Savvy Rest report
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After lurking here and other places and doing lots of research - I finally recieved my latex mattress today. I'd like to add to the discussion by sharing my experiences with a company I haven't read about on this forum and about Dunlop latex. We went with a three layer 100% DUNLOP (yes, Dunlop, not Talalay) mattress from Savvy Rest via The Natural Sleep Store. We got a queen size with split firm (ILD 40), medium (ILD 35) and soft (ILD 30) layers. The cover is made of organic cotton quilted to organic wool. The total was $1849 including shipping - more than SleepEZ or some of the other online retailers but less than other organic latex mattresses.We got free UPS shipping through The Natural Sleep Store (which would have been $219 from Savvy Rest directly) plus a gift certificate for $160.00 that could be used toward bedding at their store. So far, I really like the mattress. It is just the right firmness. I don't think we would want anything softer than this configuration. We went with Dunlop even though there is so much more information about Talalay because we were more concerned about getting something too soft rather than too firm. I'll report on how we like the mattress in a few weeks. We went from years of futons that needed to be replaced every few years so this seems extremely comfy. Our latest futon had gotten really hard so we started researching other options and finally settled on the Savvy Rest. I can't really write a full review until sleeping on the mattress for a while - but I can review the customer service. There is a huge amount of information on the Savvy Rest web site and on the Natural Sleep Store web site as well as organicmattressreviews.com. I considered SleepEZ, FloBeds, Foam Sweet Foam, Foam Source and a couple of other places and finally settled on Savvy Rest. I would have considered FloBeds if they carried Dunlop latex. My concern with SleepEZ and some of the other places was that while they described their latex in great detail, they were a little sketchy about the covers and what they used for flame retardants. I decided to narrow my search to stores that described their covers and/or had options for different covers. FloBeds had several cover choices and reasonable prices, but I really wanted natural Dunlop rather than Talalay. Both FloBeds and Savvy Rest made it clear that they didn't use chemicals in addition to the wool for fire retardant material. First, I looked at the web sites, read reviews and got samples from Savvy Rest. They seemed professional and informative. I spoke directly to a woman at Savvy Rest (can't remember her name right now) and she was very knowledgeable and told me some things that made me buy a softer mattress than I had intended to. I'm glad I took her advice. She said most of their exchanges were for softer layers and that she couldn't recommend anything firmer than medium, medium, firm - and that would be quite firm in Dunlop. She also said that the Dunlop is a bit firmer on one side than the other so you could further customize by turning one or more layer over. The side with the larger holes is firmer than the side with the smaller holes. I haven't experimented with it yet so I can't confirm if the difference is noticeable but I thought it was interesting. The mattress came in three 2x2x3 boxes which the UPS guy hauled into the house for me. They were immaculate and clearly labled on the outside with computer printed stickers and magic marker. The first box as the heaviest at 60 pounds and contained the cotton and wool cover along with the soft layer and the assembly instructions which were in a zip lock bag taped to the top of the box. The other two layers were around 53 pounds each and clearly labled in the other two boxes. Each of the half layers were in separate plastic bags and were NOT vacuum packed. They were just kind of loosely rolled and very easy to remove from the boxes. Every half layer was labled with an F, M or S.I was really impressed with the attention to detail. I called my husband to come home early to hoist the boxes up into the bedroom and help me put the bed together. It probably took us less than half an hour to put it together. I really think the split layers were easier to handle than the full layers would have been. The top of the case is thick enough that we don't feel the split - even without a mattress pad. That's enough to bore you for now. I am really happy with this purchase. It is one of the best experiences I've had buying something online. We just didn't find anything comparable locally. Cheers, Marie |
Re: Savvy Rest report
