Brooklinen vs. Parachute: The Cotton Sheet Test to Rule Them All

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I am of the mind that good, clean sheets are one of the most efficient ways to happiness. It's the little things, the everyday stuff, that can introduce moments of savoring and pleasure into a day, into a life. I also tend to think that, given the resources, spending a little more money on something higher quality that you actually get to use day in and day out is one of the smartest ways to invest. Plus, it's already hard enough to fall asleep. You might as well make the journey to rest a little cozier.

I've spent quite some time testing sheets of all fabrics, weaves, and weights, and I've grown to have some extremely particular tastes about some (seemingly) very random details that make a sheet more or less enjoyable. Here, I tested the popular organic cotton sheet sets from Parachute and Brooklinen. While they both make a range of types of cotton weaves, including sateen and percale, these sets are the more basic weave of the organic cotton.

On their face, both Brooklinen and Parachute's cotton sheets appear pretty similar: They're both 100 percent certified organic cotton, both garment washed, both GOTS and OEKO-TEX certified. (GOTS is for the organic production, OEKO-TEX means it was tested for any possibly harmful chemicals.) The differences are marginal, but for the sheet-selective, those differences matter. Whether you want a set that's cooling or just luxe-feeling, these will satisfy you needs. Here's how the cotton sheet sets stack up against each other.

Organic Cotton Core Sheet Set

On first open, these Brooklinen sheets feel crispy. A bit too crispy, perhaps? My first instinct was: Uh-oh, hospital sheets. The first week I slept in them, I was hyper aware of how they felt—almost a bit loose like they didn't pull tightly against the bed.

I have a thick mattress, and this set of sheets still seemed too big. The elastic around the edges was perfectly fine but I didn't exactly trust it to stay put, either. I felt like I couldn't quite pull the sheet tight to the mattress and it kept crinkly as I inevitably turned over all night.

They did, however, feel much better after even the first wash. It's not quite so stark of a feeling but I wouldn't venture to say it's super soft, either. Less crispy in a bad way and more like a lightweight button-down the next few times around. They're breathable, too, and actually feel like it. Although I think I prefer softer sheets, I can agree that softer ones tend to feel a little warmer. These give that other-side-of-the-pillow cooling feel whenever you climb in.

In general, I'd say these are a perfectly fine, basic sheet set to get that offering a slightly cooling feel. If you want something that's just simple, straightforward, made of natural fibers and as least harmful to the planet as we know how to make right now, I'd say go for it. If you prefer a silkier or softer option, look to Brooklinen's percale or sateen options.

Organic Cotton Sheet Set

I tested the Parachute organic cotton sheets after the Brooklinen ones and my first thought here was: Hm, maybe I just don't like plain cotton sheets? I hadn't ever characterized my preferences that way because I've had some sateen and percale sheets in rotation, which are made from cotton, as well as some made from a bamboo viscose.

Parachute's cotton sheets feel ever so slightly higher quality than Brooklinen, but even now I'm hard-pressed to qualify that statement. They are a little softer out of the package and soften more as they're washed. Here, you'll notice I did indeed venture to call them "soft" where the Brooklinen ones never quite reached that threshold for me.

I also think these just fit my bed a little better, which made them lay flatter against the mattress and not get wrinkly as I slept. I have a Purple hybrid mattress, which is notably very thick, so maybe just take note of your own sizing to get the best sheets for it.

The absolute standout from this sheet set was the pillowcases? Pillowcases were certainly not something I had in mind in terms of details that might stand out but here I was, extremely impressed with the envelope pillowcase opening, which is in the middle of the pillow rather than on the side. I love this because I apparently do a lot of damage in my sleep and often wake up with my pillowcases slipping or fully ripped off the pillow when those cases close at the end. Because these cases close in the middle, they have not been subject to my mid-sleep destruction.

Of course, like any review, that's personal. I was looking through some reviews online and saw that some people in fact did not like the envelope closure because it prevented them from getting that satisfying other-side-of-the-pillow hit. Fair enough.

Overall, I'd say these feel a little more luxe and a little softer, although they tend to sell out of the basic colors and are also a bit pricier.

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