# Folding fitted sheets **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [July 23, 2009, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/folding-fitted-sheets/503947 "2009-07-23T01:47:45Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ianjohnson](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a3d4f5/32.png) [@ianjohnson](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ianjohnson)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/folding-fitted-sheets/503947/1 "2009-07-23T01:47:45Z")
A while back we had a nanny who was in her 70s. When the baby was asleep she would keep busy by doing our laundry (which was wonderful). She had superhuman laundry folding skills, due I’m sure to decades of experience. I could take lots of time and care and not come anywhere near the neatness and precision she would apply to all of the laundry, including to my amazement, fitted sheets. They would be perfectly square and flat, done without the benefit of extra helping hands. So how do you fold fitted sheets neatly? I know you must the use ends of the seams that make the pockets as the corners, matching them up while the elastic edge falls to the inside. With a flat sheet, some sides of the folded rectangle are the edges of the sheet, which you can let hang while applying tension to keep the folded edges straight. With a fitted sheet, all sides are folds. I can get one end neat, but as soon as I start trying to gather up the other end, it all goes to hell. ---
**Author:** ![King\_Bobo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/c68b51/32.png) [@King\_Bobo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/King_Bobo)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/folding-fitted-sheets/503947/2 "2009-07-23T02:17:11Z")
A few years ago - when I had quite a bit more disposable income than I do now, I had a lady who would come in and do some work. She was magic in so many ways. One of the things she could do was fold the sheets, flat and fitted into wafer thin layers to place into the closet. The other thing was to make the kitchen SHINE. To this day I try to emulate her - just cannot do it. I also ask, what is the magic? ---
**Author:** ![delphica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9a140/32.png) [@delphica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/delphica)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/folding-fitted-sheets/503947/3 "2009-07-23T02:17:54Z")
This youtube video is very good at demonstrating it: [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/YHTyH2nuFAw/hqdefault.jpg "How to Fold a Fitted Sheet - The Only Video You Need! Taught by a Man!") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHTyH2nuFAw) My method is slightly different from that guy’s. Toward the end, he is very precise about making the fitted corner align perfectly in a rectangle. What I do instead is make a rougher approximation of a rectangle – doesn’t need to be perfect. Then, I fold the sheet in thirds so that the bunchiness of the fitted corners is pretty well hidden on the inside of the folded sheet. ---
**Author:** ![flyboy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/4da419/32.png) [@flyboy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/flyboy)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/folding-fitted-sheets/503947/4 "2009-07-23T02:18:51Z")
[http://www.cleanfreakconfessions.com/?p=239](http://www.cleanfreakconfessions.com/?p=239) ETA: Why do I even bother? ☹ ---
**Author:** ![StaudtCJ](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/90ced4/32.png) [@StaudtCJ](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/StaudtCJ)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 2:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/folding-fitted-sheets/503947/5 "2009-07-23T02:25:19Z")
It becomes much easier if you utilize the services of an iron during the folding process, as well. ---
**Author:** ![tullsterx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/e9bcb4/32.png) [@tullsterx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tullsterx)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 2:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/folding-fitted-sheets/503947/6 "2009-07-23T02:45:46Z")
Damn! I just watched a 3 minute clip on folding fitted sheets! You people are sick! 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/earl_snake-hips_tucker/32/3269_2.png) [@Earl\_Snake-Hips\_Tucker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Earl_Snake-Hips_Tucker)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 3:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/folding-fitted-sheets/503947/7 "2009-07-23T03:04:07Z")
This is wild. Just an hour ago, I looked up this video independently of this thread to see how to fold a fitted sheet. ---
**Author:** ![Projammer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/projammer/32/559_2.png) [@Projammer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Projammer)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/folding-fitted-sheets/503947/8 "2009-07-23T03:09:49Z")
Now that you’ve mastered fitted sheets, you can move on to [T-shirts.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=An0mFZ3enhM) ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/folding-fitted-sheets/503947/9 "2009-07-23T03:28:01Z")
