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Our First Time Shopping For A Mattress: What We Learned

Believe it or not, the mattress we just purchased for our guest bedroom is the first one either of us have ever really “shopped” for in the traditional sense. Everything before was a hand-me-down from family or purchased for cheap from Goodwill (that’s actually where we got the two daybed mattresses, which were bought pre-bed bugs days – although they did claim to sanitize them before reselling ’em). Oh and of course there’s our organic mattress, which we bought online (amazingly enough, they helped us find the perfect “fit” without having to be there to test things out). So admittedly the task of in-person bed-shopping was a bit daunting at first.

Painting Room From Door

We wanted to do lots of research so we could make the “best” purchase, but time didn’t really allow for weeks of pavement pounding. So we decided to go easy on ourselves and do enough to feel like we were making a smart decision without going overboard (after all, it’s not like this will be anyone’s full-time mattress). Plus, a bunch of you had already weighed in when we mentioned our bed hunt on this post, so we already had some good starting points.

Ultimately we ended up buying the new guest bedroom bed at The Original Mattress Factory. They weren’t even on our radar until my mom sent me a Consumer Reports article that put them in 2nd place, right under Tempur-Pedic. We decided pretty quickly that we wanted an innerspring mattress instead of something from Tempur-Pedic since we read a bunch of articles about how memory foam can be polarizing (it’s too hot for some people, and only comfortable for around half of the people who try it- and since this bed should be a basic crowd pleasing model that hopefully appeals to the masses, we decided to keep things classic, which is how we landed on the whole innerspring mattress + boxspring configuration). So after eliminating Tempur-Predic and identifying The Original Mattress Factory as the first place we should check out, I remembered there was a store located just a couple of miles from us. Score.

Mattress Consumer Reports

Pretty much as soon as we walked into the door they won us over with how straightforward the process was. As Sherry (or Jerry McGuire) would say, they had us at hello. The three things that wowed us right off the bat were:

1. They only carry one brand, their own, and all mattresses are locally made right there at that precise location (which is actually a mattress factory, hence the name).

2. They display cross-sections of all of their mattresses (and several of their competitors) so you can see exactly what you’re dealing with and compare materials, wire strength, filler thicknesses, etc.

3. They never offer sales or promotions (making their own mattresses locally and then selling them directly to people means they’ve essentially cut out the middle man, so they don’t play pricing games and don’t need to add in any markups). It was nice to know that we didn’t have to wonder if a better deal was a day or two around the corner since their prices are always consistent. Which was refreshing since Sherry noticed that a bunch of fliers put out by other mattress companies were playing serious mind games and saying that things were available for a “limited-time-only” at “rock-bottom prices” when their mailers would come out every week saying the same thing (with big dramatic slashes through the numbers which seemed to just be puffed up to be marked down).

But although they wooed us to no end with their straightforward approach, we still didn’t purchase anything on the spot. Instead, we checked out a couple of other discount mattress stores (plus Ikea) and our other experiences were pretty much the polar opposite. Understanding the various brands & models while attempting to decipher which promotions/sales applied to which mattress sets was actually really confusing, so we left every other store before even laying down on anything (although we did sit on a few Ikea models but quickly learned they couldn’t be delivered in time and were actually more expensive than the one we liked at The Original Mattress Factory, which was ranked higher by a few independent sources). So after some less than stellar shopping experiences at other stores, and finding this article in favor of The Original Mattress Factory and their A+ Better Business Bureau rating, we were finally 100% sold.

The next night we went back to TOMF and bought a full-sized Classic Luxury Firm mattress set for $379 (this price included the box spring). It wasn’t the base model (we wanted something with a little extra cushion for our guests) but of course it wasn’t one of those top of the line amazing pillow topper mattresses either (because we’re not independently wealthy enough to hook our guests up like that- hah). Once the frame ($50), delivery($38), and tax ($21) were added into the mix, our grand total was $488 – coming in just under the $500 limit that we saved up for before embarking on our crazy mattress hunting journey. And thank goodness for quality control. Here’s Burger testing things out. Thankfully he seems pretty comfortable.

