There's nothing quite like wrapping yourself in a thick, fluffy towel after a bath or shower. But over time, even the best towels can lose their softness, become scratchy, or start to smell musty. The good news? With the right care, quality towels can stay luxuriously soft and absorbent for years — not months.
At Deyongs, we've been crafting premium towels since 1846, so we know a thing or two about keeping them in top condition. Here's our definitive guide to towel care — from the very first wash to years down the line.
Before You Use Them: The First Wash
Always wash new towels before their first use. During manufacturing, towels pick up residual dyes and fabric softeners that can reduce absorbency. A simple 40°C wash with a small amount of detergent removes these finishes and opens up the cotton fibres, making your towels more absorbent from day one.
1. Washing Your Towels the Right Way
Getting the wash right is the single biggest factor in towel longevity. Here's what we recommend:
Temperature: Wash towels at 40°C for regular washes. This is warm enough to remove body oils and bacteria without damaging the fibres. For a deeper hygiene wash — perhaps once a month — you can go up to 60°C, which is especially useful for white towels.
Detergent: Use a good-quality liquid detergent and don't overdo it. Too much detergent leaves residue in the fibres, which is one of the main reasons towels become stiff and lose absorbency over time. Half the recommended dose is often enough.
Load size: Don't overfill the drum. Towels need room to move freely in the wash so water and detergent can circulate properly. A loosely filled drum gives better results than a packed one.
Wash towels separately: Avoid washing towels with clothes, especially anything with zips, hooks or Velcro. These can snag the loops in terry cloth and cause damage. Washing towels together also means you can optimise the cycle for them specifically.
2. The Fabric Softener Debate
This might surprise you: we recommend avoiding fabric softener on towels entirely.
While fabric softener makes clothes feel lovely, it coats towel fibres with a waxy layer that reduces absorbency. Over repeated washes, this build-up makes towels feel slippery rather than soft, and they stop drying you properly.
"The best alternative to fabric softener? A splash of white vinegar in the rinse cycle. It naturally softens fibres, removes detergent residue, and keeps towels smelling fresh."
Simply add half a cup of distilled white vinegar to the fabric softener compartment. Don't worry — the vinegar smell disappears completely once the towels are dry. It's an old trick, but it works beautifully.
3. Drying: The Secret to Fluffy Towels
How you dry your towels matters just as much as how you wash them. Here are the best options:
Tumble dryer (best for fluffiness): A tumble dryer on a medium heat setting is the gold standard for soft, fluffy towels. The tumbling action lifts the loops in the terry cloth, giving towels that plush, hotel-like feel. Remove them promptly once the cycle finishes to prevent creasing.
Line drying outdoors: Fresh air and sunshine are wonderful for towels — they help kill bacteria naturally and leave a lovely fresh scent. The trade-off is that air-dried towels can feel a little stiffer. A quick 10-minute tumble on low heat afterwards sorts this right out.
Avoid radiators: Draping wet towels over radiators might seem convenient, but the concentrated heat bakes the fibres flat, making them stiff and crunchy. If you must use a radiator, give the towels a good shake first and don't leave them on longer than necessary.
4. How Often Should You Wash Your Towels?
This is one of the most common questions we get asked. The answer depends on how you use them, but as a general rule: wash bath towels after every three to four uses.
Between washes, hang your towels up properly — spread out on a towel rail or hook, not balled up on the floor or over the side of the bath. Good air circulation helps them dry quickly between uses, which prevents that musty smell caused by bacteria thriving in damp fabric.
Got Musty-Smelling Towels?
Run a hot wash (60°C) with one cup of white vinegar and no detergent. Then run a second wash at the same temperature with half a cup of bicarbonate of soda. This strips away built-up residue and bacteria, leaving your towels smelling completely fresh again.
5. Storing Towels Properly
It sounds simple, but how you store towels makes a real difference. Always make sure towels are completely dry before folding and putting them away. Even slightly damp towels can develop mildew in a closed cupboard.
Store them in a well-ventilated linen cupboard or on open shelving. Rolling towels instead of folding them can help maintain their fluffiness and also looks rather lovely on a bathroom shelf.
6. What Makes a Towel Last Longer?
Care goes hand in hand with quality. A well-made towel will always outlast a cheap one. Here's what to look for:
GSM (grams per square metre): For bath towels, 500–700 GSM offers a great balance of absorbency, softness and durability. Our Egyptian Spa range at 700 GSM and Bliss Pima Cotton at 650 GSM are perfect examples.
Cotton quality: Egyptian cotton and Pima cotton have longer fibres than standard cotton, which means fewer loose ends, less lint, and better durability over hundreds of washes.
Zero-twist construction: Zero-twist towels like our Palazzo 800 GSM and Ribbleton 700 GSM ranges use untwisted yarn wrapped in a soluble PVA thread. The result is an incredibly soft towel that stays that way wash after wash.
Invest in Towels Worth Caring For
Good towel care starts with good towels. When you invest in quality cotton — whether that's Egyptian, Pima, or zero-twist — you're buying towels that are designed to get better with proper washing, not worse. At Deyongs, every towel in our collection is crafted with care and built to last, just as they have been since 1846.
Deyongs — Crafting Fine Home Textiles Since 1846