I just tried a Japanese style shikifuton from J-Life, a Massachusetts based manufacturer that describe their products as “authentic in style but made in the USA.” I thought I’d report on how it went, since I really appreciate this kind of post!
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Fast Shipping
Shipping was EXTREMELY fast. I got it within 48 hours of ordering! Granted, I live within 100 miles of the factory, but they also shipped like immediately. A+++ -
Initial Impressions
High quality materials and stitching. Filling has a light cottony smell; not unpleasant, and reassuring (it’s definitely real, minimally processed cotton). Tufting uses large stitches, not buttons or anything, so it can’t be felt. Exterior is a soft but substantial cotton twill. Out of the box, I just LIKED it! -
Setup
Futons like this can be used directly on the floor although it’s recommended to lay them on a mat (traditionally a tatami mat, although for the test run I used a rubber mat like a yoga mat). If I were to use this long term I would probably try to create a setup with better air flow such as platform bed. I would say it’s too floppy to be used on a slats. -
Overall Size and Weight
J-Life’s futons are in American bed sizes (not typical Japanese sizes which tend to be smaller). I instinctually matched it to my standard full size bed frame (even though I was planning to use it as supplemental bedding on the floor), but I now believe I should have gone smaller. At 46 lb, this is light for a mattress but very heavy for a thing you have to wrestle, and I found it incredibly difficult to manage even with 2 people. And you’re supposed to manage a traditional futon a lot: you have to flip, rotate, and air it out. Plus, for supplemental or guest bedding, I planned to roll it out and stow it during the day. This is just impractical at full size or larger. If I could do it over, I would only consider this type of bedding for twin or cot size… -
What is Firm, Anyway?
J-Life offers futons in 2 thicknesses: traditional 3" and a thicker 4" aimed at Westerners who may not be used to the firmness of sleeping a few inches off the floor. Since I’m American and I’ve never used a traditional Japanese style futon before, I went with the thicker style, which I now believe was a mistake. When I heard that “shikifutons are firm,” I was picturing that the futon itself would be firm - dense and hard - but it isn’t, it’s quite soft and airy. (It may become harder over months/years of compression, I don’t know, but out of the box it’s soft.) It’s a firm way to sleep because the floor is firm, and you can feel it through the futon, but the futon itself is comfort material, not support material. Light bulb moment! I would definitely normally opt toward 3" at most for comfort material. This probably explains the problems I had sleeping in it. -
Actual Sleep
I really liked how this felt when I first laid down. I could feel the floor through the layers of cotton and mat, but not unpleasantly. It matched my preferred bed feel of “extremely supportive, but pressure relieving.” I love the way it feels to sleep on a natural fiber comfort material - you don’t sink all the way in the way you do with memory foam, you’re not perched on top like a firm innerspring mattress, it’s medium and to me it feels right!
But when I woke in the middle of the night, things had shifted. My butt was on the floor, and my arms and legs in the air like on an air mattress that has a slow leak. I rolled around to shift to a less compressed spot but of course it just happened again. I woke with lower back pain from all the “hammocking.”
I would guess that this issue would get better over time as the cotton compressed (if I were careful to try to compress it evenly), but I’m not sure I have the pain tolerance to make it work. I would also guess that this issue would be lessened if I had gotten the traditional 3" version instead of the 4" version (at least there wouldn’t be as far to sink). Personally I think if you find the traditional 3" version too firm, the solution is not to add more comfort material, but to add more transitional materials between the floor and the futon, e.g. a thicker mat or slab of firm foam. I’ve heard good things about people using a tri-fold mat of high-density foam, and if I decide to try this experiment again I may go with that solution plus a thinner, smaller futon.
Unfortunately, J-Life doesn’t offer returns on used bedding, so this was a risky purchase. I think they make a good product, but it’s important to know what you’re getting into when you purchase. I hope this helped someone!
! Thanks for your excellent shikifuton review! Your point-by-point analysis will be most helpful for consumers who are interested in trying this intriguing sleep alternative; well done. Thanks for sharing your purchase and trial experience and hope that you’ll be able to make a go of it, provided that your pain tolerance sorts itself through an adjustment period. Good luck and let us know how things work out later 
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