
>> val189 <gweh...@bellsouth.net> wrote
>
>>> Also, I wouldn't buy the dark colors, like navy, maroon etc -
>>> they tend to show lint from the lighter towels you might be
>>> washing. Green also seems to be door which fades easily.
>
>> So what is best color to buy?
>
> I think it makes more sense to buy strong colors and not
> buy any lighter towels at all, so you dont get the lint effect.
Dark colors require less frequent washing. Come on, just how filthy do
bath towels ever get?
> The big advantage of the stronger colors is that you
> dont have to fart around with marks on the towels
> when you use them after working on the car etc.
>
> They do have real downsides if you wash them with the other clothes tho.
My laundry is divided into "bleach" and "non-bleach". Makes life
simpler. Dryers remove lint, as does wind, so where do the dark towels
get it?
Rod Speed
>>>> Also, I wouldn't buy the dark colors, like navy, maroon etc -
>>>> they tend to show lint from the lighter towels you might be
>>>> washing. Green also seems to be door which fades easily.
>>> So what is best color to buy?
>> I think it makes more sense to buy strong colors and not
>> buy any lighter towels at all, so you dont get the lint effect.
> Dark colors require less frequent washing.
Only if you're actually stupid enough to wash towels based on how they look.
> Come on, just how filthy do bath towels ever get?
That isnt the reason most wash them.
>> The big advantage of the stronger colors is that you
>> dont have to fart around with marks on the towels
>> when you use them after working on the car etc.
>> They do have real downsides if you wash them with the other clothes tho.
> My laundry is divided into "bleach" and "non-bleach".
I dont bleach anything, because I dont wash anything that needs bleaching.
> Makes life simpler.
Much simpler to not ever bleach anything.
> Dryers remove lint, as does wind, so where do the dark towels get it?
Same place anything else gets it from, it comes from the article itself.
val189
> Dark colors require less frequent washing. Come on, just how filthy do
> bath towels ever get?
So, how many times DO you use a bath towel?
Reminds me of something once heard in a dressing room:"I only buy
black underwear cuz ya don't hafta wash it." EEEWWWWW....
Anthony Matonak
> On Jun 2, 5:33 pm, The Real Bev <bashley101+use...@gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Dark colors require less frequent washing. Come on, just how filthy do
>> bath towels ever get?
>
> So, how many times DO you use a bath towel?
With a body dryer there isn't any more need for towels than
there is with the hand driers found in most modern rest rooms.
http://www.savortex.com/body_dryer.html
http://www.aircon247.com/p/390261/triton-luxury-body-dryer.html
Anthony
Chloe
news:484c6067$0$20192$4c36...@roadrunner.com...
"The high speed spinning filtered hot air brushes water off in an
invigorating fun way, and reaches areas missed by towels." That pretty much
says it all as far as I'm concerned <g>.
The Real Bev
> "Anthony Matonak" <antho...@nothing.like.socal.rr.com> wrote:
>> val189 wrote:
>>> The Real Bev <bashley101+use...@gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>>> Dark colors require less frequent washing. Come on, just how
>>>> filthy do bath towels ever get?
>>>
>>> So, how many times DO you use a bath towel?
Lots.
>> With a body dryer there isn't any more need for towels than there
>> is with the hand driers found in most modern rest rooms.
I HATE those things. You should be able to dry your hands in 5 seconds
or less, and one of the last things I want is to be trapped in a hot
room with increasing amounts of hot air.
>> http://www.savortex.com/body_dryer.html
>> http://www.aircon247.com/p/390261/triton-luxury-body-dryer.html
>
> "The high speed spinning filtered hot air brushes water off in an
> invigorating fun way, and reaches areas missed by towels." That
> pretty much says it all as far as I'm concerned <g>.
92 seconds is way too long and you can buy a lot of towels for 300 lb.
"No heating element." So what does it use, friction?
--
Cheers,
Bev
************************************************************
"Let them eat shit."
-- Marcel Antoinette, Marie's little-known brother
The Real Bev
> bashley1...@gmail.com (The Real Bev) wrote:
>> 92 seconds is way too long and you can buy a lot of towels for 300 lb.
>> "No heating element." So what does it use, friction?
>
> Antimatter?
>
> I liked "Can be used to dry fully clothed personnel" - now I don't have
> to take my clothes off for the shower!
They also said it was suitable for cruise ships or something like that.
Perhaps they have a large fallen-overboard clientele.
--
Cheers,
Bev
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-
He's your god. They're your rules. *You* burn in hell!
Cheapo Groovo
pc
I have a white, heavy duty, terry cloth robe. It's all I use for a
towel after showering. I'm a drip dryer. I put it on and take it off a
few minutes later, when I'm ready to get dressed.
I wash it maybe twice a month.
For face and hands and other towelling needs I rely on my 50? count pack
of white terry towels bought from the auto department of BJs. They are
great. I use them in the bath and as kitchen towels and as they degrade
they get relegated to the garage for other uses. These get washed weekly.
DH is a regular towel guy. His towels end up in the laundry more often
than my robe. But, he's not just a drip dryer.
..PC
The Real Bev
> For face and hands and other towelling needs I rely on my 50? count pack
> of white terry towels bought from the auto department of BJs. They are
> great. I use them in the bath and as kitchen towels and as they degrade
> they get relegated to the garage for other uses. These get washed weekly.
Daughter bought those at Costco. Excellent idea and when you have so
many you don't bother using them a few days longer than you really
should :-)
--
Cheers,
Bev
*****************************************************************
"Why does everybody always forget the eigthth dwarf? Just because
poor old Lumpy died of cancer doesn't mean he should be written
out of history." -- RMassey
Silfax
>
> I wonder if there is something about towels which causes them to dry
> better after they've been worn in a bit, sort of like how an old pair of
> jeans is more comfortable than a new one.
The fibers seperate a bit, making for more surface area.
More surface area == more liquid that can be soaked up
--
--
Silfax