This post was sponsored by Grassroots. I was not paid, but given pillows to review.
A couple of months ago, during a day trip to Toronto, I went to the Grassroots Store on Danforth.
First of all, that store is like Candyland for anyone interested in eco-conscious and eco-friendly products! They have so many items to make your daily life easy, but in a non-toxic/eco-friendly way. From water-powered alarm clocks to recycled cards and paper, to salvaged wood turned into amazing cutting boards. You can even purchase non-toxic cleaning products in bulk (bring your own container) and bath and shower filters (so that you bathe in water and not chlorine). They have a selection of clothes made out of organic cotton and recycled fabrics, as well as an extensive collection for every one of baby’s needs! Organic cotton diapers and clothes, non-toxic toys, clothes, etc. (to read more about the many health and environmental benefits of using organic cotton, click here)
And then… they have non-toxic mattresses made with fair-trade natural rubber, organic cotton and organic wool that come from sheep raised on cruelty-free farms.
That’s right. You read all that right!
I was curious to try out GrassRoots’ organic mattresses that they have in store. Ever since I read (10 years ago) about all the toxic chemicals that are sprayed on mattresses on top of the chemicals already contained in the materials themselves, I’ve been dreaming of owning a non-toxic/organic mattress one day! Modern mattresses are made with foam and synthetic fabrics derived from petroleum-based chemicals, and they off-gas VOCs continuously every time we sleep on them. In some countries, an additional toxic flame-retardant is also sprayed on top of that. Some studies have even shown a possible link between crib mattresses and SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome). They are also difficult to dispose of, are not biodegradable, and end-up polluting landfills. I’m not sure about you, but after reading about all that, I didn’t find my bed as appealing as before! haha
So, we tried them, and they felt the same as our pillow-top mattress at home (that’s a good thing). It’s basically a 6″ mattress made out of natural rubber surrounded by wool and cotton (organic). Then you can choose the “pillow-top” part, from 1″ to 4″, which is a layer of natural rubber surrounded by a thick layer of wool and covered with cotton. This adds a luxurious layer on top for comfort, but untreated wool is also naturally mite- and flame-retardant, so no worries about that. The boxspring is made of untreated wood (no composite or plywood, or treated wood), and of course, covered with a bit of wool and organic cotton.
These mattress sets are not cheap, but just like everything of high quality, you get what you pay for. They are handmade in Canada by experienced craftsmen, come with a comprehensive warranty of 20 years, but the mattress has a life expectancy of 25-30 years.
GrassRoots has a special on the mattresses once a year, usually in January/February, and since our mattress was nearing the end of its life, we took advantage of it and bought a set! As I said, this was 10-11 years in the making, so we are thrilled about it!
Once we narrowed which model we wanted, the ordering was fairly easy, and I got in touch with the manager of the store while I was there and they agreed to give me 2 free pillows to review on the blog, with my purchase. It was supposed to take 4-6 weeks, but 2-3 weeks later, it was already in our bedroom! I was expecting it to be heavy and bulky, and hard to move, but as it turns out, it came as one box for the spring-box, and 2 wrapped plastic packages: one for the mattress and one for the topper. They were basically suctioned-wrapped super tight. It is heavy, but no heavier than a regular mattress, and since the topper is separate, it was really convenient.
So, we installed it right away and let it air out with the windows open for the whole day (the rubber smell is not super strong, but it’s still recommend to air it out). We then put our fresh organic cotton sheets and comforter on top, with organic pillows, and got ready to have a good night sleep.
I will review the mattress and pillows in the next couple of weeks, stay tuned! 🙂
ECP xo
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