Millbrook Mattress

After a month off testing beds, I’ve decided to dive straight back into work. I wandered out into our warehouse yesterday (Monday is Millbrook delivery day here at Bedstar) and grabbed a brand spanking new Millbrook Paris Divan bed. I won’t be getting it delivered home for the next couple of days but that hasn’t stopped me reviewing its finer features.

The Paris divan set is a non-turn mattress, so all that needs to be done is to rotate the mattress. This is definitely a plus. It’s 2009 and we have more important things to remember than turning a mattress!

The Millbrook Paris divan offers the best night’s sleep ever experienced (according to Millbrook. I’ll reserve judgement until I’ve actually slept on it).

With 1700 individually hand nested pocket springs (king size) and a contemporary cream fabric, a valance is optional allowing easy access to the storage drawers (this is very clever. Admit it; every time you open a drawer in a divan bed the valance gets stuck).

Lambswool layers are used in the construction for breathable, natural fillings, also aired by smart chrome ventilator’s. Personally this means nothing to me, but there’s something about lying on this bed that immediately tells you you’re in the presence of a very well-crafted piece of furniture.

Technical information:

MATTRESS

• 1700 individually hand nested pocket springs in 5’0 size

BORDER

• 3 rows of side stitched borders secured to spring unit
• 8 upholstered flag stitched handles
• 16 chrome ventilators

UPHOLSTERY (sleeping surface)

• Hypo allergenic interliner
• Luxurious layers of resilient cotton and polyester
• Layer of resilient polyester
• Layer of soft lambswool
• Tufted with adhesive felt washers
• Quality double knit fabric

UPHOLSTERY(non sleeping surface)

• Hypo allergenic interliner
• Luxurious layer of resilient polyester
• Tufted with nylon washers

BASE

• 12” fully sprung edge zonal unit
• Hypo allergenic insulator
• Pine frame with load bearing joints glued and screwed for added strength
• Polyester interlining between timber and cover
• Solid hardwood corner blocks with castors set into end grain
• Easy-glide chromed Twin wheel locking castors
• Protective mini ‘roll edge’ divan trim
• All doubles split as standard with chrome side linking bars
• Improved ‘finger touch’ headboard fittings

Overall I’d say that, like most other Millbrook beds, the Paris will make you happy. Priced competitively and very comfortable (note: it’s firm), I don’t think you can go wrong.

According to the Met office, the summer of 2009 is going to be one of the hottest on record. This is partly because of the ever impending doom and gloom of global warming, and partly because we had such a cold winter.

As overheating is one of the major contributors to a bad night’s sleep, you need to make sure you keep cool through the summer heat. Here are a few pointers to stop you getting too hot in bed:

• Lighten your load. We all like the idea of being snuggled up in a heavy duvet or blanket in the middle of winter, but in summer it’s just not necessary. Replace your winter duvet with a lighter summer one, or simply lie under a sheet to keep cool.
• Get some fresh air. See those things on the wall called windows? Try opening one slightly when you go to bed. A summer breeze will really help to keep you cool and comfortable. Try and keep the breeze from blowing directly on to you in bed though.
• Waste some water. If like me, you’re on a fixed monthly fee for water because Yorkshire water can’t be bothered to install a water meter on your house (excuse the rant), try taking a cool shower before going to bed. This refreshing approach will leave you feeling very comfortable.
• Use a hot water bottle. This may seem like a strange idea, but nobody said hot water bottles had to be used only for hot water. Fill a hot water bottle with ice cold water and place it in your bed.
• Spend some time apart. Try sleeping further away from your partner. Body heat from another person is not going to help keep you cool, so moving apart by a few inches will help cool you down.

In amongst overseas visitors and a very busy week at work, I agreed to test the Millbrook Utopia last week. I actually had a devious plan to let my visiting uncle test the bed and give me an impartial review.

Not only would this be a brilliant way to gather information about yet another bed, we were a bed short for the week, and this sorted the problem out.

Unfortunately all didn’t quite go to plan, because all I got out of him was ‘very comfortable’ and ‘I slept well’ – the man is clearly not known for his bed reviewing abilities.

The moral of the story here is that I didn’t actually get to write an impartial review of the bed. I have a rule that unless I’ve slept on a bed I can’t review it. So instead, I’ll give you the facts:

Mattress

• The Utopia is a pocket sprung mattress from the Millbrook Impressions range.
• It contains 1400 individually nested pocket springs. This means you are going to get a medium tension feel (for a firmer feel you should be looking for a mattress with upwards of 1800 pocket springs).
• The Utopia’s fillings are natural white fibres and soft foam.
• The mattress is topped with a generous layer of memory foam. The memory foam layer comes in the form of a pillow top, which really adds to the luxury feel of the mattress.
• Everyone seems to be offering a non-turn mattress these days, and the Utopia is no different.
• The mattress sides have 3 rows of hand stitched borders to provide additional support across the mattress.
• As with all Millbrook’s mattresses the Utopia can be used either with its associated divan base, or with a sprung slatted bedstead.

Divan/base

• The base supplied as standard with the Utopia is a sprung edge unit with different spring tensions across the pressure point zones.
• The usual choice of storage options is available, including a 2-drawer and 4-drawer unit.

Sizes/pricing

Taking a look at the Bedstar website, the Utopia is available in the following sizes and pricing structure:

• 3FT single divan and mattress – £535
• 4FT6 double divan and mattress – £670
• 5FT kingsize divan and mattress – £730
• 6FT superking divan and mattress – £880

So, while my uncle Ian was completely rubbish as a bed reviewer, he did seem to enjoy his stay and certainly didn’t have anything bad to say about the Millbrook Utopia.

With the high specification of the product I would have been very surprised if he had complained.