having just moved home, my first port of call was to sort out a bed to sleep on, stat!
i’ve been sleeping on a traditional pocket sprung mattress for the past several years, and become accustomed to the firm level of support it provided, but recently i’ve found myself somewhat seduced by the current explosion of ‘mattress-in-a-box’ start-ups proliferating the mattress market at the moment. from tv advertisements to magazine inserts – even posters on the london underground – it seems everywhere you look there is another new mattress brand vying for your attention. so i turned to the one source i trusted above all else for advice: my fellow design bloggers!
several of them have reviewed mattresses from these new brands recently, so i took the opportunity to ask a few of my closest blogging pals for their thoughts and recommendations. could a mattress delivered to your door vacuum packed in a box really be that comfortable to sleep on?
i’ll be posting a full review of the new mattress i now have in my home shortly, but since i having found it so nice to read reviews from my friends as part of my research, i thought it would be useful to bring together some of my faves here as a little resource, including a little update from each blogger now they’ve had some more time sleeping on their chosen mattress. i hope you find the round-up useful!
leesa, by cate st. hill
made in glossop in the north west of england, leesa’s one-size-fits-all design is made of three layers of foam. the top 5cm-thick foam layer encourages air-flow for a cooler nights sleep, a middle 5cm-thick layer of memory contours to the body, while a 12cm-thick bottom ‘dense core’ layer provides support and structure. leesa allow you to trial the mattress for up to 100 nights, with a full refund if you’re still not happy with it, although they recommend trying it for at least 30 nights to adjust to the feel of the new mattress. as an added bonus, for every ten mattresses sold, leesa donates one to charity, with any returned mattresses donated as well.
read cate’s full review of her leesa mattress here.
i’ve had my leesa mattress for a year now. at first i was a little unsure about a memory foam mattress and a one-size-fits-all firmness. but after a few weeks it started to mould to my shape and just get comfier and comfier. it supports your back but doesn’t restrict movement and i wake up less in the night because i can’t feel my other half tossing and turning. now i couldn’t live (or indeed sleep) without it! ~ cate st. hill
studio by slientnight, by design hunter
studio by silentnight mattresses are a unique combination of gel and state-of-the-art memory foam, and are available in three comfort choices – soft, medium or firm – to ensure you’ll find the one that’s right for you. their guide suggests that if you’re more petite or you prefer to sleep on your side, then a softer mattress is perfect, and if you prefer to sleep flat on your back or front, you should go for the firmer mattress. the medium mattress offers the best of both worlds, to suit the majority of sleeper types. they have a 60-night comfort guarantee, plus you can also get 2 free studio pillows with your order at the moment.
read helen’s full review of her studio by silentnight mattress here.
my interiors philosophy is all about buying and owning less but choosing wisely. i’ve tried to create a calm and uncluttered look in our bedroom – i want it to be an inviting place to retreat to at the end of the day, so i was instantly drawn to the clean, minimalist styling of the studio by silentnight collection. we’ve had our mattress (and the pillows from the same range) for about three months now. it provides a great level of comfort and support, but one of the things i love most about it though is the super comfy soft touch anti allergy cover. i’m allergic to dust mites so it’s really helped me to get a better night’s sleep… and it looks great too. ~ helen powell, design hunter
emma, by these four walls
emma is a british mattress, proudly made in derby, that optimally supports and relaxes your body at the same time. this is achieved by combining 4 special layers: a firm bottom layer providing the necessary counter pressure whatever your sleeping position, followed by an intermediate layer that distributes pressure optimally and adapts to your body’s unique contours. a top layer that sandwiches the 2,000 individual pocket springs below is made of an open-pored breathable material that enhances circulation and ensures perfect body adjustment and pressure relief. emma offer a 100-night trial and free collection if the mattress isn’t to your liking.
read abi’s full review of her emma mattress here.
my sleep has improved vastly since we changed our mattress. my other half and i tend to sleep in different positions, so we needed a mattress that works well for both of us. the emma mattress proved ideal as it adapts to all sleeping positions, so neither of us has to compromise and we can both sprawl out however we want. best of all, we’re no longer woken by the cat jumping up on the bed at 3am, as the memory foam layer cushions movement. waking up and realising we’ve slept straight through the night is so refreshing! ~ abi dare, these four walls
sleepbear, by patchwork harmony
hand assembled in britain, the sleepbear mattress offers firm support with a sumptuous feel, with a super dense base providing a solid foundation for the memory foam middle that moulds and adapts to provide tailor made support regardless of your sleeping positon. the pure latex sleep surface offers ‘cloudlike’ comfort and bounce, while perforations allow it to naturally regulate body temperature. sleepbear offer a 100-night trial, with free delivery and returns, and every year a percentage of the proceeds from mattress sales goes to polar bears international, to help support the conservation of polar bears (hence the name!)
