I can't believe it has been a month already!  The summer is really slipping away, especially when you're busy!

Let's get right to it:

For June, I slept on The Natural Bedroom by Vivetique's Extra Fill 40oz Kapok Pillow.  For the record, the pillow was a standard size - which is the only size it comes in.  The pillow is filled entirely with Kapok and if you don't know what that is, just read last month's pillow review.  The cover is 100% certified organic cotton and the pillow is completely enclosed, no zipper.  This pillow has a resting loft of a whopping 9 inches!  Yes, there are mattresses that are not that thick!

I found this pillow to be just crazy tall, even for me and I have broad shoulders.  The thing was so thick that I almost couldn't get it in the pillow case!  For those that are really looking for a tall pillow, this is it and I doubt you're going to find anything remotely as tall as this big guy! 

The pillow is quite firm, but that should not be surprising due to the amount of stuffing it has.  There literally is likely no space to put even one more strand of fill into this pillow!  That being said, the pillow is surprisingly light weight, which is surprising given its size.  It would take absolutely no physical effort to move this pillow at all - but don't try shaping it because there is just no way to move the filling around, it's packed tight!

Kapok can not be sold in California due to flamability regulations, but the up side is that it will float!  So, if you are caught in a flash flood while in bed, you can use your pillow as a personal floatation device.  Guess those government types didn't think of that one when they were handing down safety regulations now did they...

The pillow is made in Arcadia, California, U.S.A. by The Carwile Brothers - a.k.a. The Natural Bedroom by Vivetique and carries a 2 year warranty, as do all Natural Bedroom pillows.

So, that's the skinny on this fat puppy!

This is way overdue, but here is my pillow review for June!

For the month of May, I tried the Natural Bedroom's 32 oz. Regular Fill Kapok Pillow. 

Those of you that don't know, Kapok is a seed pod fiber that comes from the ceiba tree and has been used for decades as a pillow fill and, also in the past, as a fill for personal floatation devices.  Kapok is exceptionally lightweight - a fully stuffed pillow that looks like it should weigh a ton is just light as a feather - really!

For the specifics, the pillow comes in Standard, Queen and King sizes as well as specialites in a Boudoir/Travel Pillow and a Body Pillow.  For the record, it was tried (as always) in the Standard Size.  The pillow has a resting loft of a whopping 7 1/2 inches in height!

Backing up a little bit, you know the old saying that you don't appreciate something until it's gone?  Well, I had been sleeping on the wool pillows and when I switched to kapok I noticed something.  Many will identify with the phenomenon of your pillow heating up, waking up and turning it over to the cold side - which feels ohhhh so good!  Well, I didn't do that with the wool pillows but ended up going back to that practice with the kapok!

Kapok is known as the organic equivalent of down.  It is soft, but very supportive.  The key here is the loft - it is very tall and stays that way even when your head on it.  For the broad shouldered guy that I am, this is a great ergonomic pillow. 

I would rate the organic cotton cover as being average, it is a percale so it is a little rough but hey, you put a pillowcase on it so what's the difference?  Construction is pretty clean overall.

It comes packaged in just a plain plastic bag with a card insert that describes the material.  The Natural Bedroom has never been known for its colorful packaging, that's for sure!

Kapok has had a good reputation and it is well deserved.  It is a great material because it is so soft and light weight, yet strong and durable - perhaps the best material around where those adjectives can be applied.  One unfortunate aspect is that it is not possible to buy one of these pillows in the State of California.  Kapok is flamable and, without treatment, it is illegal to sell them in or for delivery to California.  I know, bummer.

In the final evaluation, if you're looking for a soft pillow with good support and a very high loft, try this one!

Some news is just too big to keep!

Natura World, Inc., the Canadian natural and organic mattress company that is rapidly rising to major-brand status, released today that all of the Dunlopillo latex they use in Premium Grade, Standard Grade and All Natural Talalay Latex Foam Rubber meets the stringent Oeko-Tex Standard 100 Product Class I human-ecological requirements for certification.

Of particular note is that this certification extends to the standard presently established for baby articles, a high standard to meet indeed!

What does this mean exactly?  Well, to the knowledge of yours truly, no Talalay or Talatech latex to date has been able to meet this standard of purity.  This has only been known to be reached through the Dunlop manufacturing process.

