Hello to you in VT!
My family was facing the same problem and after 6 months of researching and saving up, here's the solution we arrived at...
Basically all natural mattresses are some layered variation of wool/latex/cotton. I knew i wanted to avoid cotton to cut down on dust mite allergens, so i started looking into ways to build my own layers of wool & latex.
many companies sell mattress "toppers" that range from 1- 3 inches thick. most complete mattresses are 5-8 inches thick, so i thought i could just layer the toppers, which is amazingly less expensive! the only difference is that they're not all united by a case, but thats no big deal.
here's what we've purchased:
this is a 2" natural latex pad. it is incredibly cushy! we love it so much and after much research found this was the best price and seemed to be a reliable source of non-chemi laced "green" latex. $225
http://cgi.ebay.com/2-KING-ErgoSoft-...QQcmdZViewItem
Then we bought this 3" wool topper: $225
http://cgi.ebay.com/HEALTHY-KING-3-W...QQcmdZViewItem
it is handmade by a nice man in NY from Amish grown wool. He makes really beautiful products and his prices are so reasonable. I was expecting this layer to be cushy also, but really feels more like a firm-ish futon, which is great, but not what i had planned for.
So we put the wool layer on the bottom because we loved the squishy support feeling of the latex on top, and then put a wool filled comforter on the very top so that we still have wool right next to our body for temperature regulation.
We have a slotted wooden futon frame and unfortunately we can feel the slats, though not terribly, just slightly. So we're working on a solution to that issue now. We're thinking that we'd like another layer of latex to make it even thicker and are wondering if we should've bought the 3" version instead of the 2", which we were previously debating.
Really I think someone would be very happy sleepy on latex all by itself, with a simple wool mattress pad over it. We love our wool futon layer but the consistency of the latex is so comfy that we almost wish we had just gotten 2 of the 3" layers.
So we spend a total of $550 on a bed that easily could've cost well over $1000!
I have to say also, that the emotional comfort of knowing that we are all sleeping on a natural bed is priceless!
I hope this was helpful, I am happy to pass along our research! I'm hoping to spread the word!
:
: All I want is for my family to be safe and healthy....why does it seem like that is A LOT to ask for these days.
