Mattress Forum

I look forward to a hopefully positive review

After 3 weeks of sleeping on the Vera Wang 50% latex matt, I must have gotten used to it. I slept most nights all the way through, without even getting up to pee. (First time in years.)

OTOH, during the first night with the new TP, I woke up a number of times to try and get more comfortable, in addition to a pee run. I think the main problem is the odor. Much of my discomfort was breathing-based. I removed the bedding this morning, and am running the ceiling fan, floor fan, and air cleaner on high all day. I am hoping it will be a little better tonight.

Tomorrow, after waking up, I think I will also remove the outer cover, which will hopefully aid even more in the off-gassing, and speed the dissipation of that odor. I also worry about the health affect of breathing that stuff.

As for physical comfort of the mattress itself, it does seem a little firm. But, I know people say it will soften a tad during the first few weeks. Plus, the body and mind also get used to the MF sensation.

I'll report back after one week. It will be easier to judge after the odor subsides, and I can concentrate wholly on the comfort level.

okay read budgys comment on other thread. It seems there is synthetic latex not natural latex in bellafina. I wonder why regular tempurpedic site does not mentions it.

http://www.tempurpedic.com/mattresses/tempur/the_bellafina_bed_by_tempur_pedic/

Congrats... sorry your first night was so rough. I think once the odors have subsided that you'll like the Bellafina. But that's totally a hunch. Look forward to more reports. And remember, it can take quite a long time for your body to adjust to a new sleep surface.

Come to think of it, I may not have posted my reason! So, here goes:

We ordered a Split King, which is actually two Twin XL matts, side-by-side. That is because we also ordered an adjustable base, which only comes in split version for King and Cal King. Altho, even if it came in a single version, we'd opt for the split in order to have independent control of lift height.

When the matts were delivered, I noticed that the tops were different, even though they were both supposedly the same model! Plus, the build quality seemed sub-par. So, I decided I didn't trust the Serta factory. And, the label gave the Latex content as 51%! Also, the rounded, cushy tops for a sort of mound, which doesn't work well as a Split King. So, we decided to go the TP route, and decided on the Bellafina after much trial in the store. (We also liked the Rhapsody and Deluxe. But, we found the BF to be a little less memory-foamy than the others, most likely due to the latex center layer.)

Ironically, in the 3 weeks waiting for the TP's, which were special ordered, I was actually sleeping great on the Vera Wang!

The second night was much better. After leaving the linens off all day with the ceiling fan, floor fan, and air cleaner at full blast, much of the odor was gone by bedtime, probably 60-70% dissipated. I had a slightly hard time falling asleep at first, due to other factors in addition to the bed. But, once asleep, I seem to have made it pretty well through morning. I certainly felt better when I woke up than I did the first morning.

Today, when I got home from work, I removed the covers, and discovered that they seemed to have a stronger odor than the inner matts themselves! So, I am washing them as I write this. I have a feeling that the odor will probably be 90% gone tonight.

Also, I discovered that the mattress is much more responsive without the waterproof protector I had put on it. It was definitely interfering with the Tempurpedic-iness of the bed. So, I will not be using that anymore. I will have to find something more suited to the TP mattress. (It didn't adversely affect the Vera Wang's comfort, though.) Unfortunately, the return window at Amazon ended 5 days ago! 

I am most happy with the price, as the store manager did let me have the TP for the same price as the original VW, due to Serta's big screw-up. (The adjustable base was TP from the beginning.) He normally sells TP at a modest discount, which is practically unheard of. But, this was phenomenal. Huge. I am extremely happy with the price. Hopefully, I will be just as happy with the comfort and sleep quality.

On the subject of the Bellafina, I have read that placing one of those dryer sheets between the cover and the memory foam for a few days really helps to get rid of the off gassing odor.

But, then I'd be smelling one of those awful dryer sheets, instead. Six of one, half dozen of the other.

The good news is that removing the linens during the day for two days, plus washing the cover, got rid of the odor, or at least 90% of it.

I would have had a good night's sleep last night - I was really digging that bed for the first time - if it weren't for a squirrel or some small animal getting into the roof above the bedroom, and scratching around all night. It killed most of my night. Of course, I have a big job interview today! 