Mattress Burger On

Oh, and we went for the full sized mattress because it fits best in that room and means we don’t have to rebuy all of the bedding that we already own (plus we already have a full sized headboard). And since the bulk of our friends and family members have full sized beds in their own guest bedrooms, we figure it’s what they’ll expect to see in ours. Maybe they’ll even be extra enamored by the brand-spankin-newness of this guy. That is, if we can toss the rest of the room together in two short days to make it feel less like a mattress party of one (and more like an actual bedroom).

Painting Room From Bathroom

Here’s hoping. Better get cracking…

Psst- We’re giving away our favorite video camera ever over on BabyCenter today. It’s a Flip Ultra HD valued at $199 (which is what we use to make all of our videos, like the super exciting cutting in vid from yesterday). Plus there’s a new Clara video over there to enjoy, and it involves a tambourine. I know, it’s exciting. Click here to enter.

Comments

  1. Paulina says

    Hi guys…we are in the process of buying a new bed and it kinda sucks! Just wanted to say hi…love the blog…you’ve got a fan all the way from Celaya Guanajuato Mexico…i wasn’t very into decorating until I stumbled upon your blog and I’m obssesed…i even read older posts every night…like homework…and I drop sentences to my hubs like “Sherry and John just got this or did this”… We also have a little boy 11 days older than gorgeous Clara!

    Reply

  2. amanda says

    Love the new guest bedroom color!!! You never cease to inspire to be bold in my color choices/design for my first house. Love you guys! (wow…that’s a lotta love and a lotta exclamation points).

    P.S. Entered the contest for the Flip video cam and checked out the new video of Clara. I enjoy watching her grow as my daughter is just 4 days older than Clara, so I totally relate with all the baby posts. :) Gotta love the little nuggets!

    Reply

  3. .ivy says

    We bought the mattress for our daughter’s “big girl bed” at OMF a couple months ago. It was the third place we shopped at; they were so great to us! We were looking at one of the higher mid-level mattresses they carry, and the salesman actually talked me into spending LESS on a different model that would be more comfortable for a child to sleep on.

    Reply

  4. banclothing says

    I recently slept on my friends bed and was surprised how unbelievably comfortable it was. She said she bought the cheapest mattress she could find (told the sales guy it was for her guest room so it didn’t need to be TOO comfortable) then topped it off with a memory foam pad from costco. It was way more comfortable than the $1500 I forked over for a serta.

    Reply

  6. Alissa says

    Having issues commenting on the camera give away post. It says “whoa….posting too fast” wordpress error. Does that mean that my comment did not go through? I don’t want to end up with 5 comments on there :/

    Is this a common wordpress issue? (I don’t comment alot so I’m unsure LOL)

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Not sure what’s going on with their system (we’re not admin so we can’t see what’s up with their server) but maybe just check back in an hour and see if your comment posted and if not submit again? Good luck!

      xo,
      s

    • Maggie @ Cheneyhome says

      That happened to me a week or so on another blog, I just waited a few minutes and tried again and it seemed to go through fine, just one time. Very strange though, especially since I didn’t seem to be posting any faster than normal!

  7. Bethany says

    This post is a HUGE blessing to me. I have to buy mattresses for my guest room in the next couple of weeks and did not want to do the research. Thanks for doing it for me. I was already leaning toward TOMF based on friend feedback…but this clinched it!

    Reply

  8. Robin says

    Why a full and not a queen? Those extra inches make it so much nicer if you have two adults sleeping together. I would never go smaller than a queen, though maybe people are bigger here in the midwest, lol…

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      We already own all the bedding for a full sized bed (along with a headboard) and it was definitely the best sized bed for the room (it’s 13 x 11′). We also checked out what size beds a lot of our guests have in their own guest rooms and most of them have full sized beds, so we went with that. You can check out the post for more info. Hope it helps!

      xo,
      s

  10. Jenny says

    I slept on a temperpedic mattress for the first time this weekend — it sucked! i didn’t find it warm at all, I would have liked that, but actually cold and really anti-social because you can’t feel the other person at all — and I like sharing a bed with my hubby! Worst, though, was the concrete slab feeling. Ugh!

    Reply

  11. Amber says

    I hate mattress shopping! When we moved to NYC we had to buy a mattress and we ended up buying it from that chain store that is on every block. I can’t remember the name – can you? Any ways it was Expensive but it’s the must comfy bed ever! So well worth the money.

