Disclaimer: I don’t normally write product reviews, but, due to funny circumstances described below, I’m writing one today. The product? A complimentary Naturepedic mattress I received. And thus begins my true tale.

Do good things come in a box?

Ummm – past experiences suggest not.  I tried wine in a box—not too good.  I tried a memory foam bed topper in a box—horrible.  So when a manufacturer contacted me about their organic bed-in-a-box, I was a little skeptical.

So how did I get to this point? Well, here’s the backstory.

The Funny Backstory

The Internet gods looked favorably on me a few months ago, when I wrote a funny blog post called The Memory Foam Incident about my epic fail with a memory foam mattress topper. (The not-so-funny Cliff’s Notes version: After sleeping on the memory foam, my husband and I were asphyxiating, stuck and sweating – not exactly that sleeping-in-a-cloud experience we were hoping for.) This post got republished and went mini-viral on Scary Mommy. This, in turn, caught the eye of a marketing rep from Naturepedic, a company that manufactures organic mattresses. After we exchanged a few emails, the marketing rep asked if I’d be interested in receiving a complimentary Naturepedic mattress so I could sleep on it and write a review about it on my blog. Interested? In a good night’s sleep? On a free organic mattress? HELL, YEAH!

The Review

Until Naturepedic contacted me, I honestly hadn’t even heard of the brand. So I put on my sleuth hat to research what this company was all about. Turns out, the company was founded by Barry Cik—an environmental engineer who, as a grandfather-to-be, went to buy a crib mattress for his soon-to-arrive grandbaby only to discover that the mattresses were all made with questionable chemicals, potential allergens or hazardous flame retardants. In a line right out of Dirty Dancing, nobody puts baby in a (memory foam) corner!

So with his grandbaby’s health and safety in mind, Barry created his own crib mattress and Naturepedic was born. Since their baby-step beginnings in 2003, Naturepedic now carries a full line of organic mattresses, organic foundations, and organic bedding accessories. I love a good backstory, and this one made my heart smile.

I Need to Make My Bed

Let me start by saying that the phrase “I need to make my bed” takes on a whole new meaning with Naturepedic’s EOS Series, from choosing your comfort level when you place your online order to assembling the mattress like a gigantic 5-piece puzzle when it’s delivered to your doorstep in multiple boxes. You’ll understand in a few minutes, but rest assured, the process is quick and easy.

In fact, it’s almost as easy as ordering a pizza on Domino’s website.  (Ummm, this, too, comes in a box, and it’s not that good. I’m still a little skeptical.)  But not knowing how firm “firm” was, I was a bit leery ordering a mattress sight unseen from a website. Guess what? Naturepedic’s got that covered. If you’re not happy with your choice, you can exchange it (for free within 90 days and only pay for shipping) until you get it dialed in. Wouldn’t it be great if Domino’s offered this same deal? (Burnt crust? Wrong topping? No big deal! Bring it back, and we’ll give you a new pie!)

As easy as ordering a pizza with half pepperoni and half onions, you literally build your own “bed toppings” based on your preferences and comfort level. Kevin likes a very firm mattress, and I like a little softer support. But Naturepedic lets us customize it so we both win? Sweet! Still scarred from our memory foam experience but keeping an open mind, my husband and I opted for the latex with half firm, half extra firm support and a side of garlic knots.

I submitted my order and waited.

Here “I” am with “my husband” as we put our mattress together on our ocean-front backyard. We like sleeping outside.

The Naturepedic Difference

While waiting for my order to arrive, I poked around Naturepedic’s website a little more, wanting to learn more about what makes their mattresses different. From the organic materials used to manufacture the components to the “build-it-yourself” approach to the “Made in the USA” tag to the swappable comfort layers, I literally have never seen a mattress like this. Can’t wait to sleep on it!

Bed in a Box (Actually, 5 Boxes)

A few weeks later (I ordered around their busy Christmas season), the boxes arrived, and my husband and I needed to build our mattress. We eyed up the packages covered in safety warnings indicating “coils under pressure, open carefully,” which triggered traumatic memory foam flashbacks. Feeling skittish from our previous encounter with the ever-expanding foam, we were almost afraid to approach with scissors in hand. Nervous but intrigued, we cut the packages open and waited for a violent, odor-filled explosion. But this time? No eruption, no smell, no problem. We laid everything out on the floor, ready to assemble. No ceiling fan was harmed in the process.

Organic Mattress = Fresh Smell

Unlike the memory foam made with a toxic chemical cocktail, our Naturepedic mattress is made with organic latex and without flame-retardant chemicals or polyurethane off-gassing. Simply put, our mattress didn’t smell. Well, that’s not exactly true. My son thought the mattress smelled faintly like fresh lettuce for the first few minutes. But I’ll take a five-minute fresh salad smell over a multi-day noxious chemical fume that might kill me in my sleep.

Easy to Assemble

Okay, time to build our bed. Imagine making a sandwich, layering fresh bread on the bottom, adding some fillings and then topping it off with more soft bread. This describes the quick-and-easy process of assembling our Naturepedic EOS standard mattress.

But if you need a little hand-holding, you can watch this self-explanatory video:

I’ve got to say that, right out of the box, the cushioned, organic cotton encasement just screamed luxury—thick, soft and beautiful. (I actually hated to hide it under a mattress protector once we put it all together, it was that pretty. But, you know, night-time drool and sweaty menopausal hot flashes might muck it up real quick.) We added the 8” bottom support layer, and then topped it off with the 3” latex comfort layer. All said and done, it took us about 15 minutes.

How Did We Sleep?

Like Barry Cik’s grandbaby. Seriously, both my husband and I had a great night’s sleep—that first night and every night since. The latex mattress didn’t trap heat like our memory foam. And we could move freely whether we were spooning together or rolling to our separate sides of the bed. With the memory foam, we sank and stuck in one position. Plus, there’s great peace of mind knowing our mattress is made with organic and non-toxic materials. A safe, comfortable, healthy night’s sleep: what an innovative concept!

Here’s a side-by-side comparison of our two experiences:

My final verdict? Good things do come in a box! I give Naturepedic two thumbs way up. Brilliant concept. Amazing quality. Outstanding customer service. And most importantly, a great night’s sleep.

If you’re  in the market for a new mattress, I highly recommend the high-quality, mega-comfort, luxurious Naturepedic EOS Series. To learn more, check out the Naturepedic blog and follow them on Facebook and Twitter. Sweet dreams!