I'm still not 100% comfortable on this mattress. I'm still experimenting a bit. I've tried a few different pillows, as well as a 6-year-old or so 2" Novaform topper from Costco that I had been using on my spring matt. I have no idea what it's density is/was.

The basic problems are:

-I get pretty serious shoulder pain after a while when sleeping on my side. (This happened to a lesser extent on my spring matt, and almost not at all on the 50% latex VW matt.)

-I get low-back pain when sleeping on my stomach. (This happened a bit worse on the old spring matt, but not at all on the VW.)

-I get slight upper back pain when sleeping on my back. (Never got upper back pain from any mattress before.)

I have found some workarounds.

A contour neck pillow helps. I have found that my wife's TP King Medium neck pillow works well for me for back sleeping. But, it is too low for side sleeping (4"), and I get the shoulder pain mentioned above, although my head and neck feel great on it. I have an old Novaform neck pillow from Costco, which appears to be a good height to prevent the shoulder pain - hurray - but doesn't feel as nice as the MF in the TP. So, I think I will buy a Queen Large TP neck pillow. (I also got a TP Symphony free with the bed. That's 5". But, I don't care for the way it feels, in general. I don't know if it's a different foam than their neck pillows, or if it's just because of its different shape. I suppose I can try and sell it, or just save it for guests.)

I just ordered a 1" soft latex topper from FBM, as the VW matt had 1" of latex quilted into the comfort top, which I found very comfortable. I'm thinking the topper may simulate that same cushy feel. I also ordered a 1" "super soft" poly topper, as well, just in case. It was only $16 more. The shipping would've cost $13, because the latex topper by itself didn't qualify for free shipping. So, I got the PU for only $3. If it helps, great. If not, I'll hang onto it for guests or something.

If I can't get this matt right for me after a few more weeks, I may have to think about just swapping my half of the bed for the spongier Deluxe.

How long do these TP's take to break-in, anyway???

(BTW, my wife loves it. No problem at all. I guess when one weighs 100lbs, and comes from a society where they sleep on the floor, the firmer the better!)

The VW definitely felt softer on top than the TP. Yet, I did not get any lower back pain, or barely any, while sleeping on my stomach on that matt. OTOH, I do get it on my stomach on the TP. (Proof is in the pudding, as they say.)

It's quite possible that even though the top layer was softer, I may not have sunk in as much with the latex of the VW as with the TP's memory foam. It certainly seems like I am sinking in deeper with the TP, even though it feels harder than the VW.  I felt the VW was much cushier, but I also didn't feel like I sunk into it as deeply. Kinda weird. 

Interesting. I know my initial reaction after two night's on my DIY latex mattress is that it feels soft. Yet it seems supportive, too. And that is hard to explain or put into words exactly!

Yes. Exactly like that. Soft and supportive at the same time. 

I'm going to try and duplicate that somewhat by adding the 1" soft latex topper to the TP to approximate the feeling of the 1" of latex quilted into the VW's comfort top.

(BTW, Volkswagen doesn't make mattresses, in case anybody was wondering. I've been using VW to abbreviate Vera Wang.)

You'd think it wouldn't take that long to pull 39" of latex from the roll, cut it, and put it in a box. 

Ordered at 8:07 on a Friday morning, they shipped the next business day, which was the Tuesday after Memorial Day. But I remember someone else saying it sometimes takes them 3-4 days to ship an order. Don't know why.
 

The mattress has definitely broken in a bit now. I am hoping for a bit more. But, if not, I have that 1" topper coming which might put it over the comfort edge for me. OTOH, if it does break in a little more, I won't need it. But, I did enjoy the feeling of the cushy 1" of latex quilted into the top of the VW. If it's not needed or doesn't work, my dog will have herself a cushy new bed.

Stomach sleeping - No more lower back pain. I'm pretty comfortable, especially when using a down pillow.

Side sleeping - Still some bottom shoulder pain and arm numbness. But, much improved. I alternate between a 5in cheap MF neck pillow, and a dense down pillow puffed up good under my neck.

