sleeping

There are times when you thrift that you might have to make a difficult decision to buy something. Last Saturday I arrived home from a Coscto run and popped on the computer to quickly check my email and Craigslist. I did a search for our local community and my eyes immediately saw a post for a natural latex queen mattress. I have been looking for one of these for the last 2 years and quickly grabbed the phone and called. I didn't even think about the fact that I hate to make phone calls to strangers. I knew that I had to have this bed. Part of being a good thrifter is the skill to be quick to the draw and being persistent.

 When we moved from England to Herndon, Virginia I immediately went out and started thrifting. We had such a tiny house in England and all the sudden we had a 5 bedroom, split level house. It had uneven walls and was poorly built but it was massive compared to our little home that we left in the UK. I now had the chance to fill it. I came across the most amazing King size bed by Natura. It was $500 but to me that was only 250 pounds since I was still mentally on British money. And the fact that I laid down on it and fell in love with it immediately helped my quick decision to buy it. It nestled my body perfectly and I didn't want to get up, despite the fact that the person selling the bed was watching me questioningly. I had never experienced a latex mattress before and the Natura is one of the best. The one we had was a mix of wool and cotton and natural latex. A lovely cocktail for someone who likes to stick close to natural as possible. We bought it and loved that mattress until we moved into our tiny little 1927 home, with it's little tiny rooms that couldn't possibly take a huge King size mattress. We gave the bed to my parents and my perfect night's sleep were not as perfect any more.

That was until last Sunday. Dave and I went to look at the mattress on Saturday night. The woman selling had it on the floor and we had to awkwardly try it out in her dining room. It didn't feel the same. Dh kept asking me in his caveman protective way about what to do about the lack of a box spring. It didn't come with one and we certainly didn't have one hanging around the house. I told him not to worry about that, I would find one. I just wanted to see if the bed was comfy. We left undecided and told the seller that we would think quickly about it. She had two other people interested.

The children seemed to fight all the way home (1/2 mile) and we couldn't even discuss the mattress. I went to my computer where it was quiet and looked up the brand of the mattress. It was an Englander and she was asking $300 for it. It seemed like so much money, especially because she bought it new for around $1,000. I don't know about you but I love to pay maybe a 10th of the original price. Paying a 1/3 seemed like almost breaking a thrift rule. I looked at Natura and saw that their queen was around $2,000. I've been sleeping miserably on a nice thrifted mattress but nothing like the latex/memory foam feel. I could easily go out and buy a memory foam but they are chocked full of chemicals and could off-gas for years. I think the Natura is the higher quality mattress so in my head I compared the $300 price tag vs the $2000 price tag for new. I also considered the fact that it is so incredibly rare to find one of these 2nd hand. The reason the woman was selling the mattress is that she found it too firm. The fact that she lived so close to me was icing on the cake. I found one other mattress for sale about six months ago in Seattle. The seller wanted $900 for the set. I passed with hope that I would find one cheaper and closer.

I called the seller and told her that I wanted the mattress. She offered to deliver it the next day since we lived so close. That's what I call great thrift customer service. Next I went on the computer and sent an email to all my local lists looking for a Queen box spring. I had one within the hour, ironically from someone we knew. Dave picked it up on Sunday and by Sunday evening I threw together our make-shift bed.

 

Now all I need is a proper bed frame to go with it. But my sleep was incredible and funny enough in our own home perhaps without people watching us it was as soft and mold-able as our last Natura mattress. Now my only problem is forcing myself to get out of bed in the morning to start the day.

Comments

[Betts]

The perfect mattress makes all the difference. We suffered with a water bed for years... including a periodic leak, but finally, we broke down and bought a firmer mattress. Five years later, we still love it. Like you, we don't have a nice frame yet. I want something romantic looking.

[Christine]

Congrats on your find! Quick and decisive too. Did you get anything off the price? I would be on the fence about the $300 vs $1000 new also. We've been looking for new mattresses too the last couple of months, funny enough also the latex/memory foam ones. Right now we are considering IKEA. Husband doesn't want secondhand.
By the way, why do you need a bedframe? We don't have one ( we have this bed: http://www.auping.nl/en/ourcollection/beds/aupingauronde.html ) and I like how it looks. Matter of taste I suppose. :-)

Christine

PS: in answer to your question in the email, no I don't drink a lot of water. Is your star sign Virgo perhaps? All the Virgos I know are huge drinkers (I don't mean alcohol). :-)

[Amy Zimmer]

Great to see you! I peeked with trying to have no expectations you'd be there and then wha-la you were and you made my Obama happy day more happiful. Amy

[Tammie]

im beyond jealous.
i need a new mattress.
everytime we go to macys my husband and i cannot resist laying on the fancy $3000 ones and making silly jokes about stealing one.

