There is simply nothing better than sliding into beautiful sheets at the end of the day. Sukun's small-batch cotton sateen sheets, with their elegant and playful designs, make going to bed a true pleasure. The brand's founder tells Jessica Jonzen more
MARSHMALLOW STRIPE BEDDING
Good bedding is one of life’s true daily luxuries. And when you consider that we spend around a third of our lives in bed, investing in something that looks beautiful and feels wonderful seems entirely justified. So we were delighted to discover independent bedding brand Sukun.
Founded in 2023 by Fatima Khan, Sukun takes its name from the feeling of peace, tranquillity and calm – “the quiet joy of needing nowhere else,” as Fatima puts it. The brand creates small-batch bedding designed to soften and become more beautiful with time, made exclusively from cotton sateen, reflecting Fatima’s belief that anything touching the skin should be as pure and natural as possible.
Each piece is made at a family-run mill in Lahore, where Fatima grew up, with more than 80 years of heritage spanning three generations. The mill’s owner is also a neighbour, a detail that speaks to the close-knit relationships and sense of community at the heart of Sukun. With its luxurious fabrics and thoughtful design details, Sukun makes the simple act of getting into bed feel like a life-enhancing daily ritual.
And as Fatima says, the bed is a hugely significant part of our lives: "beyond the physical, almost every significant moment in a life has a bed somewhere in it. The first morning in a new home. The slow recovery from illness. A newborn placed down for the very first time. The Sunday morning that stretches into afternoon without apology. The bed is not just furniture, it is the backdrop to the moments that matter most. It deserves to be beautiful."
Here, Fatima tells us more about her brand, Sukun.
THE PROVENCE SET WITH SUTTER YELLOW TRIM
Where did the idea for the brand begin?
The idea for Sukun came from a very personal frustration. I grew up surrounded by the richness of Pakistani textile culture - colour, craft, personality and when I moved to London I found that the bedding market reflected none of that. Everything was beige, straight-edged and interchangeable. I could not find anything that felt genuinely considered, genuinely joyful and genuinely made. So I made it myself.
I named the brand after the feeling I wanted people to have when they finally got into bed at the end of the day: not just comfortable, at peace. Sukun is a word used frequently in Urdu and it almost always describes a feeling rather than a place – peace, contentment, stillness. What I love about it is that the word itself resonates the feeling. You do not need to translate it. You sense it.
How do you create this feeling within your own home?
Intentionally and without overcomplicating it. It is almost always the smallest things that create it. The sheets matter enormously; the right fabric against your skin at the end of a long day is one of the simplest and most underrated pleasures there is. Not luxury as a performance but luxury as an uncomplicated pleasure that belongs entirely to you.
Beyond that, I am deliberate about light candles in the evening, no overhead lighting after a certain hour. And I keep the bedroom for sleeping and resting only. The moment you treat a room with intention, it starts to feel like a sanctuary rather than just a space.
Which simple moments or rituals do you think make a home feel like a sanctuary?
It is the small decisions made with intention that make the difference. A few drops of lavender on the pillow before sleep; a candle lit in the bathroom while you run a bath – it changes the feeling of the room entirely. Even a toothbrush that is beautiful to look at and kind to the environment (I like the ones made by Suri) can make a difference. The glass of water on the nightstand, the book you actually want to read rather than the screen you feel compelled to scroll.
The moment you slide into bedding that feels genuinely wonderful against your skin, the whole day, however long or difficult it was, feels worth it. That is not a small thing – that is the whole point of Sukun. The ordinary elevated, one considered detail at a time.
ARABELLA OXFORD PILLOW CASES WITH A PROVENCE DUVET WITH DUSTY PINK TRIM
Before launching Sukun, what did you feel was missing from the homeware market?