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mattressnewbie wrote: Woohoo!! Looks great! (Both the bed and the pix) ;) Don't feel bad re: how long it took you to figure it out - I'm a software engineer and I was having difficulties making it work! LOL! Now that I'm looking at the "code" when I quoted you, think some of it might have had to do with the url actually being different than the link that we were copying/pasting into the browser... Welcome to the group! Don't worry...once you make your decision, all the uncertainly will disappear. It appears that you can't go wrong with either Talalay or Dunlop. Flobeds & Savvy Rest are both top notch from what I've read here. SleepEZ should not be discounted either, as I think a couple of people here were satisfied with them as well. http://www.flickr.com/photos/44106409@N08/4050058875/ vs http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2735/4051508938_5e3421104e_o.jpg I'm going to try something just because I wanna test my theory - sorry for "re-posting" your pic if this works... I'll edit and remove if you want! No worries! Just let me know... <img src="http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2735/4051508938_5e3421104e_o.jpg"/> Coolbeans - looks like it worked. If anyone is interested in how to post a photo just by typing in the "code", just let me know and I'll do my best to explain! Found some places where Sager66 mentions it, but he might've used some unfamiliar terms maybe? Thanks for posting all the info and pix on your experience with Savvy Rest, Catlover! I'm actually thinking of taking the plunge and getting a "made" bed from here or Flobeds vs. just buying layers and trying to put it together myself just because seems like one can be a little more comfortable with exactly what he/she is getting. Word of "caution" however - I made the mistake of emailing Flobeds and saying I had heard they started offering dunlop-processed latex, but couldn't find any prices on their site, and asked a few other questions about it, and got a somewhat condescending email in return... Here's part of the reply: "We are NOT offering dunlop. We have said to customers, if you buy our bed and do not like or cannot get the desired firmness with our wide range of Talalay latex, we will order you Dunlop, with no exchange or return of it. In my 7 years nobody has taken us up on that. Talalay in my opinion Is better in every way shape and form. The myth that Dunlop is firmer is funny. Latex is measured in ild "indention load deflection" so a 32 ild talalay vs a 32 ild dunlop, should be the same firmness, right? Well a dunlop processed piece of foam is not as supple, and has inconsistency's making it often feel firmer to the touch etc...In short, i would highly recommend Talalay over Dunlop. And i have a feeling if you keep researching you will agree." Apparently they don't feel too kindly towards dunlop! LOL! I think I must've gotten confused with someone saying that Latex International now offers Dunlop (checked LI's site and while they don't manufacture dunlop, they are a distributor from someone they think highly of), and since Flobeds uses LI for their latex, I had gotten mixed up and made the error. Doh! But I have been trying to decide between dunlop or talalay, or perhaps mixing layers of the two, so it was great to read your post, Catlover! Ahhh decisions, decisions! Ok - enough rambling. Thanks again to all for the wonderful advice and opinions!! As for Flobeds reply to you re dunlop. I too, read that they were offering dunlop again so I emailed them before I made my decision. Here's the reply I got from Dewey: "Hello, Before Latex International came out with 100% Natural Talalay Latex we carried Natural Dunlop for our natural customers out there. We were getting "Latex Green" in from Sri Lanka.We can still get this dunlop if need be, however we do not stock it. I have often said to customers who are tentative in purchasing all talalay, "If you purchase our Natural talalay and just cant get the firmness or feel you were looking for, at that point we can order up the dunlop that you believe you want." In the last 5 yrs we haven't had to order any. We at Flobeds are very confident in both the blended and natural talalay that we carry, and offer such a wide range of firmnesses, more times than not, we can find that "just right" feel folks are looking for.If you have any further questions please don't hesitate to email back, or give us a call." They seem to be saying the same thing, but slightly more negative re dunlop, in your reply. In my reply, I find one sentence interesting - the one that offers dunlop if you "just can't get the firmness or feel you were looking for". This seems to support my research that dunlop is indeed more supportive for those (like us) who need firm support. I also didn't like the Flobeds video of the smushed dunlop they once sold and magically "found" in storage after many years. It might be for real, but just stuck me as wrong to do...They are really pushing their the talalay. Also worth noting is that Savvy buys their dunlop processed latex from Coco Latex in sw India. If you give Michael Penny, the owner of Savvy Rest, a call, he can tell you about his experience with Latex Green versus Coco Latex. It's interesting. I