All you need is a little bit of twill tape or ribbon, your towel, some scissors, a marking tool, maybe a seam ripper, a ruler, and some needle and thread. You can sew this on by machine or hand sew it. Note that in our lab and at-home tests, we tried out the bath sheet, which is much larger than the average bath towel. However, Lands’ End also offers a towel set, standard bath towels, hand towels, and washcloths in the same style to suit your preferences. It soaked up all the water in our lab testing, leading to a perfect absorbency score. You can hang it up to dry using the attached hook loop, and we loved that it only took 1.5 hours to fully dry during our lab testing. Rather than the standard band, this towel features a stitched logo on either end (on one side only), which reminds us of a high-end hotel towel. We did notice, however, that the towel's on the small side when compared with other towels we've tested.

There are some key performance differences associated with various towel weights that are important to factor into your purchasing decision. For instance, products with a low GSM typically dry faster but aren’t as absorbent. An example of this is a lightweight beach towel. On the other hand, heavy towels with a high GSM are the most absorbent and plush, but as such, they will take longer to dry. Towels are some of our most intimate textiles, touching places that other textiles just don’t reach. This distinctive, plush and mildly abrasive fabric is one that most of us have experienced on a daily basis since childhood. But how well do we really know it?We tested this towel in our own homes for three months, and we still love it. The construction quality and absorbency are still excellent, especially compared to other similarly priced options. While not as soft as it was upon arrival, it’s still exceptionally plush. Other than that, the towel remains in excellent shape and has definitely become a favorite. Perhaps because of its familiarity and distinctive feel, towel also makes an appearance as an archetypal textured material in studies exploring people’s responses to tactile stimulation. For example, it is used in work with people with autism to identify sensory modulation dysfunction (when a person reacts in a seemingly disproportionate way to a non-noxious sensation like towel on the skin). Terry cloth is also used in desensitization therapies as a way of helping people to adapt to and manage chronic pain after amputation, trauma or surgery.

Absorbency is another important consideration when purchasing towels, but this factor is often hard to discern when you’re shopping in-store or online. There’s no way to measure a towel’s absorbency without trying it, but you can look for a few indicators that a towel will soak up plenty of water. A plush towel can provide a soft and luxurious feel when drying off after a steamy shower, allowing for a more comfortable and enjoyable experience compared to thinner, rougher towels. Southern Living’s Turkish Cotton & Modal Bath Towel boasts a fluffy and plush texture we couldn’t get enough of. ( Southern Living is owned by The Spruce’s parent company, Dotdash Meredith.) We also were impressed with its visually appealing design, which featured a decorative series of five double-welts on each end rather than the standard band. The loops seemed on and compact, and we found no visible imperfections upon arrival. This towel was definitely on the heavier side at 700 grams per square meter (GSM), which means it has a dense, sturdy construction. Whereas flat cloth is normally woven with two threads (warp and weft) that sit at right angles to each other, ‘pile’ fabrics like carpets and towels involve a third thread. This extra thread is left loose, whilst the other two are kept taut: when the loose thread is pulled through the dense network of tight threads, it forms loops on either side. The resulting towel material is called terry cloth, a name that is said to have come from the French verbtirer, meaning ‘to pull’.This towel has maintained its softness and quality over the course of six months, as the color, tassels, texture, and stitching all look and feel great after regular use. However, we did notice that in terms of absorbency and drying time, this towel has fallen short over time. While we’re not sure why this towel changed, we do have doubts regarding its longevity. While many people don’t think about the fibers their towels are made from, this is one of the most important considerations, as fibers perform differently in terms of absorbance, softness, colorfastness, and durability. Plus, certain fibers are also more or less environmentally friendly depending on how they’re sourced, and this information may impact your choice if you’re working to reduce your carbon footprint. Depending on your schedule, bath towels are an item you’ll use nearly every day—so oftentimes, it’s worth it to splurge. Out of the dozens of towels we've tested, Boll & Branch’s Plush Bath Towel is one of our top choices for its quality construction, impressive performance, and thoughtful design. Made with organic long-staple cotton, these towels have a soft and plush feel you’ll appreciate use after use. Even after multiple runs through the washer and dryer, this towel continued to feel like a luxury product.

Thread the needle and knot both ends of the thread together, so you’re using a double thread stitch. As you shop for towels, it’s important to know towels are categorized by their construction. Each types has its own set of strengths and weaknesses:In terms of durability, it maintained the same texture after we washed and dried it. It passed our abrasion tests with flying colors, and we didn’t notice any snags or loose threads, proving the strength of the thread fibers. We applied foundation and mascara to the material, and both stains completely came out in the wash. The tufted, looped fabric that we now take for granted has only beenaround in western Europe since about 1840.The method for making towels on hand looms was invented in Turkey, apparently as the accidental result of defective weaving. Manchester-based textile tycoon Henry Christy brought these fabrics to the UK in the mid 1800s, where he promptly copied and industrialised the manufacturing technique. Christy are still producing towels to this day, and are the main supplier to the Wimbledon tennis championships, where most are thrown into the crowd as sweaty mementos for eager fans. Although the towel earned a perfect score in our absorbency test, we did find it took a bit longer to completely dry (around two hours) than some other options we tested. However, this tends to be standard for plusher, heavier towels. After following the care instructions, we appreciated just how well the product held up. The soft texture didn’t change post-wash, and the towel felt as good as new with no signs of wear. Waffle-weave towels, like The Citizenry Mara Organic Waffle Bath Towel Set, are not as plush as your standard terrycloth towel, but they are absorbent, lightweight, and fast-drying. These are characterized by a honeycomb pattern on the surface of the towel.