The New Bellafina's Are In! The New Bellafina's Are In!
Jun 8, 2010 1:24 AM
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Location: San Jose, CA
Joined: Apr 4, 2010
Points: 143
Our TP Bellafina split king matts finally arrived. (Two twin XL's) They make a much better visual match with the TP Ergo foundation we were using than the Vera Wang matts we returned. And, they feel great so far. Granted, we only laid on them for about twenty minutes. But, we are pretty happy.

 

However, the proof is in the sleeping, as they say. So, I'll report back after our first full night, and then again at a few intervals. 

This message was modified Jun 8, 2010 by garypen
Re: The New Bellafina's Are In! The New Bellafina's Are In!
Reply #12 Jun 14, 2010 3:01 PM
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Location: San Jose, CA
Joined: Apr 4, 2010
Points: 143
DianeK wrote:

In my experience, lower back pain while lying on your stomach is almost always a sign of a too soft mattress.  Your torso, being the heaviest part, sinks in too much putting a hyperextension arch in your lower back.  Try slipping your hands under your hips when you are on your stomach.  If your back feels better with your hands as support, then you know the mattress is too soft.  I'm suspicious the VW gave you better support.


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. 

Re: The New Bellafina's Are In! The New Bellafina's Are In!
Reply #13 Jun 14, 2010 3:18 PM
Joined: May 22, 2010
Points: 112
garypen wrote:


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!

Re: The New Bellafina's Are In! The New Bellafina's Are In!
Reply #14 Jun 14, 2010 4:11 PM
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Location: San Jose, CA
Joined: Apr 4, 2010
Points: 143
pianoman wrote:

 

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.)

Re: The New Bellafina's Are In! The New Bellafina's Are In!
Reply #15 Jun 16, 2010 6:32 PM
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Location: San Jose, CA
Joined: Apr 4, 2010
Points: 143
BTW, Pianoman, how long after you placed your order with FBM did they ship it? I ordered the 1" latex topper on Sunday, and they still haven't shipped it as of Wednesday.

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. 

Re: The New Bellafina's Are In! The New Bellafina's Are In!
Reply #16 Jun 16, 2010 9:01 PM
Joined: May 22, 2010
Points: 112
garypen wrote:

BTW, Pianoman, how long after you placed your order with FBM did they ship it? I ordered the 1" latex topper on Sunday, and they still haven't shipped it as of Wednesday.

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.
 

Re: The New Bellafina's Are In! The New Bellafina's Are In!
Reply #17 Jun 17, 2010 4:34 PM
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Location: San Jose, CA
Joined: Apr 4, 2010
Points: 143
UPDATE: Ten Nights In.

 

 

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.

This message was modified Jun 17, 2010 by garypen
Re: The New Bellafina's Are In! The New Bellafina's Are In!
Reply #18 Jun 17, 2010 10:28 PM
Joined: May 22, 2010
Points: 112
garypen wrote:

UPDATE: Ten Nights In.

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.

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

Re: The New Bellafina's Are In! The New Bellafina's Are In!
Reply #19 Jun 22, 2010 1:48 PM
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Location: San Jose, CA
Joined: Apr 4, 2010
Points: 143
Update: Two Weeks In

 

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.

This message was modified Jun 22, 2010 by garypen
Re: The New Bellafina's Are In! The New Bellafina's Are In!
Reply #20 Jun 22, 2010 2:17 PM
Joined: May 12, 2010
Points: 241
garypen wrote:

Update: Two Weeks In

 

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.

Re: The New Bellafina's Are In! The New Bellafina's Are In!
Reply #21 Jun 22, 2010 3:18 PM
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Location: San Jose, CA
Joined: Apr 4, 2010
Points: 143
I personally thought the Rhapsody was firmer. But, it should be with that layer of 7lb HD foam on top. 

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.