By Scott Kramer
My daughter has slept on the same Ikea bed frame and futon-like mattress for about seven years. And it’s still in decent condition. The mattress remains as comfortable as ever. Or so I thought. I recently swapped beds with her one night, and simply could net get comfortable on hers. It just didn’t feel supportive anymore, like I remember it. It’s no wonder that she’s been sleeping rather poorly the past year.
Then I heard about Nest Bedding. I visited the company’s website and instantly noticed how many five-star customer reviews it has. The nearest showroom is about 75 miles from our house, so instead of going there I called the main number, told the people there how my daughter sleeps and what she likes, and was able to pick out a mattress for her to try. While I’m generally cautious about getting large-ticket items online, we have had really good luck buying previous mattresses that way. Plus, this company offers a full refund up until 100 days, if you don’t like your bed. So no harm, no foul.
Based off the company’s suggestions, we selected an Alexander Signature Series model. Like many luxury models you can get on the internet now, this mattress arrived quickly and rolled up inside a box the size of a golf travel bag. What’s nice about that is our staircase is narrow. I’ve had to move several mattresses up and down the stairs, and it’s a major pain. And anyone I’ve asked to help snarls at me. This, however, was a one-man job. Yes, the box weighed 75 pounds, but it had built-in handle holes and thus was relatively easy to maneuver up one flight. Once on the bedroom floor, I unboxed it, took the plastic off and watched while it rolled open and flat. My daughter jumped on it and her instant smile told me it was a keeper.
It’s loaded with the latest mattress technology — with durable and breathable, 2.5-inch thick certified non-toxic high density 4 lb. gel memory foam. Then there’s an inch of 4 lb. Visco memory foam, two inches of 1.8 lb. SmartFlow Air Flow Foam, and another six inches of 1.8 lb. Solid Edge Support base foam. It’s also covered by an inch of quilted cool stretch fabric. In total, it’s 12.5 inches tall. To boot, its Thermic Phase Change Cooling Fabric keeps it very cool. You can tell it’s really high quality and well-constructed. Trust me, I’ve seen a lot of poorly built models in recent years. It’s also nice to know that this is made in the U.S.
The mattress we selected was a medium firmness — which we were told was ideal for back and side sleepers. There’s also a luxury firm available for back and stomach sleepers. My daughter says we made the right choice. She’s now been sleeping on it for about a month, and there’s no way she’d let us send it back. For testing purposes, I traded beds with her one night this past weekend. Slept seven solid hours, which was unusually good for me. To me, it felt the right amount of soft without letting me sink in.
Right now, we have it directly on the floor — the company suggests it be on a hard surface or slatted frame rather than on a box spring. We offered to get my daughter a frame, but she said no. And based on the fact that she’s now had so many consecutive nights of uninterrupted sleep and wakes up in a rested, cheerful mood, I’m not changing a thing.
Scott Kramer is veteran, Southern California-based writer primarily versed in golf and personal technology. Studying Computer Sciences in college, and then working as a programmer/software engineer for about a decade, triggered my passion for today’s high-end, high-tech gadgets. I can’t help myself whenever I see any kind of cool new personal technology. I feel compelled to further check it out and see what it’s all about. And even if I have no use for it personally, I’m always thinking who it might best suit. There are exciting new innovations emerging daily that are shaping the future and simplifying life. And I hope to be your eyes to that world, through the words of this column.