Hi Doug,
Thanks for posting their reply and their comparisons. I’ve added a link to your post to Sleep & Beyond’s description in the wool topper post :).
Phoenix
So I just bought the St Dormeir wool mattress protector from Flobeds. For all the reading around I’ve done, that’s the most basic well-respected product I’d need, being a heat sensitive sleeper…
I decided against the Sleep & Beyond competitor for that product because even though it’s machine washable, they recommend not putting it in the dryer. I wash my mattress protectors every two weeks when I do my sheets. And I don’t see myself bother to air dry those things that often.
Now I’m looking at other products, for variety of sleeping surfaces.
These are the two I’m looking at also getting:
Suite Sleep Organic Cotton Stretch Knit Mattress Pad - this was #3 in the OP. There’s a popular CozyPure competitor to this product. But it’s a lot more expensive than this one on the CozyPure web site, and I can’t find any resellers with a discounted price. I think CozyPure themselves is the only one that sells their products. They have their own physical retail stores.
Sleep & Beyond myPad - I’m half thinking I’ll end up returning this one. The photo on that product page, the pad don’t look like much. But it’s inexpensive for a wool mattress topper and the material it’s made out of sound good. So I’ll try it before getting something more expensive. It’s machine washable, but they don’t recommend putting it in the dryer… I’m thinking I just wouldn’t wash it as much as I would a mattress protector. I’m considering this more of a mattress topper.
I think this is the last thing I’m wondering about…
If I get a topper, like the wool one in the last post. Am I going to want to put a mattress protector on top of it? A mattress protector like the Suite Sleep one from the last post, that’s thin but doesn’t have a waterproof membrane so it doesn’t make me hot.
A machine washable wool topper (even if you can’t machine dry it), a mattress protector on top of that may not be as important. And even a thin cotton mattress protector on top of a wool topper, I think it would interfere with the absorbent properties of the wool (which keep me cool and is a huge reason I’m interested in wool).
But eventually I’m going to get a latex topper too (to switch out with the wool topper occasionally, for variety). Even if it the latex topper has a zip-around encasement, that thing is going to be a bitch to get off. So I think I’d want a thin mattress protector in this case… Because it would be a lot easier to clean the mattress protector than the topper zipped encasement…
That’s part of why I’m thinking it’s a good idea to go ahead and get the thin Suite Sleep protector, future upgradeability for use with other toppers I’ll buy in the future… But I may be way off. I don’t know.
Hi levander,
That would be the most common and “normal” approach yes so your protector can help protect the wool topper from body fluids and skin cells that you normally release each night as well as any “accidents” that may happen.
There are some people that may prefer to sleep directly on a wool topper but that wouldn’t be the norm and may reduce the useful life of the wool topper although wool does have a natural self cleansing property when you air it out in the sunshine.
Phoenix
Okay, thanks Phoenix! Looks like the versatility of a thin (no water-proof membrane) mattress protector is a really good idea for me. I’m busy. All day today, but hopefully at the latest tomorrow I’ll order the rest of that stuff.
There’s a 15% sale at The Clean Bedroom is part of why I’m ordering extra.
I’ll let you know how it goes. And I’m going to change my settings on this board so that if anyone PM’s me, I’ll get an email. In my last absence between mattress purchases, it looks like I missed one from a user named Gabriel. But if I can change my settings, won’t happen again…
Hi levander,
I checked and the main settings for the private messaging software was set to not allow email notification for private messages no matter what settings you chose in your profile (this may have happened during a software upgrade) so the only notification you would receive was the private message link on top of the forum when you log in. I’ve changed it so the profile settings for email notifications will work.
Phoenix
Yeah, it turned out the settings in my account were already set to email me upon PM. I was wondering why I didn’t get an email for that PM Gabriel sent me…l. A forum like this, where it looks like people are active for awhile, disappear, go to make another sleeping purchase, come back… They do that at all forums, but this one more. I’d think email notifications are more important on this forum than most. In case you wanna ask someone something who said they already own something on the board, etc… I’m glad you fixed it.
Anyway Phoenix, thanks for all the help! You’re fighting the good fight here and I appreciate it. For people with strong histories of sleeping problems, being able to sleep even some better at night because of wise mattress purchases is no small thing.
Hi Levander,
As you probably suspect … I completely agree with you :).
I would also say that better sleep is important even for those without obvious sleeping issues because a lot of people may not even realize that they aren’t getting the quality of sleep that they otherwise could and the quality of sleep can certainly make a big difference in how we feel (physically, mentally, and emotionally) when we are awake!
