I am writing this through tears of exhaustion having just arrived home after another wasted afternoon and time away from work, looking for a mattress.
Right now I am sleeping on my sofa and have been for many months and it is giving me back pain.
I am looking for a basic old fashioned, two sided innerspring mattress, with a DAMASK fabric on top.
The fabrics currently used on mattresses are all soft knit or similar and I cannot bear them. Hence the reason I have given up walking into mattress stores because the sight of them makes me feel nauseous.
I want something I sleep ON not IN. 12 gauge coil, cotton, low profile, polyfoam if necessary and a smooth cotton fabric on top.
Please do not suggest latex, memory foam, pocket spring coils and so forth because I have tried them all and I know what will work for me.
There is a detailed thread on TMU for Los Angeles but many of these places are out of date/out of business or are stores that carry the same thing as everyone else.
In the past week alone I have driven a total of 300 miles just looking for a mattress. I think many mattress manufacturers/stores think they will sell you a mattress, just because you have made the journey to visit them.
Just FYI - I hope this will be helpful - some of the businesses that were listed in the LA thread, were listed as custom manufacturers, but do not sell directly to the public.
As a result of COVID I am on a strict budget, but I have looked at expensive mattresses to try them out and they are no better…
I have done a great deal of research on mattresses in the past few years and the mark up is shocking…
Please help if you can because I am desperate.
Likewise if you need any help discovering who is a waste of time, I will happily share the infomation!
Thank you.
Hey Annacafe,
Welcome to The Mattress Underground! Nice to have you here and thanks for your question.
[quote]I am writing this through tears of exhaustion having just arrived home after another wasted afternoon and time away from work, looking for a mattress.
Right now I am sleeping on my sofa and have been for many months and it is giving me back pain.[/quote]
I’m terribly sorry to hear the frustration in your words, Anna. Finding the best-suited mattress for your personal comfort preferences can be both challenging and exhausting. Sorry to learn that your sofa sleeping is causing you back pain too, that certainly adds to your unhappiness. We will do what we can to guide you along the path towards better sleep 
.
[quote]I am looking for a basic old fashioned, two sided innerspring mattress, with a DAMASK fabric on top.
The fabrics currently used on mattresses are all soft knit or similar and I cannot bear them. Hence the reason I have given up walking into mattress stores because the sight of them makes me feel nauseous.
I want something I sleep ON not IN. 12 gauge coil, cotton, low profile, polyfoam if necessary and a smooth cotton fabric on top.
Please do not suggest latex, memory foam, pocket spring coils and so forth because I have tried them all and I know what will work for me.
[/quote]
The good news is that you know exactly the type mattress that you prefer and are able to describe it well . The not so good news is the two-sided innerspring damask covered mattress you describe was quite common 20 years ago, but not so much today. Technology has brought many innovations to the mattress industry, such as PCMs/ Phase Change Materials, lighter/ more responsive covers, as well as covers using more naturally breathable materials.
There are older forum threads that do have outdated information and due to the difficulty in maintaining such lists in a retail landscape that is constantly changing, we have decided to discontinue the provision of listings of potential retailers in various geographic regions (unless they are already approved trusted members) We do not make recommendations outside of our TMU Trusted Member Program, as those manufacturers have not been evaluated by our strict vetting process; however, we do offer selection guidance based on Phoenix’s duarbility guidelines .
[quote]In the past week alone I have driven a total of 300 miles just looking for a mattress. I think many mattress manufacturers/stores think they will sell you a mattress, just because you have made the journey to visit them.
Just FYI - I hope this will be helpful - some of the businesses that were listed in the LA thread, were listed as custom manufacturers, but do not sell directly to the public.
[/quote]
Apologies if the older LA thread wasn’t more helpful, Anna. Before making more trips, you may consider calling the showrooms on your list and asking whether they have what you’re looking for first (you may have taken that step, please forgive me if you have). A quick review of Phoenix’s “Mattress Specifications You Need to Know” and "Finding a Great Mattress Outlet"will help you formulate specific questions, should you need more conversational examples. Thanks for your update and for letting us know about the custom manufacturers’ B2B status ;).
[quote]As a result of COVID I am on a strict budget, but I have looked at expensive mattresses to try them out and they are no better…
I have done a great deal of research on mattresses in the past few years and the mark up is shocking…
Please help if you can because I am desperate.[/quote]
The two-sided mattress design that you seek will be more expensive, regardless of who you decide to go with, as it is more expensive to manufacture. It could be difficult to find a 12 gauge coil design; 12 3/4 offset coils may be more of a possibility. You may find a close model with Sealy, Stern’s & Foster, or similar more traditional brands; however, spec details for evaluating durability potential are often difficult to come by with these brands.