Back sleeping - I don't sleep on my back much. But, I do lie in bed on my back, reading, computing, watching TV, etc. I was getting some uppoer back pain in the beginning. But, that has gone now.

Neck Pain - I do have some neck pain, which I blame on my pillow situation. As I mentioned in my pillow thread, I enjoy the feeling of my wife's TP medium neck pillow. But, at 4", it appears to be a scoshe too shallow. The 5" cheap mf pillow I had in the closet seems a scoshe too high. So, 4.5" seems like the magic number. Plus, the cheap mf feels more like regular PU foam than true mf. If none of the latex pillows I've ordered work (the first was was a colosal fail), and I can't get a decent price on the TP Queen Large, I see that RMM has a 4.5 Sensus neck pillow in king-size for $79 shipped.

I think that once I find the right pillow, I will be pretty happy with the bed.

The TP Ergo base is awesome, btw, especially in the Split King config.

I'll be curious to see what you think of the Bellafina in two to four weeks.
 

It actually feels pretty good. It's softened up quite a bit. But, I would still consider it "firm". It's just a good firm now, not a bad firm anymore.

I don't think it's me psychologically getting used to it. It is definitely breaking in, and loosening up, like a new pair of shoes.

If they didn't already ship the 1" soft latex topper from FBM, I would probably cancel the order. But, I'm definitely gonna try it, as I did like the cushy top layer on the VW, as I've mentioned before.

The nice thing about the Bellafina is that it doesn't have as much of that sinking, sleeping-in-sand feeling of the other TP's and generic MF mattresses. But, it still has the support and pressure relief of MF, which is nice.

Overall, I'm happy now with this purchase. I was definitely worried those first few days, though! It seems that TP's definitely have a breaking in period.

BTW, I'm still having occasional low back pain when sleeping on my stomach. But, I believe I've discovered the cause: I have an Ergo adjustable base. And, I occasionally sleep with the head end raised slightly on occasions when I'm experiencing heartburn. When the head-end is raised, and I'm on my stomach, my lower back is arched a little more than if the bed was flat. In that specific situation, I do wake with a touch of low back pain. But, when it is flat, I do not have that problem.

gary, Is bellafina firmer then rhapsody.

Also how are you finding sde sleeping on Bellafina?

How did you find Rhapsody? firm or soft? or medium?

Thanks gary.

I also felt it had much more of that MF feeling of slowly sinking in as it warmed up.

The 3 TP models I liked were th Rhapsody, Bellafina, and Deluxe, listed in order from firm to soft. I didn't care for any of the lower models than the Deluxe, or the Clouds, as they were to soft for me. I also didn't care for the Celebrity, which was too sink-y for me. I don't think I tried the Allure. But, theoretically, it seems like I would probably have liked it based on my like of the Rhapsody. 

It was kinda nice. It reminded me a little of the Vera Wang I had for a few weeks.

I slept fairly well. I didn't sleep non-stop until morning. But, I did like the way it felt.

I did have a touch of neck pain in the morning, which I still chalk up to less-than-perfect pillow usage. (I should be receiving my Sensus neck pillow on Mon or Tues.)

There were a couple three negatives:

It seemed kinda warm. I never felt warm from the TP memory foam. But, this latex seemed to make me feel warmer. I will try it for a few nights, maybe alternating without it, to see if it truly was the latex that was making me feel that way. If so, it'll have to go. I cannot stand feeling hot when sleeping.

I lost some of the direct feeling of the TP foam. Not the worst thing in the world, as I'm not a huge fan of the deep sinking. But, I do like a light form-fitting feeling. And, the Bellafina never had that deep sinking feeling to begin with.

It makes my half of the bed an inch higher than my wife's half. Since she is very happy with the mattress, as it is, it might be difficult to convince her to put something on her side to raise it an inch. The only possibility I can think of is maybe an inch of Sensus or even trying an inch of the so-called fake Venus from Overstock. If it turns out to be real 8lb foam, she'd probably like it, as it would approximate the feel of the TP HD foam of the Rhapsody, which she liked at the store.