[carolyn]

I want one too!

[Denise]

Nothing like a good night's sleep on a comfy mattress!

[mama nurture]

Oh, your bed looks so cozy (and sounds so comfortable). Can I ask where you got those pillowcases? I have seen that fabric in a few places and have never been able to track it down. Thanks!

[Deanna]

Selena, thanks for this post. My husband has been having some back issues and sadly, we just purchased an expensive mattress and box spring set last year. Now he is looking into that Numbers mattress that Lindsay Wagner pushes. I choke when I see the prices for each set and I really don't want another one..yet. I am going to go check on this mattress you purchased. I had never heard of it. He's still at work so I'm going to call him right now so he can google it.

Deanna :)

[Deanna]

Selena, thanks for this post. My husband has been having some back issues and sadly, we just purchased an expensive mattress and box spring set last year. Now he is looking into that Numbers mattress that Lindsay Wagner pushes. I choke when I see the prices for each set and I really don't want another one..yet. I am going to go check on this mattress you purchased. I had never heard of it. He's still at work so I'm going to call him right now so he can google it.

Deanna :)

[Apryl]

we need a new mattress.. the trouble is our bed is from ikea so only an ikea mattress will fit it.. its on the list of things we need but cant afford at the moment... my parents got a lovely 1930's bedroom set, bed frame, side tables and chest of drawers for something rediculous like $50-$100 from the aution house in Santa Rosa.. no one wanted it so my dad scooped it up for rock bottom price.

I did see something in a interiors magazine where they hung an old door up as a headboard and it looked lovely and romantic... M wasn't impressed but I do like a bit of rustic decor..

will e-mail soon with dates and things for our trip to Seattle in April... oh and posted a picture of my crafty space on my blog if you want to snoop. *g*

[Blue Castle]

What a good deal! I wonder if I could find this kind of mattress around here. I'll have to check around. It sounds so wonderful. :)

[chelsea]

Ohh you are lucky! What a great find... and so close to home. We have a mmory foam bed, I didn't know they are fullof chemicals :( It's so comfy though...

[Puanani]

That really is a good deal! Sleep well...

[mandi]

YOU ARE A GENIUS! i've never thought to look on craigslist for a natural mattress- but i've been pining for one. that's it, one more thing to add to my craigslist wishlist!

congratulations!

[sandy]

i think Natura needs to advertise on your blog - since you did such a nice little write-up :) we need a new bed, really we do. i like your approach and how you figured it all out. we try to use the 1/10th rule of thrift too.

happy day selena! your new bed looks so comfy!

[donna]

Just love thrifting but in our area we have a massive problem with bed bugs over the last few years always do a careful check of any upholstered furniture/suitcases as defumegation is very expensive and you want to talk about chemicals

[Kirby]

Yay another Thrifting blog, - great post, i need a new bed too :( i miss sleep

[Jessica T.]

I have a 100% natural latex mattress and it was about $1200 (plus box spring). The Natura one you mention must be different though and have something other than latex, because ours is super soft! Too soft almost. If I sit on it, it feels way to soft, but once I lay down and the weight is distributed it is fine.

Some day I hope to be able to afford an organic mattress that is a combination of natural latex and other materials such as organic wool.

[Sylvie]

We got our 100% Natural Rubber mattresses on Ebay from a guy who was just starting his business so he was offering very competitive prices. We got a full for $300 and a twin for $200; delivery was an additional $100. And they came covered in Organic cotton. Such a deal! The lowest price now on Ebay is $1,700. Yikes!
It's one of the best purchases I've ever made. Like you said, it's hard to get out of bed in the morn. And I will say that for the first few weeks after arrival they had a heavenly scent, like some sort of pastry. Yum :)
I love your lamp!

[Julia Rosien]

What an awesome review for Natura! Thank you so much!

I'm the communications gal for Natura and it always makes me happy to see someone who loves our products so much they feel the need to write about it.

IF I can answer any questions about the natural, green and organic qualities of our mattresses, don't hesitate to contact me.

Julia

[Jennifer]

Funny, I was just talking about how my back used to kill me, I felt crippled everyday. We got a European Sleep works natural foam mattress about 3 yrs ago and I have not had any pain since! I was freaked out about sleeping on chemicles too. Now if I could just get to sleep earlier it would all be perfect!!