    Reply

  12. Hollis says

    I inherited a TOMF full sized bed from my old roommate when she moved away and it was the most comfortable bed I slept on. Since her parents are discriminating about mattresses (back health, blah blah blah) they bought the top of the line model for her. When I upgraded to a queen I couldn’t afford the same model, but went for a few steps down and it’s still equally as comfortable and way more comfortable than my boyfriend’s bed (a Westin Heavenly bed). The full is now in the guest bedroom and everyone that sleeps on it says they get the best night sleep they’ve had in a while. You’re guests will be lucky to sleep on it.

    Reply

  13. Emily Kidd says

    Can yall do a post on how to tie hand me down furniture together?! My husband and I are grateful that our family gave us there unwanted furniture, but it seems like we ended up with every shade of brown furniture you could imagine. Weve tried slip covers but they always seem to come undone (and it doesnt help we have dogs and a toddler)
    thanks!

    Reply

  14. Becky says

    We have purchased several Original Mattress Store beds in different sizes and have been thrilled with each one. And the sales people are GREAT. What sent us there 20 years ago was that they also do custom sizes if you have an antique bedframe. Our 150 year old bed was queen width and double length and TOMF made a mattress that was a perfect fit and very comfortable at a very reasonable price. Consumer Report hit that rating right on the nose.

    Reply

  16. Jennifer B. says

    My husband and I went to a local mattress store and purchased the closest comparable to the Tempurpedic in a queen size. I needed memory foam for my back. He didn’t like how firm the tempur was (go figure), so we made it out with a savings of about $350 just by going off-brand memory foam.

    Hurry hurry on the room! We’re all dying to see how it turns out!
    Jennifer B.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Yup they delivered ours. Their flat rate for delivery in our area was $38, which we thought was awesome. Maybe try calling the one closest to you to see how it all works?

      xo,
      s

  20. Julie says

    If this was a mattress for Clara, would you have gone organic? We’re starting the mattress hunt for our 2.5 year old to transition from crib to big bed. We are converting her crib to a full size bed and the best priced full size mattress I can find (that doesn’t contain high allergy materials like wool and latex) is the Naturepedic Quilted Organic Cotton Deluxe for $900, which is a tough pill to swallow. I literally just started researching today so I’m definitely looking for reviews on how well the bed holds up over time. Love the color of the room, we went with a dark blue-grey in our guest room a couple years ago and still love it and in about 5 weeks will be baby #2’s room.

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Hmm that’s a really good question! I like to think that we would just because we did for ourselves (and we love her more than ourselves, haha) but it would depend on whether we had it in our budget. We wouldn’t buy something we couldn’t afford, so if the money wasn’t in savings we’d probably go for the most natural non-organic mattress out there and maybe even sit it our in our sunroom for a few weeks to “offgas” there before letting her sleep on it. Even just adding an 100% cotton pillow topper (or organic mattress pad) could help though! Good luck in your search!

      xo,
      s

  21. Debby says

    We love The Original Mattress Factory. All of our mattresses in our home are from them. One king, 2 queens and 1 full size. The wonderful thing about this company is that if you decide that it is too soft or too hard, they will come get it and change the feeling for you once. Also, should it begin to sag (hopefully it doesn’t), they also repair it for you for free. We have only had one experience and it was because we decided the mattress was softer than we liked, they firmed it up and its wonderful now. They are also by far the best prices around. Did you tour the factory? It is very interesting to see how they are made and the differences in other companies. Good choice !!

    Reply

  22. Heather says

    Hey, I have the same mattress set! I LOVE Original Mattress Factory. Their prices are fantastic, and in CLT there was one at a shopping center 7 miles from my house, so we didn’t eveb have to have it delivered. The sales guy still came out to the truck and strapped it in for us REALLY well.

    It’s so comfortable, and I sleep like a baby on it.

    Reply

  23. Alexandra says

    I also bought an mattress from TOMF, and I loved their no-nonsense approach. I have the Legacy, and I still like it after 3 years of daily use.

    Reply

  24. Abbie says

    I LOVE the color you chose for the bedroom! Any way you would wanna share the color/brand? I’m wanting to give my bedroom a makeover, and that color really caught my eye. Plus, I found a comforter set the other day that goes perfectly with that color!

