This popular Christmas pajama set is a big no-no for this type of sleeper

A young woman wearing tartan Christmas pajamas and a Santa hat decorates a Christmas tree.

(Image credit: Getty Images)

Christmas Eve pajamas are a tradition in many households but if you plan on waiting for Santa in festive sleepwear, be wary of snuggling up in certain fabrics.

Fleece and flannel look festive but after a night wrapped up in your cozy pajamas you might be feeling less-than-seasonal. These warm materials are a big no for hot sleepers and they can result in sweaty, disrupted sleep.

Why you should avoid fleece and flannel bedding

Hot sleeping can be a year-round problem and while the best cooling mattress will help you keep your cool, it's only one part of the equation.

Thick pajamas and bedding feel cozy when you first snuggle up to sleep but they can quickly overheat as your body pumps warmth into the air.

A woman with curly dark hair lies awake in bed fanning herself because she's too hot to sleep — (Image credit: Getty Images)

This heat struggles to escape from under heavy materials like flannel and fleece, making you warmer, which causes the air to heat up further, causing you to get even hotter... and so on, until you wake up sweating and eagerly kicking your covers off.

And yes, this can be a problem even in the dead of winter. Particularly if you go to bed with the heating on, or the thermostat kicks in during the early hours of the morning.

Breathable alternatives

You don't have to ditch the flannel pajamas entirely — you can keep them on for a set of selfies around the fireplace.

And if you tend to wake up shivering, thick pajamas can help you sleep cozy without touching the thermostat.

Tom's Guide Sleep Features Editor lying on her back like a starfish on the Birch Elite mattress that's discounted in the Black Friday mattress sales — (Image credit: Future)

However, we recommend breathable fabrics when you climb into bed. Silk, bamboo and linen pajamas are all naturally breathable and you can typically find them in a variety of fun prints, if you're committed to the Christmas aesthetic.

We also recommend avoiding flannel bedding, particularly in your guest room. Dressing the bed for the holidays helps add to the festive flavor but unless you're familiar with your guests sleep needs, we advise a neutral fabric like cotton percale.

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Ruth is an experienced Senior Staff writer at Tom’s Guide, covering all things sleep and mattresses. She writes to help people sleep better, from how-tos to the latest deals to mattress reviews, and has interviewed an array of experts who share her passion. She is also our specialist on memory foam — she’s flown around the world to see memory foam being made — and leads our hotel mattress content. She has a deep interest in the link between sleep and health, and has tried enough mattresses, from Helix to Nectar to Simba, to know the right bed really can make a difference to your wellbeing. Before joining the team at Tom’s Guide, Ruth worked as a sleep and mattress writer for our sister website, TechRadar.

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Why you should avoid fleece and flannel bedding

Breathable alternatives