Phoenix
Hello Phoenix and Everyone,
I’ve been lurking on this site for months and finally purchased a Pure Latex Bliss after almost pulling the trigger on the SleepEZ 10k model. I’m now looking for a wool mattress protector that isn’t too thick. I prefer the feel of the latex upper layers and while I don’t mind a little additional cushion up top, I don’t want the protector to take away too much and it appears as if 1" is too much which excludes the famous St. Dormier. That said, I’m replying to this thread because I ran across the Sleep and Beyond shropshire wool quilted to natural cotton option and am seriously considering it because of its 1/2" thickness. It’s also not overly expensive. I’m not sure why the merino wool is organic with organic cotton yet the shropshire is not organic wool (eco-friendly) with “natural cotton”. Also, I don’t mind if the wool isn’t organic but why would they not use the same organic cotton on both wool products (merino and shropshire). I don’t know much about the industry so I’m sure there is a simple reason besides economics.
I’d like to ask the forum members if anyone can lead me to comparable products that may fit my needs. While Sleep and Beyond seems to have a good reputation, I don’t know much about the company’s products and overall quality and am hesitant to pull the trigger. I wouldn’t mind spending up to $250 on a quality product if it wasn’t so thick. I’ve considered stretch knit cotton products too but would like to explore wool quilted to cotton options.
This is a wonderful site; I appreciate all the help.
Edit:
I should have mentioned that I’ve read Phoenix’s post on wool bedding manufacturers and while there are some very good products I’m still leaning towards the Sleep and Beyond 1/2" shropshire product. I’d like to ask if anyone knows of a bed store in Northern California where I can test the St. Dormier? I went to Nest Bedding in Mountain View and tried a latex bed with a topper which felt too thick. I automatically put all thicker protector or toppers into the same category and realize that was a mistake. I shouldn’t generalize all products based upon one experience so perhaps the 1" products will work for me. I plan on going to a few more local stores just to test more products.
Hi lightwaves,
The St Dormeir protector only has 4.5oz/yd of wool and would be one of the thinnest wool quilted protectors you will find. I don’t know the thickness (and perhaps one of the forum members that owns one could give an estimate of its thickness) but I doubt that it would be as thick as an inch.
I’m not sure of the amount of wool in the Sleep & Beyond mattress pad or whether the wool is densified (which would make it more water resistant) but if you contact them they could probably tell you the amount of wool per yd and how water resistant it would be and whether the cotton cover has any stretch so you could make a more meaningful comparison between them. According to the information on Wayfair here (click the specifications tab) The weight of a queen is 6 lbs which would be 96 oz. and there are 3.7 yds in a queen size so that would work out to 26 oz/yd or of course a little less if you take the weight of the cover into account so it would have significantly more wool than the St Dormeir (which would have a total of about 17oz of wool in queen size) and I would guess that the listed 1/2" thickness may not be accurate.
Phoenix
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Thanks Phoenix,
I emailed St. Geneve and they said the St. Dormier is closer to 1" in thickness. I suspect you may be correct on the S&B shropshire 1/2" product because it appears to look thicker in most pictures I’ve seen and reviews I’ve read. Several folks have the thickness in-between 1/2-1". I may just opt in for the St. Dormier.
Let me ask you one more question. The bed I tested at Nest Bedding felt as if the top pad or protector lifted off of the top layer of latex as I shifted around on the bed which provide somewhat of a flimsy feel to it. While silly, this partly contributed to my premature assumption that a thicker topper would not work for me. Perhaps it was too loose. I trust you know what I’m talking about. How does the St. Dormier fit once on the bed? I didn’t even know about latex beds until earlier this year. 
Hi lightwaves,
It’s very possible that the protector or mattress pad that was on the bed didn’t have the right size pockets for the mattress it was on and was too loose which could contribute to what you are describing. The St Dormeir comes with different pocket sizes (that would fit different mattress thicknesses) although one retailer I know in Canada here also carries them with a shallower pocket size as well. I don’t own one personally so I can’t speak from personal experience but I haven’t seen or heard about any complaints with shifting either in general terms or from retailers I know and have talked with that sell them.
Phoenix
Thanks Phoenix, you’re awesome!
Do you happen to know if Flobeds has their sale on the St. Dormier every year on Black Friday? I read somewhere they had it on sale last year during that time.
Cheers,
Hi lightwaves,
I don’t know but you could always call them and ask.
Phoenix
Hey Phoenix,
I called Flobeds and while the gentleman didn’t say if it would go on sale this Black Friday, he assured me they have a 30-day price protection plan in case it does.
-l
Hi lightwaves,
I didn’t think about their price protection plan in my last reply but it’s for 100 days not 30 (I just called to confirm this as well). Thanks for the reminder
Phoenix