> [@StaudtCJ](#): > > It becomes much easier if you utilize the services of an iron during the folding process, as well. Are you kidding me? There is no way an iron is going to be brought into service for the mere folding of sheets in this house. It usually takes a wedding or a funeral for the iron to make an appearance around here. ---
**Author:** ![Renee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/renee/32/287_2.png) [@Renee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Renee)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 4:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/folding-fitted-sheets/503947/10 "2009-07-23T04:53:43Z")
> [@delphica](#): > > This youtube video is very good at demonstrating it: > [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHTyH2nuFAw](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHTyH2nuFAw) Wow, that was impressive. I’ll probably just continue wadding them up and shoving them in the nightstand drawer, though. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Cugel](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cugel/32/1199_2.png) [@Cugel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cugel)\ **Post date:** [July 23, 2009, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/folding-fitted-sheets/503947/11 "2009-07-23T05:03:01Z")
Just spread it out, elastic side up. Make a rectangle by pulling at the corners, the elastic stays in the middle. Depending on your mindset, it can close enough or just right, then fold as a normal rectangular sheet. ---
**Author:** ![Serenata67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/serenata67/32/10646_2.png) [@Serenata67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Serenata67)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 4:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/folding-fitted-sheets/503947/12 "2009-07-24T04:04:22Z")
my life is at a new low… watching how-to videos on folding sheets… ---
**Author:** ![Keeve](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/f07891/32.png) [@Keeve](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Keeve)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 11:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/folding-fitted-sheets/503947/13 "2009-07-24T11:26:37Z")
> [@delphica](#): > > This youtube video is very good at demonstrating it: > [http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHTyH2nuFAw](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YHTyH2nuFAw) I do it slightly differently, and I think mine is a tiny bit easier. He started on the lengthwise fold. That’s dumb to me - you can see him stretching his arms into two corners that are so far from each other! I do the widthwise fold first; this way you can easily suspend the whole thing in the air to shake it out for some initial smoothing. Either way, the next step is to fold it the other way, and you end up with the whole thing in quarters, and we are the same from there on. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 2:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/folding-fitted-sheets/503947/14 "2009-07-24T14:13:01Z")
I don’t care too much either. One thing I did pick up from WhyNot is this great idea: when you get all your stuff out of the laundry, and you have a “set” of sheets (pillowcases, sheets, etc.,), after you finish folding them, put the entire set into one of the pillowcases. Voila! You always know where all of the set is! ---
**Author:** ![Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tim_r.mortiss/32/142_2.png) [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tim_R.Mortiss)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/folding-fitted-sheets/503947/15 "2009-07-24T16:28:08Z")
Why would anybody need to fold a sheet? Just do what I do: Once a year or so, when your sheets need washing, take them off the bed, wash, dry, and put them BACK on the bed. No folding involved!..TRM ---
**Author:** ![KneadToKnow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kneadtoknow/32/3999_2.png) [@KneadToKnow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/KneadToKnow)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/folding-fitted-sheets/503947/16 "2009-07-24T17:22:26Z")
> [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](#): > > Once a year or so, when your sheets need washing Note to self: get **Tim** a girlfriend. ---
**Author:** ![Sapo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ec9cab/32.png) [@Sapo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sapo)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 6:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/folding-fitted-sheets/503947/17 "2009-07-24T18:23:09Z")
> [@Tim\_R.Mortiss](#): > > Why would anybody need to fold a sheet? Just do what I do: > > Once a year or so, when your sheets need washing, take them off the bed, wash, dry, and put them BACK on the bed. No folding involved!..TRM This is exactly my technique. Except that I have gotten so good at it that I can do it once or twice A WEEK. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [July 24, 2009, 11:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/folding-fitted-sheets/503947/18 "2009-07-24T23:43:31Z")
Here’s my method: 1. Start out with the best of intentions, telling yourself this time will be different. 2. Spread sheet out on bed. 3. Remove cats from sheet. 4. Try to use common sense, visualizing the relationship between 2D and 3D. 5. Wad the damn thing up and stuff it into the linen closet.