Dunlop process latex tends to be firmer and offer a less appealing "feel" when compared to todays mattresses.  Talalay latex provides a softer, more supple feel due to its more open cell structure.  The debate about which one lasts longer still rages, but on the whole it is generally accepted that Talalay does "feel better" than Dunlop.

Many organic mattress shoppers have shunned Talalay latex as being somehow "less natural" than Dunlop and, indeed, there is a difference in the way each type of latex is made.  Some online retailers and manufacturers have even embarked on long campaigns to discredit the Talalay process in general.

Of course, Dunlopillo (a.k.a. Dunlop Latex Foam Ltd.) actually invented both processes, so it stands to reason that they would be the first to have their Talalay latex meet this exceedingly high standard.  Remember, European eco standards are much higher than ours here across the pond.

So, my dear defenders of the earth, this means that you can rest easy (literally) about choosing a mattress made with Dunlopillo Talalay Latex that you are on the pure stuff, free of any harmfull synthetic or chemical fillers. 

In the organic/natural arena, Natura makes the following models with this latex:  Eco Haven, Eco Advantage, Eco Brilliance, Eco Transcend, NaturaFresh, NaturaClear, NaturaPure. 

In other news, Natura has implemented a new type of zipper on all of their mattresses made of brass instead of plastic.  One gallon of petrol is saved for every 25 beds now made with this zipper!

Natura's new factory has also instituted a new program where they recycle their plastic bags, keeping an estimated 20 tons of plastic out of landfills per year.  No small potatoes there folks!

So, as you can see, they are not only "talking the talk" but "walking the walk".

Shop with confidence!

Yes, a pillow filled with dried green peas - organic dried green peas to be exact. 

When I was first contacted by Matt Harrigan of The Green Pea Pillow Company to try their innovative pillow design, I really didn't know what to expect out of a pillow filled with my family's favorite vegetable.  But it's certainly was intriguing to say the least, so when the pillow arrived it was an event around the store - with customers and employees alike gathered around while I opened the box.

Let's get the specifics out of the way first - This pillow weighs more than any other pillow I've ever seen - topping in at around 11 pounds.  To add to that amazing statistic, it is much smaller than the average pillow - at least the one I was sent - at 16 x 11 (not counting the flap on the pillow case).  It has a resting, unfluffed loft of about 2 inches.  There is no quilting to the exterior.  The peas are packed into a heavy organic cotton canvas interior that is zippered, allowing you to remove peas if you wish - similar to buckwheat hull pillows in that respect, only here I suppose you could rehydrate and cook the peas if you really wanted to.  The pillow includes a softer organic cotton pillow case.  The literature does not indicate whether or not the pillow case is machine washable, however I would be very surprised if it wasn't.

Now to the test.  The size of the pillow really limits this to neck and head support in one position.  Rolling over, shifting positions, etc. would require moving the pillow to keep it in the correct position.  When it comes to head and neck support, this pillow really shines.  It holds you in position completely, even with its small size.  Because of the size of the peas, much larger than buckwheat, there is less chance of shifting occuring during sleep or rest. 

Of course, with pillows like this there is always a noise factor and it does exist here.  If this were a like-sized buckwheat pillow, with no wool wrap as this is, it would be much noisier in my opinion.  Peas are definately on the quieter side, although you do hear them and this is something to consider.

As for this pillow, it has become somewhat of a curiosity around the store as customers are quite intrigued by it.  Most seem quite surprised by the weight and the damage it could do in a pillow fight - we're talking emergency room here!  It is really hard to fathom this pillow every wearing out from a fill standpoint.  With normal use, this thing could literally last years.

If you are interested in the Green Pea Pillow, you can get more information at www.greenpeapillow.com and can order there as well.  The pillow cost $89, but offers a 30 day money back guarantee and a program where you only need to pay the $15.95 shipping charge (remember, it's heavy) and if you like it the $89 will be charged at the end of the trial period. 

As for us at the Green Guy and OSP - we doff our caps to Matt for creating an innovative organic product and wish him every success.

Increasingly, organic mattresses and bedding are cropping up in mainstream mattress stores around the country.  The product is now starting the process, albiet a slow one.  This is thanks in large part to companies like Natura, whose branding and sales network have positioned them firmly out of the organic niche and into the appeal of the average consumer.  They haven't forgotten where they came from, of course, and their products continue to be superior in most every way to the competition.

You also have 1-800-Mattress (known in the industry as "Dial a Bed") who have partnered with Vivetique - Natural Bedroom to bring that line out into the brighter daylight of the mainstream consumer.

