this may seem trivial but where can I buy bathroom towels without that
boring shiny band that seems compulsory in thsi country. and do they
only exist in plain? surely somewhere, in England preferably, they
must sell designer pattern towels. they do it for the beach so why not
for the home

---

Request for Question Clarification by hibiscus-ga on 30 Jan 2003 18:58 PST

Hello mickey_one, 

I spent a fair amount of time searching for on this one, but only
found a couple of options for you.  I didn't really think it was
reasonable to post this as an answer but you might be interested in my
findings anyway.

In the UK there is almost nothing beyond the very plain and boring
towels that you find everywhere.  Actually, that's not just in the UK
but everywhere.  However, John Lewis has some really great towels.  I
particularly like the cheetah print.  The decorative towels are here
http://www.johnlewis.com/stores/shelf.asp?str=935&shelfid=160&m=16
and the striped towels are here
http://www.johnlewis.com/stores/shelf.asp?str=935&shelfid=1787&m=20

Try as I might I couldn't find anything else remotely interesting in
the UK, but if you're willing to order over the Internet you have a
few more options.  Linens N' Things in the US has a very large
selection of towels here
http://www.lnt.com/category/category_546_1.asp

Strouds.com (US) also has a collection of more interesting towels
here: http://www.strouds.com/towels.html

That's about it.  Best of luck to you in finding something.

Hibiscus

---

Request for Question Clarification by wellen-ga on 31 Jan 2003 21:00 PST

Hello mickey_one,

If I understand your request correctly, you prefer to be able to
purchase the towels in England, but would accept other locations that
would ship to you, is that correct? Also, if you would help
researchers narrow it down a bit by providing your price range,
preferred size, color, etc. that would help. I have found several in a
wide range of prices and patterns but want to be sure I am on the
right track so I'd like to know a little more detail about what you
have in mind.


wellen-ga

Hello mickey_0ne,

I am posting this as an answer, but along with my request that if you
should make your purchase from the results that were given to you by
hibiscus-ga, then hibiscus should receive the payment.

In your clarification you mention that you are seeking a complete set
and some of the results I have found are sets but before I had asked
for some clarification, I had already done some searching for just
towels. So I am still including those results for you even though they
are not all be sets. Many times you can browse the web site and find
complementing pieces to create the set you want.

In each listing below I did check to make sure they were either
located in the UK or would ship there. In some cases, if it is not in
the UK, you may have to call the company to find out what the shipping
costs would be as they may only list the costs for the US. Going to
their link for shipping or ordering or customer service will give you
the information you need. There were quite a few stores that I did not
include because they did not state their shipping information.

Since I had found some of the towels before getting your
clarification, the prices do cover a wide range. In some cases it was
not possible to tell if the towel had the 'band' or not just from
looking at the image or reading the description.

I've listed the Home Page for each web site, then a few links to items
that seem to fit your resquest. Browsing through the entire sites will
often give you many additional items.



UK web sites:

1. Abound: http://www.aboundonline.com --
Classic Twist Bathroom Textiles
http://www.aboundonline.com/abound/product.asp?brand=abound&cat%5Fid=13503&zone%5Fid=&prod%5Fid=165153&offer%5Fid=165153Z&link%5Fid=&referer=&extra=&inSearch=&search%5Fcriteria=&mo%5Fid=&wl%5Fid=&wl%5Fsec=&fwid=&old_sid=F6LHLNET1B1R8HAWSVNCWVQBGK6GC735

2. Lakeland Limited:  http://www.lakelandlimited.com --
Dusky Pink Ultra-Soft Towels
http://www.lakelandlimited.com/is-bin/INTERSHOP.enfinity/eCS/Store/en/-/GBP/DisplayProductInformation-Start;sid=AGmyq6vb-GyPzpXkOkO-rgMbOTLSj74gu68=?ProductID=ICfCy5OSu68AAADjWjnk4IJ1

3. Towels.co.uk:  http://www.towels.co.uk --
Oversized bath sheets
http://www.towels.co.uk/supersoft_towels.htm

4. Littlewoods Extra:  http://www.littlewoodsextra.com --
-Cotton "Modal" towels
http://www.littlewoodsextra.com/extra/rf.inf.SessionServlet?pathinfo=extra/browse/ProductPage.html&pca=60931295&minprice=0&filterProd=n&searchResultSetId=6060667&rootcat_id=59276977&category_id=59276973&version_id=300

-"Mosaic" Set
http://www.littlewoodsextra.com/extra/rf.inf.SessionServlet?pathinfo=extra/browse/ProductPage.html&pca=60640540&minprice=0&filterProd=n&searchResultSetId=6060667&rootcat_id=59276977&category_id=59276973&version_id=300

-"Seaside" Set
http://www.littlewoodsextra.com/extra/rf.inf.SessionServlet?pathinfo=extra/browse/ProductPage.html&pca=60640486&minprice=0&filterProd=n&searchResultSetId=6060667&rootcat_id=59276977&category_id=59276973&version_id=300

5. Table/Home/Lines Shop:  http://www.tablehomelinenshop.co.uk --
"Christy" Collection
http://www.tablehomelinenshop.co.uk/acatalog/Online_Catalogue_christy_luxury_collection_48.html

6. Keys Bedding:  http://www.keysbedding.co.uk --
Carmen Embellished towels
http://www.keysbedding.co.uk/jHousehold_Linen.htm