    -Abbie

    Reply

  25. Jessi says

    We always had a hard time finding a mattress we liked long term. One that felt good in the store never felt good a few weeks later. Very frustrating. We ended up going with a Select Comfort, so now we change it ourselves (sometimes daily!) They are a bit pricey though. We even got one for our daughter when she got her big girl bed. Those crib mattresses reach a whole new level of discomfort.

    I can’t wait to see what you do with this room. This color looks very similar to the one you did behind the shelves in the front room. All part of your master plan I’m sure to create a cohesive house-wide color scheme! I’m having to live vicariously through you until hubby gives me the green light to start DIYing myself.

    Reply

  26. jja says

    I would buy many used things but never ever used mattress. This is kind of a health issue.

    What does it mean full size bed? In Europe it would be 2 meters wide and 2 meters long – as for two persons.

    I love Burgers photo :-)and the wall colour!
    I am also impressed with the fact you do this cutting in thing without protecting your trim. I guess one need a really calm hand for that.

    Reply

  28. Dawn says

    TOMF is the best. We had purchased twin mattresses a few years back from one of the other chains, and paid more for them. Plus, they are the “unflippable” kinds, and super thick—–within a short time the cover had buckled, and wasn’t under warranty, and we couldn’t flip the mattress, so it really was a disappointment. Plus the beds are so high off the floor now it’s hard to climb onto them.
    The next mattress we bought from TOMF. You’re right, they were so nice. The mattress is incredibly comfortable, reasonably priced, “flippable”, and normal sized. We can’t wait until we can go back and get a queen-sized one for ourselves.

    Reply

  29. bridget b. says

    thanks for sharing your step-by-step process mattress buying process. matress shopping is definitely one of those dry tasks, but you guys made it interesting and informative, as always!

    i have a somewhat related question about how you guys decide on how long to hold onto household items.

    like Sherry mentioned a few posts back about saving the extra buttons from coats and shirts, i’m usually reluctant to let go of certain items that i might end up going to great difficulty or spending a lot of money to re-buy in the future.

    i was curious as to how you guys made the decision to get rid of (can’t remember if you sold or donated it) the guest room bed from the original house when you got the fold out couch instead of maybe storing it somewhere for future use.

    is it because it was already a hand me down?

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      Yup, we knew if we ever went back to a full sized bed we’d want to purchase something that’s not 20 years old instead of storing that old thing indefinitely!

      xo,
      s

  30. Sheila says

    We bought my daughter’s full bed from OMF and it is so comfortable! All too often I would go into her room 3 hours after my husband was just going to “lie down with her for a second until she fell asleep” and find him sound asleep. I also like how you can flip it vs the ones with pillow top that you can only rotate. I agree their sales pitch makes it much easier to decide on purchase. I’m sure your guests will love it!

    Reply

  31. Liz says

    Just a few weeks ago I bought the exact same mattress for my toddler. Happy to report that he is sleeping quite well in it! It’s a comfy bed.

    Reply

  32. Heather says

    Ewwwww – you bought mattresses from Goodwill?? Ick!! Bed-bugs have been around since the beginning of time – so not sure what you mean by pre-bed bug days!!! I am sure you saved lotsa money though.

    Luv TOMF -great selection! Have fun with your visitors!!

    Reply

  33. Sweet T says

    Too bad they only sell TOMF mattresses in certain states (not mine)! I have been on the hunt for mattress recommendations for a long time, and I really appreciate you sharing the consumer reports list!

    Reply

  34. Hilary @ My So-Called Home says

    We actually really need a mattress also. When we moved into our apartment the mattress fit up the stairs but the box-spring didn’t, so we cut in in half! But after a year or so it started to sag where the cut was so we had to reinforce it with a sheet of plywood. Needless to say, we need a new one.

    Reply

  35. Sarah says

    I love TOMF! Unfortunately, we still have a sort of cheap mattress from a discount store, but when we moved we couldn’t get our queen-sized box spring up the stairs. Yes, our stairs are really that tight. Through the window didn’t work either. We ended up at TOMF because they are the only people in the area who sell a split boxspring in queen size. Splits are standard for king, but not usually available for queen – who knew? We were super impressed with everything about the store (for all the reasons you stated) and will definitely go there when we’re in the market for a new mattress!

    Reply

  37. Amelia Hardman says

    LETTER ME!
    My husband gave me a card while we were dating, and inside it said, “Although the guy on the front of this card is sitting, I am definitely ‘standing’ you!” If I win, I will post the rest of the story!

