Thanks. We made a trip down to Halstead in Calgary and decided to go with one of their all natural latex mattresses. We customized each side to our own preference. My husband weighs about 80 pounds more than I do so he needed a little more support. He likes medium support and I like soft so it will work well for both of us. It was still quite pricey ($2600, but almost $1000 less than the Kingsdown). I am hoping it will be worth every penny. Canât wait to pick it up in a few weeks!
Phoenix,
I laid on the Natura crown for about thirty min and have to say this is one of the best beds I have ever laid down on. The mattress I was comparing it to would be made from essentially the same materials but I wouldnât be able to lay down on this until after it would be made. This scares me because I donât know what to expect from the finished product and would have to drive to pick it up and try it out. I really do appreciate the time you take out of your busy day in responding to my postings. Iâm just trying to figure out the best solution possible as well as the least expensive option without sacrificing comfort.
Thanks again,
22bmarsh
Hi Shari,
Congratulations on your new mattress!
Thereâs no doubt in my mind that you wouldnât have found a better quality and value in a latex mattress in your area than what you chose. It would still be interesting if you happen to âdrive byâ though to take a look at the Kingsdown law label just to confirm the latex and polyfoam content that was in it.
You should be set for some good sleep for a long time to come 
Phoenix
PS: I hope you mentioned you were a member of The Mattress Underground because it entitles you to an extra 5% discount on your mattress.
Hi 22bmarsh,
All other things being equal (in other words similar materials and construction) I would personally pay a small premium (in this case about 10%) for a mattress that I knew was âjust rightâ over a mattress that I hadnât personally tried. While I understand that price is important ⌠over the life of the mattress this difference is not that significant and sometimes even small differences in the materials, layering, or the ticking and quilting can make a surprising difference. Because a mattress is a long term purchase (or at least in a perfect world it should be :)) if the value is good and the difference is small (which it is in this case on both counts) I would personally tend to go with what I had tested rather than take the risk that an alternative I hadnât tried wouldnât be quite right.
Phoenix
I did mention the discount thank you!! He had lots of good things to say about you and your knowledge of the industry. The company that was selling the Kingsdown actually had all of the information regarding that content of the mattress written out, layer by layer, and attached to their display. They also had a cut away of the mattress so it would be easy to find out the content. I know for sure there was some foam in it. I believe a small layer and possibly the perimeter of the mattress. I believe it was also blended latex. If I get a chance I will get back there and find out for sure. Thanks again
CincyBearCat,
I wanted to let you know my wife and I made it over to Design Sleep this week. To say the lease we were very impressed. Mike provided a tun of info and worked with us to find the right mattress. We are going with the Riviera including the Euro Slat foundation. If you are still looking I would recommend giving Mike a call, ask questions and make time to visit. I donât think you will be disappointed.
Matt
Phoenix. I took your advice and have decided on a restonic latex bed at Knight furniture in Florence SC. I have one last question for you. The bed is all latex except an inch or two of a foam topper. Is that a problem. The bed is shown on their website. Thanks
Hi jmbramblett,
Thatâs somewhat strange. When I called them they assured me that the Restonics they carried didnât have any polyfoam over the latex. If the foam topper is polyfoam ⌠then the thicker it is the more the odds increase of developing soft spots and impressions. If the foam topper is latex (which he told me it was), then this wouldnât be an issue.
I checked their website and couldnât find a description of the mattress and it only linked to the Restonic site which doesnât have a layer by layer description. Restonic is also made differently in different areas so a description on the Restonic website wouldnât be accurate for all areas anyway. Do you have a link to the description of the mattress on their site?
In any case ⌠1" of polyfoam is the maximum I usually recommend because this can give a slightly softer surface feel which some people prefer but itâs not enough to really make a big difference in terms of durability (theirâs only an inch to soften). 2" is getting into what I would consider to be less desireable. It would also depend on the density of the polyfoam if thatâs what the topper is. If itâs 1.8 lb or higher and has a relatively firmer ILD (say in the 20âs), then it would be more durable than 1.5 lb or less polyfoam with an ILD of around 15 or less. Part of this too would depend on how much I paid as I would be more accepting of lower quality materials in a lower budget range.
Restonic can be better value than other larger brands but itâs important to know what is in your mattress when considering a smaller national brand which can be made differently in different areas of the country or when you are not dealing directly with the manufacturer. Did you get a chance to take a look at the Jamisons? I would certainly confirm what material is in the topper before I pulled the trigger.
Phoenix
They just received a newer version of the mattress in and the new one has a larger foam topper. Iâll ask about the quality. The rest of the mattress is 100% talalay( I did not spell that right) latex. I did look at the Jamison and it was plush on one side and firm on the other. Iâll go back and see what the top layer is made of- will let you know how this all turns out.
Below are the specs on the Jamison mattress- does this tell you anything. I am going to get the specs on the Restonic. I wasnât very impressed with the help I received at the dealer that carried the Jamison. The dealer that carries the Restonic has been very helpful and honest - Iâll see what he tells me. Thanks again for all your help
Comfort Choice Mattress
Comfort Layers
Firm Side - multi-quilted to Safe SlumberÂŽ fire retardant protection system and Cashmere Blend
Soft Side - serpentine horizontal quilted to Safe SlumberÂŽ fire retardant protection system and Cashmere Blend
Mattress Unit
Firm Side - 6" Talalay Latex Core 40 lb. Compression
Soft Side - 2" 19 ILD & 1" 24 ILD Talalay Layers compression
Box Spring
Power Stack
Durable, welded steel
Enhanced stability
Maximum Support
Uraburr,
Glad to hear you enjoyed talking with and working with Mike and Design Sleep. From my conversations with him, he seemed most helpful.