7. Christy Towels: http://www.christytowels.org.uk --
-The Luxury Collection - Da Vinci 
http://www.christytowels.org.uk/user/davinci.asp

-The Carefree Collection - Panache Stripe
http://www.christytowels.org.uk/user/panachestripe.asp#

8. Stranos: http://www.stranos.co.uk --
Soft Terrycloth
http://www.stranos.co.uk/acatalog/Online_Catalogue_Soft_Terrycloth_11.html

9. House of Bath: http://www.houseofbath.co.uk --
Made and embroidered in Lancashire
http://www.houseofbath.co.uk/item.asp?fldDescriptionID=948

10. Kay's: http://kaysnet.com --
Towels/Sets
http://kaysnet.com/gus/category.asp?brand=kays&cat%5Fid=15503&zone%5Fid=&prod%5Fid=&offer%5Fid=&link%5Fid=&referer=&extra=&inSearch=&search%5Fcriteria=&mo%5Fid=&wl%5Fid=&wl%5Fsec=&fwid=&old_sid=4FX99E30XQ4P9HF5HEXVL0EWWVAP3BJ1

11. Argos: http://www.argos.co.uk --
Blue Daisy 
http://www.argos.co.uk/webapp/commerce/command/ExecMacro/ols_prod_detl.d2w/report?prrfnbr=8301976&prmenbr=6970&type=big&thisMode=ols&cgrfnbr=774761





Sites located in the US that will ship to locations outside of the US:

1. Thirsty Towels: http://www.thirstytowels.com -- 
-2 piece Turkish Towel Set, waffle textured and embroidered with
"Daisy Flowers"
http://www.thirstytowels.com/Catalog/Emroidered_Towels_And_Towel_Sets/2_Piece_Daisy_Pique_Towel_Set.htm

-2 piece Turkish Towel Set, waffle textured and embroidered with
"Olive Branches"
http://www.thirstytowels.com/Catalog/Emroidered_Towels_And_Towel_Sets/2_Piece_Olive_Branch_Pique_Towel_Set.htm

2. Pioneer Linens: http://www.pioneerlinens.com --
http://www.pioneerlinens.com/Forte/showprod.cfm?&DID=8&CATID=13&ObjectGroup_ID=132

3. Garnet Hill:  http://www.garnethill.com --
-http://www.garnethill.com/cgi-bin/gh/beddingSubcat.jsp?BV_SessionID=@@@@0732750119.1044331759@@@@&BV_EngineID=cccjadchhfdfigkcgencfhjdfjmdhgk.0&CategoryOID=-16727

-Garnet Hill Signature Towels  
http://www.garnethill.com/cgi-bin/gh/beddingItem.jsp?BV_SessionID=@@@@0732750119.1044331759@@@@&BV_EngineID=cccjadchhfdfigkcgencfhjdfjmdhgk.0&CategoryOID=-16730

4. Homesensation: http://www.homesensation.com
Bath Towels
http://www.homesensation.com/b/Bath_Towels/index.html

5. Domestications:  http://www.domestications.com --
-Whimsical - Big Money Bath Sheet 
http://www.domestications.com//product.asp?product=12204Azz&dept%5Fid=15600&parentname=BATH&featurename=

-"Panda"monium Bath Collection
http://www.domestications.com//parent2.asp?product=H12194x&dept%5Fid=15600&parentname=BATH&featurename=

6. The Giving Tree:  http://www.givingtreeonline.com/bathlinens.html
--
Bath Linens by Peacock Alley
http://www.givingtreeonline.com/pabathlinens.html

7. L L Bean: http://www.llbean.com --
Ribbed Chenille Towels
http://www.llbean.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?&storeId=1&catalogId=1&langId=-1&categoryId=33120&sc1=Search&feat=sr

8. Eldridge Textile: http://www.eldridgetextile.com --
Towels by Fieldcrest and Quality Embellished Towels
http://www.eldridgetextile.com/bath/towels.html

9. Bed Bath and Beyond:  http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com --
Print Towels
http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/stylepage.asp?order_num=-1&RN=274&RNT=0

10. Eddie Bauer: http://www.eddiebauer.com --
Sculpted Fern Towels
http://www.eddiebauer.com/ebh/product.asp?product_id=22681&nv=312|316|412&cm_cg=C412&tid=&c=&sc=



Since your priority is to find the items in England, my first step was
to locate search engines for the UK by going to Google Uk, Yahoo UK,
AltaVista Uk, Excite Uk, etc. as well as search engines that are just
of the UK such as searchUK.com, searchy.co.uk, and limeysearch.co.uk.
The search term I used most was just "bath towel" since I knew I would
not be overwhelmed with results. I also did a search using "designer
towels" and found a few that way.

Have fun shopping! 

wellen-ga

The main reason they don't usually make these for the home is, simply,
function. Bath towels are meant to be very absorbent. Printing fancy
patterns on them interferes with that. Usually fancier bath towels are
velour and/or embroidered. They look pretty hanging on the towel rack,
but are not much good for drying off. You can probably find striped
towels and possibly some floral patterns that are still reasonably
functional as towels.

- Hammer

I am looking for a whole set, so bath rug, medium size and hand also.
Price range- expensive, very good quality and if I liek them enough
then shipping is fine. Meantime I am checking John Lewis as suggested
here. thanks for the help so far