now believe that Cocoa Latex manufactures superior quality dunlop latex over Latex Green, so that's another point worth considering in the mix. The fact that air in injected into the talalay-processed latex seems to suggest that it would be less supportive and more springy. That's great for those wanting that feel. No air is injected in the dunlop process. Our fear was that the dunlop might be too hard but it's just wonderful. Supportive, yet yielding to our body weight (170 lbs each side). I would think that anyone over 200 lbs might want to go with dunlop process to ensure the proper support, and I've read that in many places too. The companies who offer both dunlop and talalay seem to make the most sense, as one can try both to get the support sought. I am very interested to know how to post an image in a forum like this as per your method. Pls either post info here or private email me. I'm all ears! (but treat me like a 1st-grader, ok? I'm not savvy to computer jargon!) And good luck in your decision process! This message was modified Oct 28, 2009 by catlover
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Re: Savvy Rest report
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Catlover: I really appreciated all the work you went to in posting your pictures. It sure would be wonderful if you had an opportunity to sleep on an all Talalay bed of the proper firmness. Then you could give us your evaluation of the two different latex manufacturing processes as far as actual use is concerned. Without ever having slept on a Dunlop mattress I naturally can only assume what you are experiencing compared to what I am experiencing with my all Talalay FlowBeds. It has always been my assumption that since Dunlop is a more dense product that it has a different feel because of this. At least that was my conclusion based on the samples that I received both from Savvy Rest ( Dunlop) and FlowBeds ( Talalay). As you indicated, with the small samples of Dunlop they felt less springy. This was a great concern to me as I did not want a springy sensation. And I am happy to report that my Talalay bed does not feel springy. This is the problem with samples. Particularly the ridiculously small three-inch cubes that they send out. What intrigues me is the fact that Latex International sells a Dunlop product. It is a product that they manufacture under license from another company. But it seems to get very short shift from them, and I am assuming, for most of the companies that they sell to such as FlowBeds. I would assume this is a dollar and cents proposition since they must have to pay a royalty to the license company. But I have never bought the idea that Talalay was the Rolls-Royce of latex, and Dunlop was the poor cousin. I think what we will find is that it has a lot more to do with a monetary issue than a technical issue. In the end, it's all about being comfortable in your bed, for many years duration, and at a reasonable price. It's just that I found FlowBeds to have the very best exchange and return policy of any company that I have found on the Internet. And I have certainly appreciated the attitude of the Turners. They seem to be a throwback to the time when business was done based on your word and not so much with what was written on a piece of paper. In the process of acquiring my bed I went through quite a convoluted experience. So far at least, my experience with Dave Turner has proven to be everything his website and he said it would be. That means a great deal to me! This message was modified Oct 28, 2009 by eagle2
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Eeagle2 wrote: Catlover: I really appreciated all the work you went to in posting your pictures. It sure would be wonderful if you had an opportunity to sleep on an all Talalay bed of the proper firmness. Then you could give us your evaluation of the two different latex manufacturing processes as far as actual use is concerned. Without ever having slept on a Dunlop mattress I naturally can only assume what you are experiencing compared to what I am experiencing with my all Talalay FlowBeds. It has always been my assumption that since Dunlop is a more dense product that it has a different feel because of this. At least that was my conclusion based on the samples that I received both from Savvy Rest ( Dunlop) and FlowBeds ( Talalay). As you indicated, with the small samples of Dunlop they felt less springy. This was a great concern to me as I did not want a springy sensation. And I am happy to report that my Talalay bed does not feel springy. This is the problem with samples. Particularly the ridiculously small three-inch cubes that they send out. What intrigues me is the fact that Latex International sells a Dunlop product. It is a product that they manufacture under license from another company. But it seems to get very short shift from them, and I am assuming, for most of the companies that they sell to such as FlowBeds. I would