We’ve needed new beds, both for us and the kids, for quite a while, but couldn’t get it together for a variety of reasons. My list of requirements for beds and bedding has grown significantly and I couldn’t find anything up to scratch. Standard mattresses leach chemicals into the air and we breathe it in. They are also ultra thick and padded and don’t reflect traditional sleeping surfaces. Pillows and padded mattresses limit the movement of our bodies through the night. I wanted mattresses and bed frames that were chemical free and that were at least somewhat more minimal than traditional mattresses. 
I only found three companies in Australia that offered this kind of mattresses and beds: The Natural Bedding Co., Blessed Earth and Organature. The Natural Bedding company is based in Sydney and makes mattresses which are quite similar in size and feel to a regular mattress, but which are made from natural materials. There’s a furniture shop in Melbourne, Southwood, that stocks some of the mattresses so we went and checked those out. They were comfortable mattresses, but quite pricey and thicker than what I was hoping for, so we continued our search to Phillip Island where Organature is located.
I was super excited about visiting their shop (a bit weird I know, but when I find a whole shop that agreees with my philosophy in a manner of speaking it’s a happy day!). We really liked the bed frames, particularly the kids bunks. I loved that the beds are all made from local wood with minimal glue. The only sticking point was the mattresses. Organature make two types: innerspring, which we weren’t keen on, and organic cotton futons, which were super firm. I was worried that we weren’t ready for that level of naturalness yet!
My favourite shop was Blessed Earth which we couldn’t visit, but they make organic wool futons. If money wasn’t an issue I would have gotten their futons and Organature bed bases, but alas we couldn’t justify spending over $3000 on our mattress. Instead we opted for what I hope will be the best of both worlds – our bed bases, organic cotton futons and a bed side table from Organature and our bedding and super wool mattress toppers from Blessed Earth.
The mattresses are firm, but I’m adapting and the kids haven’t noticed or been bothered at all. And the bedding is amazing. I recommend getting some sheets from Blessed Earth even if you don’t get anything else, they are blissful to sleep on! The best bit of all is the lovely feeling I have going to bed knowing that we are all sleeping on clean, healthy surfaces that are good for us and good for the planet. We added salt lamps and plants and now love our sleeping areas.
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