The perfect night of sleep? It’s all about those wool bed layers…
So far on our blog we’ve discussed two popular wool bedding configurations: a wool mattress plus wool-filled topper and latex pad and our latex mattress with wool-filled topper. Both of these configurations exhibit the many benefits of wool and make for wonderful all-natural alternatives to conventional bedding.
This week, we’re diving into one of our classic systems: the wool mattress with wool-filled topper and latex pad (previously the padded slats that you see below). We used to sell individual pads of latex to provide optimal air circulation. However, we found that this set up was tedious and unnecessary as wool bedding and natural latex wrapped in organic cotton actually play pretty well together. Now we sell our Cascade Latex Mattress Base or the CocoCoir Comfort Pad and get the same excellent results.
Let’s begin with the base layer…
Cascade Latex Base
An alternative version to the latex pad from the first configuration, this older version of a layer we used in the past was comprised of latex strips glued onto wooden slats. We found this to be tedious and difficult to construct for our customers, or instruct them to do themselves, and it didn’t add much more in terms of air circulation, which was the entire point of the individual slats. Now we recommend a single unit, our Cascade Latex Base. Adding natural Dunlop latex beneath wool mattresses provides buoyancy and give to the firm and resilient consistency of wool.
Some of the advantages of latex strips over a solid latex pad are:
- Air Flow: While the latex pad alone provides adequate aeration beneath the wool mattress, latex strips offers considerable more air flow. One of the benefits of bedding made of wool is its ability to wick moisture away from your skin throughout the night in order to keep you in a comfortable temperature zone. Providing air flow beneath your wool mattress allows it to release that moisture and stay fresh.
- Economy: Latex strips are more economical than a latex pad. Affordable pricing is always an important consideration.
- Design: Latex padded slats are a unique design that we developed many years ago.
Another reason we switched to recommending a solid piece of latex is that the Cascade Latex Base has more longevity than the smaller strips of latex. Our customers have found the Base to be more resilient over a long period of time than the latex strips.
Next up, the wool bedding!
Premium 5” Wool Mattress
There are so many benefits to a wool mattress, from its aforementioned quality to regulate temperature to its ability to help you sleep more soundly. A wool mattress also helps to reduce common bedroom allergies, is completely biodegradable, and is naturally fire resistant. Traditional mattresses that do not include wool with proper configurations as required by law must be built with materials, usually polyurethane (plastic) based materials, that are sprayed with fire-retardant chemicals to keep them from spontaneously combusting or igniting when exposed near an open flame.
Unfortunately for you vegans out there, there is not one single way a mattress can be built without this safety feature UNLESS you use wool. We’ve heard of folks ordering crazy expensive mattress encasements such as ones made from Kevlar to get around this, but doesn’t that sound absurd? Considering that Kevlar is made by Dupont, a company synonymous with poisonous chemicals found in everything from cleaning products to nonstick cookware, Kevlar isn’t actually removing those VOCs from this mattress equation anyway.
Let’s take a step back then and look at the miracle fiber that Mother Nature intended for us to use.
3” Snuggle Mate wool-filled topper
This is the ultimate topper for a soft, yet supportive bed. Our wool-filled toppers add additional cushion to your mattress and provides a natural, breathable layer between you and your mattress.
Stay tuned for more wool bedding configurations in the weeks to come!