We just ordered the Berkeley Ergonomics âWillowâ bed from Sovn here in Dallas. Itâs the same bed as the Riviera at Design Sleep. We got the âCâ firmness. It should be here in the next week or so! Time will tell, but Iâm very excited and hopeful!
Let us know how your Riviera is when you get it!
Hi Jmbramblett,
The Jamison specs donât include any polyfoam and this is the type of construction that I would certainly prefer. Some of the Restonics are made in this way as well in some areas of the country but in other areas they have the polyfoam you were mentioning and for me at least ⌠depending to some degree on the quality of the polyfoam and on the price ⌠I would tend to avoid a mattress that had 2" of softer lower density polyfoam.
And you did spell âtalalayâ correctly
Phoenix
Hi - Iâve spent several hours reading the posts on this topic (Serta iComfort). Two Questions:
Price aside, is there a national brand whose mattress products you are supportive of and would recommend?
Do you know of any local manufacturers/retailers in the San Francisco Bay Area that you support/recommend?
Thank you very much!
Hi patcarrol,
In a word ⌠no. The only way to tell real value is by knowing what is in the mattress rather than the brand name and most of the largest brands donât publish this to prevent meaningful comparisons with other brands ⌠or even in many cases versions of their own mattresses. Some of the smaller or second tier national brands do make some mattresses which tend to have higher quality ingredients in a given price range but this isnât a âbrand recommendationâ as much as it would be a preference for a specific model in those instances where the materials are known (which most often isnât the case). In general though ⌠while the smaller national brands tend to have better value than the larger ones, they are not in the same league as most smaller local or regional factory direct manufacturers or smaller wholesale manufacturers who sell through sleep shops.
Every large manufacturer makes some mattresses that use higher quality materials but even then, in almost all cases, even the sale prices (which are mostly fake) still puts them out of competition with smaller manufacturers who use the same materials but sell these mattresses every day at a much lower price. If you were to find one of these with a substantial discount over the best âsaleâ price ⌠then they may compete.
While some of the smaller national brands do make some mattresses that may have better value than the larger ones (depending on who is selling them), because some of these are made differently by different factories in different areas of the country or make a dizzying array of models sometimes specifically for a store ⌠even with brands in this next tier down itâs important to go by the ingredients in each mattress rather than the brand. They would not be in the largest brands (Sealy, Serta, Simmmons, Tempurpedic, Comfort Solutions (King Koil), Select Comfort, Kingsdown) or any of the brands that are owned by these. These second tier would include names such as Englander, Restonic, Therapedic and others and as you get into even smaller brands from here (Such as Jamison, Gold Bond, Pure Latex Bliss and many others) the value can become better yet. There can sometimes be good value among these if the materials and the price is right. This group (smaller national brands) in other words would include some mattresses that are better value than what most people buy but not as good as most local or regional manufacturers. Most of the best âbrandsâ are ones that the vast majority of people wouldnât recognize except perhaps in a local community.
Many, if not most smaller local and regional manufacturers have a consistent pattern of using higher quality materials in every price range and and as a group offer consistently higher quality and value than any of the larger brands including most of the âexceptionsâ I just listed. Most of these are family owned and have been in business for several generations. This is especially true for those who sell factory direct to the public or through local sleep shops that are close to where they manufacture. This doesnât mean that every local or regional manufacturer offers great value because there are exceptions here as well but most of them will tell you what is in every layer of their mattress which makes it much easier to find the exceptions.
Post #2 here should help
Phoenix
Patcarroll -
I am having a bed made my Patrick at Community Mattress and I have to say he has been amazing throughout the whole process and really knows his stuff and has been in business for a long time. It took me a couple weeks of testing different mattresses(due to work schedule) and he was never pushy in trying to get a sale and made sure the bed I was ordering would be the best for me. Heâs absolutely amazing and works around your schedule as far as coming to see his shop and testing and if needed to pick up the mattress. I pick up my mattress next week and I cannot say any bad things as I have my share of horrific stories since I have been on this mattress voyage. Hope this helps
Phoenix,
One place I would definitely not recommend for anyone in Sacramento is Sleep Well. I went there to get that Natura Crown come to find out the it was really the Natura Cloud with a wrong label on the mattress. I had to actually call Natura personally and find out that the mattress wasnât definitely the wrong mattress and that the pictures on their website shows exactly what the mattress looks like and that is how I knew that the Sleep Well in Sacramento was definitely trying to get one over on me. I hope this helps anyone in Sacramento know where to buy and not. Since then I have been talking to patrick and community mattress in concord and he really know his stuff and has great customer service. Since Iâm in the sales game which is also customer service I have to say he was a pleasure to work with and I canât wait to get my bed. The only thing is that it takes a little bit for the bed to be made since he has to order the material but the wait will be worth it and if I have any problems he assured that he will get it done without hesitation.
Hi 22bmarsh,
Thanks for your report and the feedback ⌠I really appreciate it
Phoenix
Phoenix,
I got the latex bed made and am wondering if i need a break in period for it to loosen up
Hi 22bmarsh,
Latex doesnât have the same type of breakin or initial softening period as other foams so not to any significant degree no. There is usually an initial adjustment period for any new sleeping surface though ⌠particularly if itâs fairly different from what you were used to sleeping on.
Were you just asking a more general question or are you finding some discomfort?
Phoenix
Phoenix,
The bed is giving me major discomfort and I have no idea what to do. I got a foam topper but that has made it a little worse. Granted Iâve only had the bed for a couple days but it has been a major problem and I have been losing a lot of sleep.