All of this has resulted in consumers asking some very common questions about these products.  Here are just a few:

Q:  Do you really sleep better on an organic bed?

A:  Generally speaking, yes.  Everyone is different so it is important that a bed is selected with the correct feel for you, but clinical trials and control studies have shown that subjects reach a deeper level of sleep on an organic bed than a standard mattress.  Why?  The wool.  Wool helps your body control temperature fluxuations better and also gets rid of that pint of body moisture you lose each night.  Therefore, you turn less and you won't curl up in a ball or stick your leg out (or even throw the covers off) because you got too hot or too cold.

Q:  Do organic beds last as long as standard beds?

A:  Longer actually.  It's a proven fact, actually.  Let's examine a rather common 20 year mattress warranty:  First, there is no cushioning material in a standard mattress, including memory foam, that has been on the market and in use in its current form for 20 years.  Therefore, there is no hard, real world proof that these materials, again including memory foam, actually last that long.  Second, the materials in an organic mattress - Natural Latex, Organic Wool, Organic Cotton, have proven themselves in real world use for time periods exceeding this same 20 year warranty.  Natural Latex, especially the 100% natural Dunlop Process and Talalay (Talalay from Dunlopillo specifically) has been in widespread mattress use since the 1930s, having been invented in 1929.  No other cushioning material has proven itself like natural latex in real world, every day use.  Of course, organically grown cotton and wool have been around for centuries - millenia in fact - and have proven themselves many, many times over to be durrable and long lasting.

Q:  I've heard of mattresses developing mold and dust mite problems.  How do organic mattresses deal with this?

A:  All things considered, organic mattresses stay far cleaner than their standard counterparts over their life span.  As a starter, the Natural Latex used in organic mattresses is over 500% more dust mite resistant than any polyurethane foam or fiber, including memory foam.  Next, the wool layer of the mattress keeps moisture out and what moisture does get in is wicked away and evaporates very quickly.  With lack of moisture and a poor living environment, dist mites decide to find other diggs that are more hospitable.  You also have natural mold and mildew resistance - in fact I have never seen in my entire career mold or mildew on natural latex (I can't say that for memory foam, however).  As an added bonus, organic mattresses are also anti-bacterial since bacteria needs moisture to survive.

Q:  Do organic mattresses cost more than standard mattresses?

A:  It depends on what type of mattress you are shopping for.  If you are looking for something to just throw on a bed and sleep on and don't care about the quality or the longevity, then yes - organic mattresses cost more than the economy mattresses that are available from most mattress stores and places like Costco.  If, on the other hand, you are shopping for a medium to higher end mattress and especially a memory foam mattress, then you will likely find organic choices - and at the very least natural choices - that are either the same prices or lower than the standard mattress models you've seen.  In fact, standard mattresses actually have the high price lead at this point.  When you factor in the longevity of an organic mattress, your cost per night of use actually drops to LESS than that of even most of the economy mattresses available, so make sure you take that into account when shopping around.

Q:  How can I tell if a mattress is truly organic or if it's just a ploy to get me to buy?

A:  This is a really important question.  Did you know that in the U.S., a mattress that is only 15% organic can be labeled "Organic"?  This can really cause confusion among consumers.  What you want to look for are certifications - is the manufacturer or merchant a member of the Organic Trade Association?  Is the natural latex Eco Institute certified?  Is the cotton and/or wool certified organic?  To be honest, buying a European or Canadian product is actually better - especially since all Canadian manufacturers must certify their organic claims by December, 2008 to continue to market a product as organic.  There are several reputable U.S. Companies, just look for those certificates and you'll be fine.  No certificates?  Run.  Fast.

Q:  Am I really helping the environment by purchasing an organic mattress or bedding?

A:  Yes!  In fact, for every queen size organic mattress sold 5 acres of agricultural land per season is saved from pesticide spraying.  That can really make a difference, especially with the problems of pesticide runoff into our lakes, rivers and oceans now resulting in "dead zones" - especially among shellfish and crab.  On the other side of the coin, organic mattresses are fully biodegradable at the end of their lives!  A standard mattress with polyurethane foam will not only be here, in one form or another, for decades, but will also put potentially harmful VOCs into the soil.

There are, of course, many more questions along these lines out there - but these are the big ones.  Of course, if you have more, you can always post it as a comment and I will include it in my next Q&A!