I recently went to a Sleepy’s to look for a mattress for my 5 yr old daughter and tried their Gemma Firm and Gemma Plush Mattresses. All of us (myself, daughter, and husband) didn’t care for Gemma plush (it was too soft) and preferred the Gemma Firm. I was seriously going to consider this bed, but it’s not natural.
Then, I learned about Brooklyn Bedding and am particularly interested in their 10" Total Latex mattress. We have a Savvy Rest 10" in Firm, firm, medium latex so I am familiar with latex, but I wonder how the BB’s Total Latex mattress feels. The BB’s latex mattress is a much lower price point than Savvy Rest’s so I am seriously considering it, but if anyone has experience with it, I would love to hear about it. The new mattresses will be for 5 and 2 yr old, but hopefully one that will last a long time so I wouldn’t want to get it too soft. I did like the feel of the Gemma firm. It was firm, but softer than our Savvy Rest. Thanks!
The Gemma mattress is made by Spaldin which is a Spanish manufacturer (Industrias Tobias SA is the parent company) which makes some interesting mattresses that are focused on using “safe” materials. They are very open and transparent about the materials they use and the memory foam they use has among the highest percentage of plant based polyols in the industry (which are used to replace some of the petrochemicals in the memory foam) and they are also Oeko-Tex Standard 100 class 1 certified (safe for babies) which is very unusual for a memory foam mattress. In this area they are a leader in the industry.
The “gem foam” they use in the top layer of their mattress is reticulated foam (also called fast dri foam) which is often used outdoors because of it’s ability to breath and dry quickly. There is a good description here as well.
The base layer is also a good quality 2.0 lb polyfoam.
Unfortunately the Spaldin Gemma uses rather low density/quality 3.2 lb memory foam in the top layer of the mattress which is lower than I would normally recommend for any memory foam layer more than an inch or so. The memory foam is a fairly thin layer which makes the use of lower density memory foam a little less risky in terms of durability because there is less material to soften and break down but it also means that there is less of the more costly materials in the mattress and it’s not in the best value range.
Like your own Savvy Rest mattress and several of the other members of this site … the Brooklyn Bedding total latex mattress offers a choice of layering and firmness levels which would determine its feel. If you were to use the same ILD’s in the layers then it would be very similar in “feel” to your Savvy Rest except of course the Savvy Rest is significantly more costly than similar mattresses made by other manufacturers (including some of the members of this site who make component or “choose your own layer” latex mattress).
A forum search on Brooklyn Bedding total latex mattress (you can just click this) will also bring up more information about their all latex mattress and of course there may be other members who see this and share their experience as well.
Post #2 here includes links to the better threads in the forum about mattresses and children that include information and links to some very good options.
I think that 9" of latex for younger children is probably more than is necessary and may be a bit of overkill. It may be worthwhile to consider a 6" latex mattress (either as a single layer or as two 3" layers) on the firmer side (children need firmer mattresses than adults) and then when they get older and into their pre-teens and teens then you can add a 2" or 3" topper to add some softness to the mattress when they need it.
I will let you know what I think of the BB 10" Total Latex mattress in a week or so. It has been sitting in a spare room for nearly a week waiting for my Ergo adjustable base which will be delivered this afternoon from a local store. I laid on the mattress for a few minutes while it was sitting on the floor and it is totally expanded to its full 10" and felt pretty good although I only laid on it for about ten minutes.
After giving BB all the information about myself and my personal preferences they recommended a “5” level of firmness (cushion firm). I have no ideal what that means in terms of ILD numbers (which are subjective anyway) but if it does not work I can experiment with different layers. The ability to adjust the firmness to suit me is one of the main reasons I bought this mattress and I believe that ability is mandatory when buying on-line. Other reasons included high quality of materials and build, BB’s excellent reputation, very helpful customer service - and the discount they gave me for just being a member of this forum helped too. After a week or two break-in period I may end up hating it but I suspect the opposite will be true.
Thank you for your thorough feedback. There were hardly any reviews of the Gemma brand so it’s good to have found more info from you. What are your thoughts on the Savvy Rest brand? Is it worth the cost or are other brands that cost less just as good?
On a related (or maybe not) note, do you think the following bed and its “link spring” and the trundle unit that I believe are made of metal provide sufficient support for a 10" latex mattress?
I can’t really see enough of the detail and I’m not familiar with how much they flex but they sure don’t look like they have a very supportive surface for an all latex mattress and I would think they would be “risky” choices.
That’s interesting. What about the trundle which is made of metal? Would that not support a latex bed either? The Day Bed has what’s called a “link spring” which I presume is made of metal. The gaps between seem pretty wide…is that way you think it would be risky? Is there something else that can be put on top of it to make it more secure?
Post #2 here and the foundation thread have more information about foundations and which ones are best for different types of mattresses.
A latex mattress generally does best on a firm non flexing surface with even support from wooden slats that are no more than 3" apart (and preferably less) and have enough surface area compared to the gaps between the support surface to prevent the very elastic latex from working its way into the gaps over time
There are some people who feel that a solid surface is also fine but there is no consensus about this and a support surface that doesn’t provide ventilation can be more risky for mold and mildue as well as dust mites (see post #10 here).
There are also many people who believe that a wire grid foundation (that doesn’t flex) is also fine but this would also have some risk of the latex compressing into the gaps over time (see post #10 here).
In some cases a latex mattress (particularly one that is thinner) may be designed to be used with a more flexible foundation such as a box spring or flexible slats underneath it as part of a “sleeping system” where the more flexible base is designed as part of the overall feel and performance of the system but these would also have a larger support surface that would support the latex well.
An inch or two of very firm polyfoam (which is stiffer than latex) or something like the bed rug here can help even out larger gaps and provide a more supportive surface which would make it more suitable for a latex mattress.