Not knowing anything about towels, did a little bit of reasearch on the internet which lead me to believe using the Egyptian Cotton Loops, after a washing these would be extremely soft. Not the case, they're still tight and not much softer then pre-wash. I bought the 'Economic Towel Collection' as well and they're more of what I expected out of these. If you have small children as I do (5 & 7) hands down they're going to want to use the 'Economic Towel Collection' after a bath.