My husband and I have been looking for a mattress. We live in OK. We have decided on a mattress that is comfortable but don’t know about the company’s reputation. The mattress is called Eco comfort Serenity. It is made by Lady Americana. The place were we looked at mattresses is The Sleep Center in Edmond OK where we live. It is owned by Mathis Bro.
We spent two hours in the store and narrowed it down to a Sterns & Foster and the Eco Serenity. Can you tell me anything about their reputation? This bed we chose is a latex foam, 3" talalay latex cored, 9" precrushed soy, w/ organic cotton cover. I probably left some info out.
Any help would be wonderful. Thank you for your time.
Hi okiebirdnerd,
Lady Americana is a licensee group that is made by different manufacturers across the country but it has been in business for over 30 years and they can have some better value mattresses than many larger or mainstream manufacturers.
Outside of testing a mattress in terms of it’s suitability for you though … any specific mattress is only as good as its construction and the quality of the materials and components inside it regardless of the name of the brand so I would always encourage every consumer to make sure they know the specifics of what is inside the mattress so you can identify any weak links and make more meaningful comparisons with other mattresses. In most cases … Lady Americana is more transparent than many other larger manufacturers so this is also an advantage of considering them or any manufacturer that will provide you with the information you need about the quality of their materials.
You also have some other good options available in the Oklahoma City area that are listed in post #2 here including one of the members of this site that may also well worth considering.
I would also make sure you’ve read the tutorial post here which has all the basic information, steps, and guidelines that can help you make the best possible choices … and avoid the worst ones.
Phoenix
thank you so much for all the informative information. I really appreciate your time. I feel like I need to have my husband with me when we’re shopping so that limits me on when we can go. I will check in Oklahoma City one day this week. I’m looking forward to getting a new mattress. It will be much easier with the help that you have given us, thank you so much.
Hi okiebirnerd,
I think that would be a very good idea. A mattress can feel very different with two people in it vs only one and it may also be important to test for motion isolation or “roll together” in the center of the mattress. The closer you can simulate your nightly sleeping experience when you are testing mattresses the more likely it is you will make the best possible choice.
Phoenix
we went to Oklahoma mattress today. I think I would like for him to build me a mattress but I need to figure out what layer combination the mattress needs to be. I really like the eco comfort serenity mattress we found in Edmond but it is 500 $ more than the quote from Okmattress. The serenity is 3" talalay comfort layer, 9" pre crushed omalon foam support which is a soy based foam. I believe that Oklahoma mattress could make it for me at a better price. But I can’t find what the firmness difference is between the omalon and the all natural latex. I’m thinking about having the 3"inch talala topper not be attached to the mattress like the pillow topper on the serenity is. The serenity is called ‘plush’ but it really felt pretty firm.
It is probably a stupid question. But do you have any suggestions? I know you are very knowledgeable and I trust your judgement. We’re going down there Saturday and if I could explain to him how to layer the foamto come close to the firmness the serenity I would be to go pink.thank you for your time.
Hi okoebordnerd,
The best way to do this would be by using their mattresses and your own personal testing as a reference point instead of trying to “match” another mattress which may not be possible except subjectively based on your testing and perceptions.
You may not be able to find out the information you need to “duplicate” the Serenity. You would need to know the specifics of every layer in the mattress including the comfort specs and the quality specs and it’s not likely you will be able to find this out. The Eco Comfort has the following layers (from their site) …
Eco Comfort Serenity
High Loft Fiber 2" Hypersoft: You would need to know the density and the ILD of the polyfoam used in the quilting. I’m not so sure that I would even want to duplicate this and use 2" of softer polyfoam over latex.
Comfort Layer 3" W4 Natural Latex: This looks like blended Talalay made by Radium and would be between 17 and 20 ILD.
9" Soy Based Omalon Foam: You would need to know the density and ILD of the polyfoam.
There is more about trying to “match” one mattress to another in post #9 here but I would tend to evaluate all the mattresses you test against a common set of criteria rather than trying to “match” another mattress (see post #46 here) which may not be possible unless both manufacturers use the same design and materials in the same firmness levels in their mattresses.
My best suggestion would be to work closely with Jim who will know more about their mattresses and the options they have available than anyone. They can work with you in person instead of using “theory at a distance” which is never as effective as your own personal testing and perceptions about which of their mattresses is the best “match” for your in terms of PPP.
Phoenix
Once again you have been extremely helpful. Yesterday after leaving OKmattress we went straight to try the serenity so we could compare the serenity with how we remembered having them layer the mattress we tried at OK. I feel OKmattress would be the superior product if we can figure out the right combination. I will read up on this new info you have sent me and hopefully we can make the right decision tomorrow.
Thanks again for your time. Wish I had someone this helpful when I was buying a car :lol:
Have a great weekend. Oh and by the way, while we were at OKmattress there was another couple that came in that had read up on mattresses here and you lead them to OKmattress. They had been there three times and were coming back today cause his wife’s beeper went off and they needed to leave.
Hi okiebirdnerd,
That’s good to hear that the site is helping people find better options 
I’m looking forward to your ongoing feedback.
Phoenix
can you elaborate on what you mean by the statement below on how it would affect the firmness of the mattress please. why would you not want to use the two inches of polyfoam?
High Loft Fiber 2" Hypersoft: You would need to know the density and the ILD of the polyfoam used in the quilting. I’m not so sure that I would even want to duplicate this and use 2" of softer polyfoam
Phoenix[/quote]
Hi okiebirdnerd,
This would be a quality/durability issue not a “comfort” issue (see guideline #4 here and post #2 here about durability). I would tend to use a guideline of “no more than about an inch or so” of lower quality or unknown materials in the upper layers of a mattress and once there are 2" or more of lower quality/density or unknown materials in a mattress it would be a much more risky choice and the lower density foams could be a weak link in the mattress and lead to the premature loss of comfort and/or support.
