I think one of the biggest frauds foisted upon the American homemaker, probably by Martha Stewart, is the necessity of high-thread count 100% cotton bedsheets, the higher count the better.

Thread count refers to the number of threads per inch, and the higher the thread count, the softer and silkier the surface of the fabric feels to touch. But what it really feels like to me is limp and easily wrinkled.

Now me, I like crisp sheets and pillow cases and generally that means a mix of polyester and cotton. For one thing, these sheets don't come out of the dryer like a limp, wrinkled rag, they are what we know as Perma-Press. They got a bad name years ago because certain cheap versions pilled up and were nasty.

In case you don't know what pilling is, it's hard little balls that form on the fabric surface, often seen on sweaters.

With the turnover of guests around here the sheets get a lot of laundering and my perma press sheets have not gotten pilly. They come out of the dryer plenty smooth enough to go right onto the beds, and they have a nice feel about them.

When I started renting out the cabins I bought a bunch of 100% cotton bedding because I had bought into the myth. What a mistake - I don't mind ironing the pillow cases, in fact I iron all of them, perma-press or not, because I think it is a special touch. But the top sheets come out of the dryer so wrinkled I have to iron them, too, or at least the top part that gets turned down over the blanket. Now, this is really a hassle, and I'll probably end up using them for our beds over here and replace the ones for the guest cabins with high-quality polyester/cotton mix sheets when the current ones wear out. Except then, of course, it will be years until I get to sleep between crisp sheets around here.