I have a strange habit that many find odd: I enjoy sleeping on bare carpet. Something about how unconvetional it is, or maybe the firmness it offers. It could also be because when I lived in Africa, my bedding wasn't any better and my body acclimated to such conditions. In any case, it is not rare to find me happily passed out on my home office carpet. I often joke that if my wife were to send me to the dog house, she wouldn't have many options -- the couch is an upgrade from the carpet.
So for a long time I did not care about our bedding until she began complaining of back pain and uncomfortable sleep. The bedding we have is over 10 years old, from my late teens. Although I bought the mattress new back then, the rest of the bedding was concocted from throw-aways. About time we considered something more suitable for this stage of life.
Bedding is not cheap and the array of choices is dizzying! I honestly do not perceive the difference in sleep quality between a
$900 and a $2500 mattress. Especially that it is recommended to change bedding every 5-7 years, you need not break the bank. So the first thing is deciding how much you want to spend. Other choices:
spring vs. foam, adjustable or
not,
pillow-top or none,
firm or plush,
queen or king size,
bedframe or platform, and whether you get the
bed set or just the mattress. Most stores charge for delivery and a disposal fee if you want them to discard your old crap. You should ensure a manufacturer warranty of 7-10 years and a generous return policy if it so happens that your new mattress doesn't live up to expectations. I know the brand we got has a lot of negative reviews, so there might be occasion for return. We got both a bed set and frame for under $1000, delivered, from
American Furniture Warehouse, which has a back-to-school sale this weekend. Other smaller stores had good choices too, but markedly more expensive than the package we got at American Furniture.
