I’ve been researching mattresses for the past week and found that the latex mattress is the new fad out there. I decided today to purchase the Aloe Alexis King mattress from Brooklyn Bedding. I’m having buyer’s remorse because I didn’t even lay on it. I have no idea how this is going to feel. I just need some re-assurance that I made a good choice. My previous bed purchase was a Simmons Beautyrest. Will the Aloe Alexis be better or the same? Thoughts…?
Hi Mari Hayner,
I’m not so sure that I would call a material that has been used in mattresses since 1929 and predates all the other types of foam materials in the industry (including polyfoam and memory foam) a fad. Both Talalay and Dunlop latex have been used for decades although Dunlop was introduced in 1929 so it’s a little older than Talalay which was introduced in the late 30’s (see post #9 here). Both manufacturing processes have a long history of many decades of use behind them.
Post #13 here includes more information about the three most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase.
In terms of Suitability … you will know when you sleep on it if it’s a good match for you in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) but Brooklyn Bedding has a very good track record of helping their customers to make the most suitable choice based on the averages of other customers that similar to them in terms of their body type and sleeping position. The Aloe Alexis also has two layers of latex which can be customized after a purchase either by rearranging them or exchanging them for a softer or firmer layer so you have good options available after a purchase.
In terms of Durability … Latex is the most durable of all the foam materials and is much more durable and has a much longer useable lifetime than the lower quality materials that you will normally find in the upper layers of major brand mattresses (which is the reason they soften and break down so quickly and the reason I would suggest avoiding them … see here). So from this perspective your choice was certainly a very durable choice. There is also more about the many variables that can affect the durability and useful life of a mattress relative to different people in post #4 here.
In terms of “Value” … this depends on the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you and how a mattress compares to the other finalists you are considering but as you know Brooklyn Bedding is one of the members of this site which means I think very highly of them and I believe they compete well with the best in the industry in terms of their quality, value, service, and transparency.
The Aloe Alexis is one of their most popular choices because of the two layers of latex and a forum search on Alexis (you can just click the link) will bring up much more information and feedback about it.
Overall … I think you made a great quality/value choice that has very good options to customize the firmness level if the firmness choice you made doesn’t work out as well as you hoped for.
So congratulations on your new mattress 
I’m looking forward to your feedback when you receive it and have had a chance to sleep on it.
Phoenix
Thank you so much for your quick reply. I’ve never made such a big purchase like this one without testing it first. I did lay on a latex mattress over the weekend when I went shopping with my hubby and loved it so I hope it’s similar.
I guess I didn’t know that latex beds and this one in particular are better made and can last longer than a bed like Simmons Beauty Rest with coils.?
Hi Mari Hayner,
Most of the information you need is in the mattress shopping tutorial but at least you know now :).
The Alexis would be at the upper end of the scale in terms of durability and the Simmons would be at the lower end of the scale.
Phoeinx