Having the right environment is paramount for a good night’s sleep. Your bedding plays a huge part in this, from your mattress to your sheets, pillows and duvets. Since we spend almost a third of our life in bed, it’s important to get the best quality bedding we can afford. And, due to lifestyle and ethical decisions, many people are now choosing organic and natural bedding as the way forward. So, what are the benefits of natural bedding? And what should you be aware of?

When we talk about Natural Bedding here at the Linen Cupboard we are on about Feathered Fillings and 100% cotton bedding. 

It regulates your body temperature - Unlike synthetic materials that can make you too hot or not warm you up enough, natural materials are fantastic body temperature regulators. Keeping you cool in the summer and warm in the winter, natural bedding allows for a comfortable sleep. These materials also work to wick moisture away from the body, rather than sticking to the body as synthetic materials can. Cotton is a pure, natural material, and this means that when woven into a bedding set it makes the fabric breathable. Every night your body temperature changes as you fall asleep. This often results in waking up hot, sticky, and desperate for some cool air. Brilliantly, cotton will absorb the heat from your body throughout the night, allowing you to stay cool and dry (studies show we sweat a pint of perspiration each night – yuk!).

As well as keeping you cool in the summer, cotton bedding will keep you warm throughout winter by absorbing and retaining your body heat. If you’re sleeping in man-made materials, like polyester, they’ll absorb your body heat, rather than naturally ventilating, so the fabric will retain your heat, and you’ll struggle to cool down.

It’s better for the environment - It’s usually a rule that things that come from nature can be returned to nature. Because of this, natural fabrics are bio-degradable meaning they won’t leave harmful substances behind once they’re finished with. Natural fabrics can also be recycled. Much better than ending up on landfill!

Ethical - Down is a by-product. The Down used in our bedding is a by-product of raising geese and ducks for the food industry. For the farmer, the value of the down is only around 5% and 95% of the value is the meat. Even if bedding manufacturers stopped using down today, goose and duck farming would continue, but the down and feathers would probably just end up as waste. Instead, the feather and down is cleaned, sanitized and recycled into bedding.

It’s widely available - Due to its popularity for all the reasons we’ve mentioned above, natural bedding, beds and mattresses are easy to find from most good bed retailers. This means you don’t have to go hunting around stores or trawling sites to find a good quality bed product made from natural materials. And this doesn’t have to be limited to bedding alone. Natural wood and leather used in furniture has all the same benefits of natural bedding. Create a rustic haven for yourself with one of this year’s biggest interior design trends.