assume this is a dollar and cents proposition since they must have to pay a royalty to the license company. But I have never bought the idea that Talalay was the Rolls-Royce of latex, and Dunlop was the poor cousin. I think what we will find is that it has a lot more to do with a monetary issue than a technical issue. In the end, it's all about being comfortable in your bed, for many years duration, and at a reasonable price. It's just that I found FlowBeds to have the very best exchange and return policy of any company that I have found on the Internet. And I have certainly appreciated the attitude of the Turners. They seem to be a throwback to the time when business was done based on your word and not so much with what was written on a piece of paper. In the process of acquiring my bed I went through quite a convoluted experience. So far at least, my experience with Dave Turner has proven to be everything his website and he said it would be. That means a great deal to me! Eeagle2 - where do you live? Maybe we can do a "wife swap" episode - just so we can try out each other's beds! LOL Actually, it would be nice to sleep on a firm Talalay - it sure sounds like the firmness is there. I do have a piece of 32 ILD 3" talalay from FBM, and it's not supportive at all, but not fair to judge as it's not thick enough of course! I'm am so pleased that both of us have nothing but good reports for both Flobeds and Savvy Rest! I think we have helped future latex buyers to feel less fearful on these 2 companies for sure.. If you are ever passing thru CT on I-95, please private eamil me via this forum. We are located close to both exit 4 and 5 (in the middle and less than 2 mins from either exit)...you can check out our bed! BTW - what did you pay for your bed & is it a king? Ours is king, three split 3" layers & we also purchased foundation. Cost was $3100 or $3200, including shipping...can't recall exactly, but close enough. |
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Although I would love to see New England unfortunately the wife and I live nowhere near their, and are highly unlikely ever to visit their, we'll have to pass. But thank you for the invitation. I bought the Deluxe 4 layer Talalay all natural bed. As I recall I paid about $2700 (mattress only) during one of their sales. What's a shame is that we do not have some brick-and-mortar stores in our locality, (I would be willing to drive 100 miles or so to visit it) so that we could test it out by spending an hour or so lying on the actual Dunlop, Talalay, mattresses. But even then it's not the same as sleeping on a mattress for several nights, as I am finding out as I try to determine what kind of firmness layers I prefer. Do you feel, at this point in time, that you have selected the proper firmness layers for your bed? Are you anticipating having to exchange some layers. And what will Savvy Rest charge you to do that? This message was modified Oct 28, 2009 by eagle2
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Catlover, This is Dave at FloBeds. I wanted to correct the record. Dewey was mistaken when he told you the dunlop latex on the video was Latex Green. It was latex produced under the trade name Arpico. We brought it in by container direct from The Richard Pieres Company in Regarding our “smushed dunlop”… we put it up to show our experience and why we went the route we did. I am glad you have found a mattress that works for your body. This message was modified Oct 29, 2009 by davet
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Re: Savvy Rest report
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eagle2 wrote: Although I would love to see New England unfortunately the wife and I live nowhere near their, and are highly unlikely ever to visit their, we'll have to pass. But thank you for the invitation. I bought the Deluxe 4 layer Talalay all natural bed. As I recall I paid about $2700 (mattress only) during one of their sales. What's a shame is that we do not have some brick-and-mortar stores in our locality, (I would be willing to drive 100 miles or so to visit it) so that we could test it out by spending an hour or so lying on the actual Dunlop, Talalay, mattresses. But even then it's not the same as sleeping on a mattress for several nights, as I am finding out as I try to determine what kind of firmness layers I prefer. Do you feel, at this point in time, that you have selected the proper firmness layers for your bed? Are you anticipating having to exchange some layers. And what will Savvy Rest charge you to do that? We were lucky to find a Savvy store an hour away, but they only had a dunlop bed...it was a small "boutique" shop that does custom linens/bedding, so no room for 2 beds..They did have a Talalay layer but that's not the same as having three layers to try. But it sold us on the dunlop as I read one review that said dunlop felt like a bag of "wet cement". We found that to not be true in our case so went with