Aunt Martha'sAunt Martha's PKMAR 3-Pack Retro Maroon Striped Dish Towels, 18 by 28-Inch

I, too was disappointed at first by the lack of absorbency of these towels. But I thought they were so pretty and of such high quality that I decided to try washing them several times before using them. Even after a few cycles of hot water and a hot dryer, they were better, but still not as absorbent as I'd have liked. But that was over a year ago, and I have washed them many times since then. They are still as beautiful as ever, but have now become very soft and quite absorbent. I am about to order 2-3 more sets. If you like the looks of these and have the patience to break them in, I would highly recommend these dish towels.UPDATE in response to reviewer M. Koncar who was concerned about wrinkles and the appearance of the towels:Please see my attached photo. This is what the towels look like after over a year of being used and laundered. They are not wrinkle-free -- as in, they don't look as if they have been ironed. But the colors are vibrant, the wrinkles are minor, and they are extremely soft and absorbent. I love them and I stand by my review.

This review is for the vintage multi stripped towels. I am in love with these towels, I planned to embroider them for resale in my shop. They arrived quickly and I was so excited to get started using them, so I prepped them for use—washed them on the “quick wash” cycle in cold water and a cup of white vinegar to color block them. I put them in the dryer with no air and once the cycle was complete I promptly removed them and hung them on the clothes line to air dry. I went to take them off the line and the bottom hem on one towel at the end is coming loose, and on another the loop is coming loose. I really want to love these towels and I was just about to order a couple of more sets. I don’t want to have to purchase these only to repair them before use, and I don’t want to sell them and my customers are later dissatisfied with my work. So now I am waiting to see what Aunt Martha’s response to this issue will be. I want more of these, but I want them to be 100% worth my while. Even with the wrinkles, I’m ok with this, a good ironing and future folding will still make for a quality towel. I will provide a follow up review once I hear from the seller. And I am truly hoping to improve my rating by 100%.

I was hesitant to buy these given mixed reviews. Some found the fabric stiff and non-absorbent. But the vintage look is sweet and the positive reviews won. I gave them a try and they're good. I immediately threw them in the washer and dryer to test out the fabric and they came out soft and thick, not stiff and wrinkly. I think the manufacturer must have changed fabric since the negative reviews. Only four stars because they shrink quite a bit; mine shrunk to 16x 24. Not a deal-breaker but the manufacturer should either change the specs or cut the fabric oversized so it shrinks to the intended size.

I ORDERED THE AUNT MARTHA MULTI-COLOR STRIPE TOWELS TO BE OUT CONSTANTLY IN MY YELLOW AND WHITE KITCHEN WITH RED, BLUE, YELLOW, & GREEN ACCENTS. I WAS VERY PLEASED WITH THE BRIGHT COLORS AND THE QUALITY OF THESE TOWELS. THEY ARE VERY WELL STITCHED ENCLOSED HEMS AND SIDES, MADE OF HEAVY TEA-TOWEL MATERIAL, AND ARE QUITE LARGE 12"X28", WITH A SEWED ON LOOP TO HANG THEM. THEY LOOK WELL IN MY KITCHEN.UNFORTUNATELY, THEY HAVE PROVEN TO BE TOTALLY NON-ABSORBENT. WIPING MY WET HANDS ON THEM LEAVES ALL THE WATER ON MY HANDS, AND NONE ON THE TOWEL.I HAVE WASHED THEM NUMEROUS TIMES OVER THE LAST 2 YEARS IN HOT WATER AND LIQUID LAUNDRY DETERGENT, AND THEN DRIED THEM IN THE DRYER WITH NO FABRIC SOFTENER OR DRYER SHEETS TO HELP THEM BE ABSORBENT. I FIGURED THAT THIS WOULD REMOVE ANY SIZING ON THE MATERIAL, AND THOUGHT THEY WOULD "BREAK-IN" PER OTHER REVIEWERS. BUT AFTER 2 YEARS, I DON'T THINK THEY WILL.THESE TOWELS WILL PROBABLY LAST A LIFETIME AND LOOK WELL ON DISPLAY. BUT IF YOU BOUGHT THEM TO DRY YOUR HANDS, YOU ARE OUT OF LUCK. BETTER TO USE THE INEXPENSIVE FLUFFY "KITCHEN" TOWELS.THEY WOULD PROBABLY BE GOOD COOKING ACCESSORIES: THEY WOULD WORK WELL FOR PLACING OVER BREAD BOWLS TO LET THE DOUGH RISE OR TO USE WHEN ROLLING UP JELLY ROLLS OR CINNAMON ROLLS. YOU COULD PROBABLY ROLL OUT PIE CRUST DOUGH ON THEM AS WELL AND NOT HAVE IT STICK.

I bought these more as a decor item for new kitchen color scheme (details of which I will not bore you with) Previous reviews said they were fine for drying hands but not actually drying pots and pans or other heavy duty uses. Reviews also said they were more absorbent after washing. After a wash with towels and then a time in the dryer, these towels were a wrinkled and twisted mess and would not lay flat to fold. I put them back in the dryer with damp clothing and did an air-fluff cycle and they were wrinkled but could be smoothed flat. They would look messy hanging on the front of the oven. I have other towels, both terry cloth, and cotton tea towel, and they do not require special care to be useful and attractive. Should I wash them again and dry low temp or on a line. I refuse to iron kitchen towels .....

When arrived they repelled water like they had a repellant coating, the water just beaded up. After washing they are better, but still not suitable for what you would want from a premium dishtowel. Even after washing moves the water around on items to be dried more so than absorbing. May be suitable as a baking cloche. I am returning them. A very coarse fabric as well.Updated to 5 stars: They eventually softened up and for whatever reason I love them.

Purchased for use as dish/ tea towels not for crafting. Limited functionality: packaging recommends 'cold wash only'!Printed stripe is more dark grey than black, and the fabric has heavy creasing. Looks more second hand than retro.All in all Wilko's glass cloths are a better product.

These cloths double up as dish cloths and ironing cloths and they come in nice colours!The price was also nice although delivery from USA did take a bit longer than usual!

I do machine embroidery on tea towels, and must say that I was incredibly impressed with the quality of these items. The fabric was much thicker than I expected, which allowed me to choose a heavier embroidery design. I should have ironed this towel before taking a picture - but I think you can see that the fabric held up well.

I had to pay duty on them and they do not dry the dishes .. I am washing them with every wash hoping to soften them up . True linen is suppose to be the best .. Not theses

Functional and attractive. I use these towels for baking sourdough bread and also as general dish towels. Good value for the price.