    Reply

  38. Emily says

    I just LOVE what you guys do and the color of this room makes me super happy:). PLEASE can we see what else you’ve managed to get done in there? Like mini progress updates:)?? Even bedding will do. Work has been atrocious today so checking for new updates has been my little guilty pleasure today!

    Reply

    • YoungHouseLove says

      It’s hard to balance taking pics/writing posts and actually getting things done, so since we’re under such a tight deadline we’re planning to work the rest of the day away and snap pics and share details tomorrow. If only there were more hours in the day!

      xo,
      s

    • Stephanie Phillips says

      D’oh! I’d been checking back all afternoon, too. Bummer. Y’all work so quickly that I sometimes forget that you can’t actually do ten things at once, so consider it a compliment that we actually thought you might have another post today. ;)

      Can’t wait to see the progress pictures tomorrow, then!

  39. Ellen says

    We love Original Mattress Factory! Almost every mattress we own comes from there, and the sales experience combined with comfort have won us over. They even do custom sizes so we were able to get a custom mattress made for an antique bed for only a little bit more than a full size would have cost. So sad that we now live too far away, because we could certainly use a new one! (to replace a Sterns and Foster none the less)

    Reply

  40. Lauren says

    We bought this same exact mattress for our guest bedroom. When my husband’s elderly parents came for a visit, we slept on the guest bed upstairs and let them sleep on our bed on the main level. The quality of the mattress is really good, and I’m happy with the purchase. However, it was a little firm for my taste after a couple nights. We ended up getting a foam mattress topper from Target, and this made a world of difference. So much more comfortable!

    Reply

  42. Claire says

    I was wondering why the mattress looked so familiar. I am on my second bed from TOMF and I love it. When I moved into my first apartment while still in school I got my bed from there and I loved it. After graduation I moved out of state and it was cheaper to buy a new one and have them deliver than to rent a truck and move my first mattress. Luckily, TOMF had the records from years before so I got the same mattress again!! Woo hoo!! I hope the soon to be visitors enjoy it, because I love my bed! =D

    Reply

  43. Melissa says

    Excellent timing! I am getting ready to finally order a mattress this week and I thought I had picked “the one”, but your post is making me reconsider.

    Do you by chance know if TOMF would deliver out of state? I’m in IL and I REALLY want to buy one of their mattresses now (especially given the amazing raves I’m seeing in the comments!) but there is no store here.

    Reply

  44. A.C. says

    Oh I’d forgotten about your green headboard! That is going to look so great against those blue walls.

    I feel like I should be paying you guys a ‘consulting fee’ or something, given the number of your posts I have bookmarked for future reference. And this one is perfectly timed because I need a new mattress desperately but I have absolutely zero interest in the mattress shopping process. So thanks again for doing the work for me! Never heard of the Original Mattress Factory but I’m definitely going to check them out.

    Reply

  45. Becky S. says

    Wish this post had come 1 month earlier…we purchased a king-sized mattress from a Richmond area “discount mattress warehouse” and feel like we got “taken”! When the set was delivered it felt much firmer than the one we tested. After several horrible nights’ sleep I called about exchanging/upgrading I was told they don’t do returns as they don’t sell used items. Yikes…an expensive $700 lesson!! :-( Our next mattress will definitely come from TOMF.

    Reply

  46. Lindsay says

    Thanks for the referral! I went today to get our king bed – they were so nice! And ooohh do I love the bed we got!

    Reply

  47. Jocelyn Stott says

    I think a mattress is such an important purchase. I totally believe in splurging a bit since you spend so much time on them!

    I have a friend who always says, “You should always buy good mattresses and good shoes,” and I think he is right!

    Love the bedroom color, by the way!

    Reply

  48. Kele says

    We got a tempur-pedic as a wedding gift and it was a life changer! That’s a lot of dough to shell out for a guest bed but you might want to look into one for yourself. I’m an overheater and the bed is simply amazing.

    Reply

  49. Jen @ The Decor Scene says

    That looks like a great mattress. And what an awesome price too. I have to see if this place is anywhere near me. Thanks for posting.

    And I can’t wait to see what you do with this room with the one window offset on both walls. That is how our master bedroom is and I would love to see what you do with maybe some frames or artwork above the bed. :)

    Reply

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