ShoparoundThe rise in the number of winter weekend breaks we take is fuelling a desire to recreate the five-star bed feeling at home. Pillows that feel like clouds, light quilts that caress, cool, freshly laundered sheets all in the comfort of our own bedrooms. How do you do it?

"Good linen is expensive but worth it," says Lisa Duffin, Bottom Drawer's buyer.

"It should feel cool and crisp and be really serviceable. And like fine wine, it should improve with age."

Frette is an Italian luxury brand. Its Hotel Collection is available to wear test at the K Club, the Four Seasons, Claridges and the Ritz.

A Frette king-size-sheet set, which includes top and bottom sheets and two pillow cases, costs €325. Bottom Drawer is currently offering 30 per cent off all the Hotel Collection.

Thread count is only one indicator of good quality. "If the linen has a thread count of 800 but the thread quality used is poor then it doesn't matter what number of threads were used to make it," says Duffin.

Elbow grease is required to achieve crisp, hotel-level laundered linen. After washing, tumble dry but take out while it's still damp. Iron while damp.

What lies beneath too is important. "You use your bed every single night. What you put on and underneath you should be an investment in your wellbeing," says Freda Kavannagh, owner of specialist store, Beds of a Feather (0404 42804) in Ashford, whose ranges grace Hayfield Manor, the Hudson Bay Hotel as well as Claridges in London.

A feather bed is one way to up the luxury at home. Fit for a princess and her pea, this mini mattress is eight inches thick and sits atop your own. The Danish duck down is encased in twill to prevent straying feathers (king size €355).

Many of the couples Kavannagh deals with have different duvet demands. "The man wants something that won't make him too hot, while the woman wants the opposite. The only way to achieve this while sleeping under the same quilt is to invest in TempraKon, a down-filled quilt brand that actually adapts to your body's temperature." Price €669.

In Scandinavia, she says, couples wouldn't dream of sleeping under the same duvet as their partner. "They avoid duvet wars by each sleeping under a quilt of their own."

The Fine Linen Company at Debenhams, is among the best of what the chain stores have to offer. Prices range from €93 - €140.