Something that sat between minimalist and playful. I wanted something that was a bit unconventional but not so far removed that it became inaccessible. The market is full of wonderful brands at both ends of the spectrum: the very pared-back, the very maximalist, but there was a gap in the middle for something genuinely sophisticated and joyful at the same time. Luxuriously made, thoughtfully constructed, beautifully finished but with a subtle touch of colour, a considered stitch or a frill that made it not boring.
Pakistan has an extraordinary textile tradition that has supplied some of the world's most prestigious homes and brands for decades. As someone from the region, I wanted to bring that craft to the forefront rather than keep it in the background. Sukun is an opportunity to showcase what has always been their skill, the precision, the generational knowledge and to give it the platform it has always deserved.
How do you approach the design process, and what makes one of your pieces feel truly special?
Every collection starts with a concept a city, a colour story, a feeling or a memory. We work through that concept iteratively, in very close collaboration with our manufacturers. There are a lot of trials, a lot of back and forth, a lot of moments where something almost works but not quite. We are very patient about getting it right.
What makes a product feel truly special is restraint. Knowing exactly where to add the detail and where to leave space. A beautifully finished frill on an otherwise clean duvet cover, a delicate ladder lace trim on a white pillowcase or a hand-embroidered red mark on every single piece is our signature that says somebody thought about this. Restraint is much harder than decoration and it is the thing I am most proud of in how Sukun is made.
We also listen closely to our customers through email, through Instagram, and that feedback genuinely informs what comes next. As much as Sukun is design-led, it is also a brand that pays attention.
Texture and touch are such important parts of creating a home. Why are these sensory details so important to you?
With bedding, texture and touch are not just important they are the entire point. You spend eight hours a night with your skin against this fabric. More of your life happens here than almost anywhere else and yet it is the purchase most people make with the least thought.
Cotton sateen has a quality that resists description until you have actually felt it. The weave brings more thread to the surface of the fabric, creating a smoothness that feels considered rather than accidental. It improves with every wash. It earns its place over time. That is the kind of detail that separates something genuinely worth owning from something that merely photographs well.
THE NOTTING HILL SET IN GREEN
Where do you find inspiration for Sukun's collections?
Travel has always been the starting point. Sukun was originally inspired by the boutique hotels we stayed in on holiday. Every room, in every country, had beautiful, immaculate white sheets. And it made me think after taking in the sights, the sounds, the colours and the character of a place if I were to reimagine the bedding for that city, that landscape, that feeling, how would I do it?
Provence became our dusty pinks and soft frilled edges. Amalfi became clean white with delicate ladder lace. The New Yorker became sharp, graphic and confident. Oslo became pared back and considered. Every collection is a love letter to somewhere and to the particular feeling of waking up there.
My Pakistani heritage is also a constant influence, not always explicitly, but always present. The richness of colour, the precision of craft, the belief that everyday objects should be made with care and intention. That runs through everything Sukun makes.
What has been the biggest lesson or most surprising moment since launching Sukun?
The most surprising thing has been how personal it becomes. I expected customers to buy sheets. I did not expect them to tell me that they took our Vienna pillowcases to hospital when their baby was born, or that they had chosen Sukun as a gift for someone going through a difficult time because they wanted them to have something beautiful and comforting to come home to. The product reaches people in their most vulnerable and their most joyful moments, often at the same time. That is not something I anticipated and it is not something I take lightly.
The biggest lesson has been patience. Building a brand that stands for something takes time. There are no shortcuts to trust or craft. I have learned to be comfortable with that.
CANDY CANE PILLOW CASES
What is your favourite Sukun piece in your own home, and why?
The Candy Cane, designed in collaboration with Studio Raff. I almost did not agree to the red – it felt bold, perhaps too bold, and I was not sure it was the direction I wanted to take. But when it came back from production it was one of those rare moments where something exceeded every expectation. The red lands as the happiest, most unexpected colour pop. It's joyful without being loud, confident without being demanding. Sometimes the pieces you are least certain about become the ones you love the most. This was one of them.
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