it. It's been 2 weeks & all we've done is flip our top layers, from having the larger holes facing "up", to the smaller, zoned side "up". I need to try my hubby's side (F/M/M) to see if I might want to swap my top soft for a medium - I recall liking the F/M/M in the store, but I ordered a F/M/S as suggested by Savvy for my side. My hubby thought he could go firmer than the F/M/M at the store, so I ordered F/F/M for him ,but Savvy sent F/M/M by mistake, but Savvy will ship if necessary with no shipping charges. I am going to swap my bottom firm with his middle medium so he can try his side at F/F/M. Then he'll know what to do, if anything. Savvy allows free exchanges for up to 90 days, but one needs to pay shipping costs which are steep. I was told a twin xl (half a split king) would ship for $85. When I questioned the high cost, Michael Penny said that is the "arrangement" they have with their shipper & there are no plans to reduce this cost at this time. (If anything, it might be reduced by $5). I wonder if the shipping is inflated to discourage exchanging layers because Savvy doesn't re-use the exchanged layers (state law), but shreds them for other uses (dog beds etc) Can't blame them if they do inflate cost of shipping as I would only want new latex for my exchanges! Hubby feels it will take a month or two before he can say this bed is the best. Over the years, all beds we bought started out great for him (except the original Tempur-Pedic) but all eventually hurt his back. Our last bed was a quilt-top firm Chattam & Wells with no back issues for 6 years. But it developed body impressions (both sides, even with flipping) & about 6 months later, he began to awaken with shooting nerve pain from the impression. (pain that went away upon arising and walking, but reappeared in the wee hrs every morning). Once he moved to floor-sleeping (with 3" cushioning) he was fine. So we knew we needed firm support. We were about to buy an all cotton mattress from either Royal Pedic or Chas Beckley, but then researched latex & decided to take a chance after much research on my part. My hubby is sleeping some of the night on his stomach (something new) as well as on his side. Before the latex, he was primarily a back sleeper/side-sleeper and the back-sleeping produced high decible snoring! I find that I'm also stomach-sleeping part of the night, something which was impossible to do on our innerspring beds. I don't know why we are doing this, but it just happens. For now, neither of us is awakening unusually stiff or sore. My hubby feels his stiffness upon arising has lessened. So the configuration seems to be about right for now. I do think we each need to try the firmer configurations before making final decision & glad we can do this with the split layers! |
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Catlover: I agree with you that Savvy Rest has a high cost for return of layers as a methodology of discouraging customers from exercising too frequently their 90 day exchange of layers privilege. This business about You certainly need to take several days to allow your body to adjust to any new configuration of your mattress. I would only shorten this time frame up if you are uncomfortable. I am happy that you have found a mattress that meets your requirements and hope that it remains so for the indefinite future. |
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catlover wrote: <BR><BR>My hubby is sleeping some of the night on his stomach (something new) as well as on his side. Before the latex, he was primarily a back sleeper/side-sleeper and the back-sleeping produced high decible snoring! I find that I'm also stomach-sleeping part of the night, something which was impossible to do on our innerspring beds. I don't know why we are doing this, but it just happens. <BR><BR>For now, neither of us is awakening unusually stiff or sore. My hubby feels his stiffness upon arising has lessened. So the configuration seems to be about right for now. I do think we each need to try the firmer configurations before making final decision & glad we can do this with the split layers! Hi Catlover - that's awesome to hear that you guys have been doing some stomach-sleeping without any regrets in the AM! I miss sleeping on my stomach, as odd as that sounds... :) I will try to email you the directions on how to post an image just by typing, and I'll explain it as simply as you need me to! No worries there! I've had to explain stuff to my poor confused Mom and Aunt so lots of experience there! ;) Again, I know I've said it before, but just want you all to know how much I value your advice and opinions, especially those of you who untiringly and patiently explain stuff and offer your experiences time and again to those of us who are somewhat new to all this! Thank you! |