[quote]Likewise if you need any help discovering who is a waste of time, I will happily share the infomation!
Thank you.[/quote]
Lol, careful about going there Anna 
! What would be interesting is to hear about what you do find that is close to what you’re looking for. It’s been several days since your post, do you have any news on your research? Good luck and let us know how things go.
Thanks,
Sensei
Thank you for your detailed response. As you correctly guessed, I have always called with very specific questions, to avoid wasting time, but mattress people are not honest and tell me they manufacture/custom make or sell “everything”, but they just hope that after one has made the journey, they will just buy one of their mattresses. I recently drove a 120 mile round trip, only to discover the company did not work with bonnell coil at all.
I have done a great deal of research on this subject; all mattresses are very cheap to make, even the “best”. The current day models are just cheaper and do not last as long, so the idea is that we will be buying a new mattress every year.
In response to the new materials being cooler, this is a fallacy as nothing is cooler than plain old - and cheap - cotton. The knit fabrics are simply giving the impression of being more comfortable, to disguise a poorly made mattress underneath. I personally find them sickening.
If you no longer list manufacturers in different areas, how can we get some assistance from your site, so we know where to find one?
I am beyond desperate and need a mattress.
Thank you for your reply and I hope someone else will weigh in here… In the mean time I will look at your trusted members/mattress companies.
Lifekind makes an innerspring mattress without latex. It uses cotton and a little bit of wool. It’s not 2 sided though. I don’t think they use damask either.
Thank you. Lifekind are located almost 7 hours away from me, so it is a long way…
The fabric is more important than it being two sided to be honest - it just will not last as long, but I need something.
I have still not had any luck. If you do not give information on manufacturers in specific areas any more, how do we find them?
Hey Annacafe,
I am sorry to learn that you have yet to find a manufacturer offering the specific type of mattress that you seek, Annacafe. TMU is operated by a small team who are fiercely dedicated to helping consumers with educational support and research assets for understanding how to buy a mattress. Much time, thought, and effort is invested in answering each post question, with the aim of guiding consumers through the mattress shopping process. As the forum following grew into an international audience with more varied needs, the ability of tracking quality retailers across the U.S., Canada, and other countries, as well as direct-to-consumer brands, became extremely difficult. The result of this became the creation of the Trusted Member Program, supporting TMU’s mission of connecting smaller, high-quality/ high-value manufacturers with consumers seeking expert knowledge, best practices, and transparency in all phases of the mattress selection process.
Regarding your preference for a low profile, damask covered innerspring mattress, I don’t know of any specific retailers in the Los Angeles area that carry a similar model. There are Sit’n Sleep showrooms in the area that carry innerspring mattresses; I have experience with them and they may be able to point you in a better direction, their number is: 800.908.0354. Their website also offers Live Chat, so you could ask your referral question that way too. Hope this helps a little, Anna and good luck with your search. If you do find your perfect mattress, please keep us updated as other consumers following your post will want to know your source .
Thanks,
Sensei
Good morning Sensei,
Thank you for your reply. I completely understand it is impossible to know every brand!
Sit n Sleep have all the same mattresses - I visited several of their showrooms several years ago and two more recently, just to see if anything had changed. They have large showrooms full of the same mattresses - all very deep and they ALL have knit tops. I find it difficult to visit mattress stores now, as one is just faced with a sea of knit fabric.
I am desperate for sleep and do not know where to turn.
Would it be advisable to post on the general forum? I am still finding my way around the site when it comes to posting.
have a great day.
Meridian Mattress Factory in Meridian, Mississippi sells 2 sided damask (quilted, however) covered mattresses:
The Champion (extra firm): 364, 12 ¾ Gauge standard height, (5") conventional bonnel. Champion – Two Sided Set – Meridian Mattress Factory
The Gold (medium firm): 364, 12 Âľ Gauge standard height, (5") conventional bonnel http://www.meridianmattress.com/product-detail/gold-two-sided-set-2/
Since one must inquire regarding pricing, they’re probably expensive. I wouldn’t be surprised if this is the only mattress company in the US selling these types. Their site indicates they’ve been around since 1892.
Thank you burpleson. Companies outside of CA do not ship to CA. I have since discovered it is illegal for them to ship to CA, ( I discovered the latter point after dealing with another company who said this was not a problem for them, only to discover they have never shipped here before; yet another example of a rogue in the industry). I looked at Meridian Mattress our of interest… they use quilted knitted fabric at least it looks that way from the photographs.
It seems that some companies get around the shipping by using the bed in a box idea, but that trend will die as quickly as it started, I believe.