General Question

gailcalled's avatar

Can you suggest a high-quality down comforter for a cold bedroom?

Asked by gailcalled (53635 points ) December 16th, 2013

My 15-year old comforter is a fabric sandwich now, with almost no goose down feathers left. They have escaped through the fabric over the years. (I thougth the fluff floating around the room was Milo shedding but I was wrong.) I want to buy a high-quality, well-baffled one that will stay plump and won’t shift.The reviews of the obvious sources (Company Store, Garnet Hill, LL Bean) are all mixed. What’s your experiece been? I am treating this like a long-term investment.

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17 Answers

Pachy's avatar

I love sleeping under a duvet, a habit I acquired in England. It’s incredibly warm, and since it’s basically a comforter enclosed in a sheet, it makes bed-making a snap.

gailcalled's avatar

Sorry, @Pachyderm_In_The_Room , I wasnt’ clear enough. I have already decided that the duvet (or down comforter) is what I want. I need specific manufactureres and model numbers now.

A friend just suggested that a comforter stuffed w.unprocessed wool is better for one’s health (no dust mites that do live in down) so that is yet another research project.

Pachy's avatar

Ah—sorry, @gailcalled. Mine is goose down-filled and was purchased from Macy’s. I haven’t noticed any shedding, but it’s definitely not plump.

Coloma's avatar

Gail! No down!
You can find many synthetic substitutes that don’t contain the remains of fois gras feather byproducts. Save the geese, go synthetic! :-(

glacial's avatar

I know you’re asking for down, but as a blanket lover, I can’t resist chiming in. Sorry!

I use layers of wool blankets and throws – keeps me toasty warm in my unheated apartment, and I can add or remove layers depending on how warm I want to be on a given night. I can also change up the one on top if I feel like a different look.

Hawaii_Jake's avatar

I worked for Japan’s largest manufacturer of goose down comforters for 6 years. I have slept under a goose down comforter for the past 20 years, and I would not sleep under anything else. I will in the next days begin searching for a good goose down comforter for you on the Internet.

Hawaii_Jake's avatar

This offering of the highest quality goose down comforters will give you an assortment to choose from. The comforters are priced according to the quality of the fabric shell and the fill power of the down. The higher the quality of each component makes the differences in the prices you see.

I personally would not choose less than what they call the Vienna Comforter due to the 750 fill power down and the 350 thread count down proof fabric.

I would not recommend the summer weight comforter. It will not offer enough insulation to use during cold nights. If you choose the year round weight, you can augment the warmth in the coldest months by putting a blanket over the top of the goose down comforter. You want the goose down comforter close to your body for the best use of its insulating properties. Finally, if you don’t mind putting the comforter away for a portion of the year, then I recommend the winter weight one. With a winter weight comforter, you will not need any blankets at all during the coldest nights.

When I lived on the mainland where there were very cold nights, I had two comforters. I had a year round weight one and a winter weight one. When the temperatures dipped below freezing, I pulled out the winter weight one, I turned my thermostat extremely low, and I was toasty warm under my comforter.

My comforters now reside at my parents’ house and get used where they are needed most. They are 20 years old, and they are still as plump and warm as when they were new. They were very expensive at retail price, but I worked for the manufacturer and paid very little of their true value. The retail price of the winter weight queen sized comforter was over $3000. It is worth every penny.

Here in Hawaii, I still sleep under a goose down comforter all year round. It is thin, and I cover it with a blanket on our colder nights. We have no heating nor air conditioning.

fluthernutter's avatar

We bought ours from Billerbeck and Warm Things.

The Billerbeck eiderdown is awesome. Yes, awesome. When you awake from its fluffy embrace, you are filled with awe.

The one from Warm Things is nice and fluffy, but can’t really compare.

gailcalled's avatar

I am rethinking down, partially because it requires killing lots of geese and partially because the down traps dust mites and other allergens.

I am now leaning towards a wool comforter and particularly this one. I do know that many of Dr. Mercola’s products are suspect, but he does make a convincing argument here. It is heavier than down, I see. Turn the sound off.

Plus, his wool is not harvested in China but in the US.

glacial's avatar

@gailcalled Curious – why do you say their products are “suspect”? I wonder because some parts of the sales pitch sounded a little bogus to me. Which may have nothing to do with whether it’s the best comforter for you.

gailcalled's avatar

if you google Dr. Mercola, there are a lot of complaints about his vitamins, herbs, supplements oils and elixers, plus complaints from patients in his medical practices.

Which part of the pitch sounded bogus?

glacial's avatar

@gailcalled Nothing serious, just things that could as easily be down to bad writing. Starting by saying “Millions of Americans simply aren’t getting enough sleep.” makes me roll my eyes. And then stating that “down is known to provide one of the favorite habitats of bed bugs.” Well, for all I know, wool is another of their favourite habitats – they’ve said nothing to the contrary. I’m always more wary when I read things written in this sort of style.

But, as I said earlier, wool is my choice as well. I don’t see anything here to suggest that it’s a bad product.

gailcalled's avatar

@glacial: There are more neutral sites (like the allergy sufferers) that confirm that wool is a much better choice than down for most of the reasons that Mercola lists. I would probably not purchase anything from him, either, but his research seems to be sound, at least about dust mites.

fluthernutter's avatar

Our pillows are from Pacific Coast. Also a nice product.

Johnath5's avatar

I am using “Camouflage” style bedding and it can be quite good for you too. I am not sure for specific place where you can find it.

gailcalled's avatar

What do you mean by “camouflage” style bedding (and what do you mean when you say it can be quite good for you)?

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