The quilting foam or other materials used in the quilting will also affect the “feel” of the latex below it (see post #12 here and post #2 here about quilting layers) but you can test to see if a mattress is suitable for you in terms of PPP and how it feels but you can’t “feel” the quality of the materials in a mattress because both lower quality and less durable materials can feel the same as higher quality more durable materials.
Phoenix
Here’s our last update on our natural latex mattress we are getting. Please correct me if I’m showing my ignorance in explaining this. I trust your judgment and I’d like for my info here to be helpful and not a hindrance for others learning here: After meeting Jim at Oklahoma Mattress last Thursday I already knew he could build us a mattress that would be more durable, have a longer lifespan, and fulfill our needs of comfort better than the mattress we found at The Sleep Center here in Edmond the previous day. So Saturday we went back to Oklahoma Mattress on 4th & Classen in OKC. We took all the info you provided for me here about the Eco Comfort mattress specs and Jim Hunter came up with what material to use to make it better than the Eco we saw at the Sleep Center in Edmond… Our new mattress will be ready next Friday at the latest :woohoo:
What I am really pleased about is we are spending less money for a custom mattress! Who would have thought, seriously!! Instead of having a pillow top attached to the mattress Jim is building ours in two parts. I’ll try to explain what we are getting but I’m sure I’ll leave something out or say it wrong. I gave Jim all the measurements of the mattress we are currently using along with the frame height so the new mattress will be the same height. We are going with a Talalay Latex mattress. The box will be 9 ½ semi flex latex. The latex core is 5" w8, 36 ILD and will of course have a zipper all the way around. The next two layers together will be covered separately and have a zipper also. 3" of talalay w6 24/25 ILD and on top of that is 2" talalay W4 17/18 ILD. So we will have the 5" core covered and the 3"+2" =5" covered together. The pad/cover material is cotton bamboo. Jim is not using the poly foam because it doesn’t perform as well as the Talalay. This mattress will have a kinda floating feeling with a soft hug 
The way I see it, we will spend more hours sleeping on this bed and have it longer than the cars we only keep four years. So most likely I will own four cars and still have this mattress I have slept thousands of hours on. If I purchase a mattress that is durable and comfortable I won’t be fatigued and I’ll be more alert during the day and make better decisions when I can think more clearly. It better work cause I won’t have an excuse for my dingbat answers after this purchase 
So here’s the nitty gritty on the pricing of our custom mattress. Our queen mattress from Oklahoma Mattress that Jim is making is 1,700.00 including the base. We are spending an extra 39.00 for a mattress protector. There is a 35.00 delivery charge. He will discard our old mattress but we are giving it to our daughter so they will cover the old mattress and box springs with plastic and put it in the garage for us. The Eco Mattress at the Sleep Center here in Edmond price was 2099.00. The mattress protector was 90.00. The price difference is 450.00 and we will have a more durable mattress that we can tweak ten years down the road if we need to.
I could have never made this purchase without your help! I have learned a lot about the mattress world and I am truly thankful you helped me make the right decision on my own and not forcing your opinion on me. I did a lot of reading on your website and I never saw you write that one type was better than another. I appreciate you staying neutral and having a wealth of info to guide me. I only wish I could say I’ll retain all this info but at my age I am lucky to get my 10 grandkids names right.
I do have one suggestion… I never saw the Glossry until this minute and many times while reading I wished you had a glossary to make it easier to understand the terminology especially with all the abbreviations used. When I’m tired I get confused. And I think most everyone that comes here is having sleep issues too and are bound to be tired Thanks again for sharing your wealth of knowledge here.
Pleasant dreams from Oklahoma and hope all your dreams come true B)
Hi okiebirdnerd,
I don’t see any “ignorance” at all … just some excellent feedback, thoughts, and experiences … and I appreciate you taking the time to share them
I think you made a great choice and it’s always good to see the kind of quality, value, and especially service that is available from some of the better independent manufacturers.
Your suggestion is a great one and a significant expansion of the glossary is one of the many projects that I’m hoping to accomplish as soon as time, some very long hours, and some other “competing” priorities allow it.
Your comment reminded me of my mother. I come from a large family and when she wanted to talk with one of us and was busy or distracted she would go through a short “list” of the names of her kids until she reached the one she was talking to. It always made us laugh and your comment brought back some warm memories
Most important of all … congratulations on your new mattress
Phoenix
I was kinda wondering about your thoughts of having the 2" of w4 together with the 3" of w6? How will the extra padding covers affect the firmness? He is making it so the padded cover is the same on both sides. So from bottom to top it will be,bottom cover,5" Core,cover then padded cover again,w6,w4 padded cover on top. How will the covers affect the firmness? We only tested it with the three layers on top of each other. Do the padded covers tend to make the whole mattress softer or firmer? Just wondering. Thanks again!
Oh and my grandkids have learned that we go by eye contact in our house. If I am speaking and looking at Camry and I call her Timber she knows I am addressing her (Camry) I have even called Camry Coco which is my cats name :ohmy: Well they both begin with “C”
Hi okibirdnerd,
I don’t know the specifics of the fabric they are using or the type of “padding” (I would guess you mean quilting) so Jim would probably be better able to answer these types of “feel” questions for you. If the fabric is a stretch knit then it would have little effect but quilting layers can have a fairly wide range of effects on “feel” so it will depend on the specifics. There is some general information about quilted covers and how they can affect the “feel” of a mattress in post #12 here and the posts it links to.
We had a dog named Sailor and he was often included in the “list” as well
Phoenix