The Trick That Keeps Your Fitted Sheet From 'Trapping' Other Items

After you've gone through the hassle of stripping your bed, loading the washing machine, and piling your sheets and other clothes into the dryer, the last thing you want is to come back and find everything in a tangled, still-wet mess. Unfortunately, when attempting to dry fitted sheets with other items, this is often the case. While tumbling in the dryer, these other items get trapped in the pockets of your fitted sheet, preventing them from fully drying. Drying your fitted sheet separately would certainly solve this problem, however, it's far from the most efficient method. But don't worry — you can dry your fitted sheets and other items in no time with a genius hack. By simply tying a knot in your fitted sheet, you can stop it from trapping other items so that everything dries evenly the first time around.

The knot tying method mimics the effect you get with plastic sheet detangler products, but without the need to buy something new. Both sheet detanglers and knots tighten the gaps in your fitted sheet where other items would normally find their way in. Additionally, tying a knot keeps the sheets themselves from balling up in the dryer. One downside to this method is that the corners where you tied your sheet will likely come out wrinkly and potentially damp. Luckily, you can smooth out those wrinkles and dry your fitted sheet quickly by just making your bed.

For this method, you will be tying two knots in your sheet. To do this, grab two corners from the bottom of the sheet and two corners from the top and loosely wrap each end around to form a knot with two long tails. Then, grab those tails and tie another loose knot on top of the original. When attempting to tie a knot with your fitted sheet, there are some tips to keep in mind. For starters, you want a knot that's not too tight and not too loose. A knot that's too tight may prevent the tied area from drying and could intensify the wrinkles on your sheet. On the other hand, a knot that's too loose runs the risk of coming undone in the dryer. To more closely mimic what a plastic sheet detangler would do, you can also try tying bringing all four sheet corners together and tying one smaller knot.

Finding the perfect knot configuration will take some trial and error, but once you nail it you'll never not tie your sheets again. And remember, this tying trick isn't just for your fitted sheets, you can tie all of your bedding together before washing to keep it from balling up. This is great for similar items like duvet covers that are also known for trapping items.