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When you decide to purchase a down comforter you are selecting the
warmest, most luxurious and comfortable way to sleep. Possibly you want
to be warmer in bed, feel luxurious or just sleep better. There are a
lot of down comforters out there, many without any real information for
the consumer to make an educated purchase. Considering you spend 1/3 of
your life in bed you should consider buying a high quality down
comforter from a down bedding specialist, otherwise you will be
replacing your down comforter every 3 or 4 years, and you will not be
able to use it year-round. Choose a high quality goose down comforter
from a down specialist and you will enjoy it year-round for many years,
plus if they offer cleaning and renovation services, you will have it
for life.
Here is what you really need to know:
1) All down
is not created equal. Goose down is better than duck down. Down from
mature geese that live in cold climates produce larger down clusters
that trap more body heat keeping you warmer as well as lofting up to
produce a comforter that is puffy without weight. Fill-power is the
measurement of a down cluster's ability to loft up after compression.
650 fill-power and up is considered luxury quality. The higher the
fill-power the greater the thermal properties and the puffier the
comforter. There is also cluster count to consider. This is the
percentage of whole down clusters as opposed to pieces of broken down
known as "fly". Canadian White Goose Down is considered to be the
finest white goose down in the world. Siberian, Hungarian and Polish
white goose downs are premium qualities and the very rare Eiderdown,
the ultimate in softness and warmth without weight is the best down in
the world.
2) Down will eventually "leak" out of anything other
than a cotton cambric downproof fabric. What makes the long staple
Egyptian cotton fabric downproof is not just a high threadcount but
callendering. This is a natural process of compressing the fabric
between giant steel rollers to fill in spaces invisible to the eye. The
best cambric cotton downproof fabric comes from Germany or Switzerland.
Many of the cambrics are made with a sateen finish. They are very
soft,durable and breathable. Threadcounts over 300 are best and will
remain downproof for 10-15 years. For Eiderdown the best ticking is
Swiss Batiste the lightest of all downproof cambric cottons with the
highest threadcount, sateen finish and a silky soft touch, woven
specifically for Eiderdown the softest down in the world.
3)
Comforters come in open stitch (Karo-Step and Ring Stitch) where the
filling can move, closed stitch (baffle box, sew-thru box stitches)
fixing the filling into one small box, and the Baffle Channel Tri-Wall
construction, a channel stitch with a triangular baffle wall to prevent
unwanted shifting. The channel tri-wall, the ultimate couple friendly
comforter style, is very beneficial as it allows the filling to be
adjusted on one side for truly individual comfort. This is especially
useful in summer, or when one person is a warmer sleeper than the
other. Baffles prevent cold spots and allow premium downs to loft up to
their full potential. Less filling is required in a sew-thru stitch,
making these comforters better for summer or very warm bedrooms.
4)The
temperature of your bedroom will determine the best comforter for you.
Look for a year-round goose down or Eiderdown comforter. Most high
quality goose down or Eiderdown comforters are year-round for bedrooms
60 - 72 degrees.
Lisa Stevens is a Comfort
Specialist at The Down Store. Since 1973 she has been offering her
expertise in the selection and care of luxury down bedding. Look
for future articles on down comforter care, choosing the right down
pillow, featherbeds & down beds and luxury mattresses and more.
1-800-USA-DOWN.
http://www.thedownstore.com |
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