read caroline’s full review of her sleepbear mattress here.
our new sleepbear mattress is dramatically different from the cheap, thin one we had before. it has a feeling of sturdiness and longevity. our bed has been transformed with it and some lovely linen bed sheets, and we often head up to bed earlier then we used to, to read or watch netflix on the tablet, as the bed is just so super comfy and cosy! ~ caroline rowland, patchwork harmony
eve, by swoonworthy
eve describes itself as ‘the world’s most comfortable mattress’ – a bold claim, no? eve believe that finding the right mattress used to be complex, with hundreds of options, impenetrable jargon, and pushy salespeople making it easy to become overwhelmed. they set out to fix this with a radically simple approach: to design one mattress – the best – from the highest quality materials which allowed them to streamline the buying experience and bring down costs. the eve mattress is formed of three foam layers – a supportive base layer, breathable cooling layer and contouring memory foam topper – surrounded by a plush fabric cover in vibrant yellow. like the others, eve offers a 100-night money-back trial, with free delivery and returns.
read kimberly’s full review of her eve mattress here.
i’m a notoriously terrible sleeper. too much light, too much noise, too hot, too cold, i won’t be able to fall asleep. add to that i suffer from night terrors, a sleep disorder which means i wake up in the night screaming, heart racing, in a blind panic. choosing an eve mattress – which is neither too soft nor too firm but just the right amount of support means my body is immediately comfortable as soon as i settle in. i don’t toss and turn through the night trying to get comfortable. it’s also not too hot and breathes well in both summer and winter. i couldn’t be happier with my choice and whilst i still from time to time have issues with sleeping, i absolutely love my mattress and look forward to climbing in every night. ~ kimberly duran, swoon worthy
have you invested in a new mattress recently? i’d love to hear which one you opted for, and why!
all imagery is the copyright of the respective bloggers, used with permission. lead image © design hunter.
14 Responses
So many choices! We have an Eve, and my eldest has a Leesa – both ace!
This is such a great resource. It’s so hard to choose these days as there are just so many similar brands on the market. Hearing feedback from people who’ve actually been sleeping on them for a while now is so useful.
What a great round up and such a useful resource. I have a Leesa mattress – I love it!
This is a great idea for a post – so helpful to have a bit of insight, especially as there are so many ‘mattress in a box’ options out there.
I haven’t come across some of these makes before, so was really interested to read this. We’re almost at the stage of needing a new mattress, so I will keep an eye out for some of these brands,
A fantastic round up, I didn’t realise there was so many options out there now.
It is really useful resource and great round up. It was very helpful reading this post.
I’m so excited about you moving to a new home! Love this blog post and putting together other people’s reviews! Fab! x
Really cool and calm look. The color of the fabric is really adorable.
Will eagerly wait for the review of the new mattress.
Wish the blog had compared firmness with a grading of some sort . It hasn’t helped me make a decision between Sleepbear, Emma and Studio because I still don’t know which is warmer to sleep on, firmer or softer and which springs back quickly if you roll around (memory foam can have a delayed reforming action). I guess it does tell you how nice they look but as a matress is mostly covered in sheets or duvets, I’m not sure how that helps.
Hi Bryony, if you click through to the individual blogger’s reviews of their mattress you should find some (or all) of your questions answered in these (links in post above). I’ve also now posted a review on my Sleepbear mattress which you can read here: http://fabricofmylife.co.uk/2017/06/12/fab-flat-bedroom-styling/ Sadly I haven’t reviewed each of the mattresses myself in order to provide a comparison grading – perhaps try a site like Which?: http://www.which.co.uk/reviews/mattresses
I have been using the Emma mattress for around 6 months from now and I must say it has exceeded all my expectations. It is the Which? best buy awarded mattress for the year 2017 (which is obvious). I spent ages looking for a new mattress and found the reviews on this page helpful so thought I should contribute. I would definitely recommend the Emma Mattress. Ordering was really straightforward, and communication around delivery very easy (the live chat function is very helpful). Our old mattress was taken away without any hassle. The mattress was extremely comfortable from the first night, and we had no problems with any smell. I’m sure it gradually expanded further over the first week or so. We’re definitely sleeping better since our Emma came along-absolutely no regrets!
A very concise and well-researched round up for mattress reviews. Thanks for posting – it is really useful!
We purchased the Emma recently, good customer service however we found we sunk too much so was very hot and gave us bad backs so we opted to send back. We have now purchased the Silent night studio medium we are both side sleepers and finding it very hard so far may be swapping for a soft. This did not however come with the Studio pillows as the article suggests, we were given standard microfiber filled So Silky range which seem to squash out of shape quickly. I’m hoping the soft version suits my body more as they will only allow a swap not a full refund return under their 60 day sleep guarantee like the others and you can only swap once.