The 10 Best Hand Towels
Special Honors
Kiriko While Americans debate whether paper towels or air-blown hand dryers are better, in many other countries people do things completely different. If you didn't know, many public bathrooms in Japan have neither paper towels nor dryers. Instead, it is quite normal for Japanese citizens to carry their own hand towel, called tenugui, with them wherever they go. Just so, the world of Japanese hand towels is loaded with sturdy and elegant designs like the ones you'll find on this artisan website. kirikomade.com
Thirsty Towels If you prefer to align your purchases with noble causes, this purveyor of quality Turkish towels is worthy of your consideration. In addition to avoiding child labor and adhering to rigorous Oeko-tex quality standards, they give a portion of their profits to charities for children and animals. While their hand towel selection is limited, they have a lot of bathrobes and other towels to look at as well. thirstytowels.com
Editor's Notes
May 11, 2020:
While great for drying damp hands, towels are one of the most frequented havens of transferable bacteria in any household. The risk of spreading infectious materials they pose can be greatly reduced by practicing proper procedures. Washing your hands thoroughly — front, back, in between fingers, down the wrists, and underneath nails — for 20 seconds is always advisable, as well as aggressively rinsing all residue off before drying. In this manner, you’ll be sure to greatly reduce the amount of dead skin and bacteria that remain on your wet hands before using a towel others might also need.
Moving on, while it is ideal to have a good place to hang towels so that they can dry out before they draw thirsty microbes, any damp towel is likely to attract mold and mildew. Just so, it’s a good idea to buy hand towels in bulk so you can get a regular rotation going, allowing your used towels to reach the washing machine sooner. Since hygiene and health are at stake, we suggest getting a superior laundry detergent and using it as instructed to ensure cleanliness. Personal health is a gift and not the sort of thing you want to be skimpy about.
Some favor is shown for options that have matching bath sets available like the Great Bay Home Acacia, White Classic Luxury, and Classic Turkish Towels Jacquard, since a lot of people like to keep their bathrooms coordinated. However, we did try to limit the amount of “plain” options on the list, such as the AmazonBasics Fade-Resistant and Cotton Craft Ultra Soft since, other than the specific weave of their banding, aesthetically they’re very similar. Out of all the many, many utilitarian options out there, the ones here are the best-rated when it comes to resisting fading, splotching, fraying, and other forms of degradation.