The Winter Blanket Guide: Plush, Chenille, Weighted or Duvet
The first cold night always arrives early. You pull out last winter's blanket and it feels thinner than you remember.
This is a short guide to choosing the next one. Four kinds of warmth, what each is for, and which size to order. Read it once and you will not need to read it again.
Start with how you sleep
The blanket comes second. Three questions come first.
- Where will it live? On the sofa, on the bed, or both.
- How cold does your room get? Karachi in January is not Lahore in January. Islamabad is colder again.
- Do you like weight, or do you kick it off by 3am? Some people sleep better held down. Some need air.
Your answers decide the blanket. Not the colour. That part is easy.
Plush: the one you reach for every day
If you searched for a fleece blanket, this is most likely what you had in mind. A soft, brushed pile that warms the moment it touches you.
Ours is 100% polyester microfiber. It is light, so it layers under a duvet without making the bed feel heavy. It works from October to March, and on an air-conditioned night in June.
Best for: the sofa, a child's bed, an extra layer under your duvet, guests.
Sizes: Throw (50 × 60 in), Single (66 × 92 in), Double (90 × 92 in).
Care: machine wash cold on a gentle cycle. Tumble dry low. No iron, no bleach.
See the Plush Blankets in nine solid colours, or the Striped Plush Blanket if you want a quiet pattern.
Chenille: for the nights that are properly cold
Two layers in one. A textured chenille face on top, a deep sherpa fleece underneath. At 430 GSM it is noticeably thicker than plush, and it holds heat rather than passing it through.
It is also the one that looks finished on a made bed. Folded at the foot in ivory or taupe, it changes the room.
Best for: Lahore, Islamabad and anywhere north in December and January. Bedrooms without a heater.
Sizes: Single (66 × 92 in) and Double (90 × 92 in).
See the Chenille Blanket in five colours.
Weighted: when the day will not switch off
A weighted blanket is less about heat and more about stillness. Ours carries 10 lbs of micro glass beads, quilted so the weight sits evenly across you instead of sliding to one side.
People who like it tend to love it. If you are someone who sleeps with one leg out, it may not be yours.
Best for: reading in bed, slow evenings, anyone who likes the feeling of being tucked in.
Sizes: Single (60 × 90 in) and Double (90 × 90 in).
See the Sherpa Weighted Blanket.
A winter duvet: when a blanket is not enough
For the coldest weeks, a duvet does what no single blanket can. It traps a thick layer of air around you and keeps it there until morning.
Our Winter Season Duvet Filler has an 800 GSM microfiber fill. For comparison, the All Season version is 300 GSM. That gap is the difference between October and January.
A filler needs a cover. Sateen is the warmer-feeling weave, smooth and a little heavier on the skin. The duvet cover sets come in Queen and King.
Which size to order
- Throw: one person on a sofa. It will not cover a bed.
- Single: a single bed, or one adult who does not want to share.
- Double: a queen or king bed, two people. If you are deciding between two sizes, take the larger one. Nobody has ever complained about too much blanket.
How to layer a winter bed
From the mattress up:
- A fitted sheet, then a flat sheet.
- A plush blanket. This is the layer that touches you, so it should be the softest.
- Your duvet on top, to hold the warmth in.
- A chenille blanket folded at the foot, for the hour before sunrise.
One more thing, and it is an old one. A hot water bottle at your feet ten minutes before bed. Warm water, never boiling, filled no more than two thirds. Your grandmother was right about this.
Make it last
Wash blankets cold, on a gentle cycle, and dry them on low heat. High heat is what flattens a soft pile. Keep the iron away.
In March, wash it once more and store it completely dry. Next winter it will come out the way it went in.
The short answer
- Everyday softness, any room: plush.
- Real cold, and a bed that looks made: chenille.
- A mind that will not slow down: weighted.
- January in the north: a winter duvet, with a blanket under it.
Every blanket ships across Pakistan and comes with a 30-day exchange. See them all in Blankets.
The Linen Company. From Nishat. Since 1990.