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I think Savvy Rest charges shipping both ways (as opposed to only 1-way like FloBeds does) AND, they don't vacuum pack the latex, so boxes are twice as large. Also dunlap is a bit heavier than talalay (the natural in each type; don't know anything about the blended). Hence the higher shipping charges. I have slept on both all natural dunlap and talalay (however not a bed with both), and they do feel quite different (even if ILDs are the same). Unfortunately I did not have 2 beds side by side to try when I was researching, nor were my past dunlap mattresses comparable in depth or ocnfiguration to my current talalay one. And except for my last bed, which was very thin dunlap, the others, albeit much thicker, were literally decades ago (eg: I had a Sears dunlap mattress through childhood, and then another dunlap one, don't know what brand, as a young adult!). I liked them all and they lasted ages, except that my last one was way too firm and there wasn't nearly a sufficient amount of latex for my current needs. After much research and deliberation I chose FloBeds, the primary deciding factor being their return policy.... it was a lot of money for me, and although I knew I wanted some kind of latex, I wanted the "safety insurance" of not losing everything if it didn't work out, as my last 2 beds I bought "untried" and with no return policy. First of these, 15 years ago, was a 2-layer organic futon--a disaster for my back, and a big loss. Second was the one with latex and wool layers which I slept on for many years, but during the last few, it was quite uncomfortable for me because of it's firmness and thin layers (not because of any indentations or deterioration of the latex or wool topper), and the last several months I was waking up literally every few minutes with severe nerve pain (some serious health problems have gotten much worse over the years, and I now need a much softer bed but still with very good support). I should say I was only in the market for a latex "all-natural" bed, meaning the 100%natural, not blended, latex with an organic cotton and wool cover and no added fire retardants. This limited my choices to begin with. I got samples from 4 places (FloBeds, Savvyrest, SleepEZ, and Habitat) and also tried out the two brands of latex beds available locally (not SavvyRest as there weren't any). I ended up ruling out Habitat because it turned out their cover is not organic and they use silica (non-toxic as far as fire retardants go, but not for me). I also called a couple of independent out-of-state Savvy retailers (who also sold other "natural" beds), and would have loved to have been able to go and directly compare talalay and dunlap beds with a similar configuration, but it turned out not to be possible due to the distance involved. I should say that all the people I talked to were quite nice and none were pushy at all in terms of trying to sell me their product (another good reason to go with the independent companies, not the big store, big-name brands). They were all helpful, some extremely so (although, because of all the research I had already done, I ended up knowing more than the two local retailers, but they did contact their manufacturers to get additional info I asked for). And most were very patient with all the questions I asked! I wish I could have taken what I found best/ideal (in terms of my particular needs) from different places. But of course that wasn't possible, and as I said, for various reasons, I ended up going with FloBeds. Dave has been excellent to work with, helpful and trustworthy. Obviously he's in the market to sell his beds, but in my experience, is clearly very committed to making sure someone gets what's best for him/her, and doing all he can to facilitate that. So truly exemplary customer service, and I would highly recommend them. |
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Hi Linda! I enjoyed reading your comments and hearing of your personal experience with sleeping on one of the old Sears dunlop mattresses! Your points about Savvy's shipping were well expressed and make sense. I'd forgotten that dunlop weighs more than Talalay, and if they are charging both ways, then $86 for a twin xl makes sense! Yes, Savvy doesn't compress their latex, so boxes are larger too. Perfect logic all around - you go girl! While I sure understand the concern about Savvy's "no returns - exchanges only" policy, the reason I went with them is that I was 100% certain that we wanted latex, and knowing that they offer both Talalay and Dunlop (both 100% natural), almost made it impossible for us to go with anyone else.... I knew I wouldn't be returning, and had the option to go to Talalay if the Dunlop proved to be too firm, but that didn't happen. I'm so happy to keep reading of other's buying experiences. (FloBeds & Savvy must love all of us! LOL) ...but most important is to offer candid comments to those still undecided & still researching! What ILD configuration is your Flobed? Did you do a split if a queen or king? And how are you sleeping since the purchase? |