When our son was born, we bought an organic crib mattress for him. He slept in our bed for a few months, and still comes in from time to time to sleep with us during the night, but most of the time he sleeps on his crib mattress. Last year, we got a wooden toddler bed and moved the mattress into that, which had been working perfectly. But with another baby on the way, we knew we needed either another crib mattress for the baby, or a twin mattress for our son so that we could take his little mattress and put it back in the crib for the baby.
My first thought was to just get another crib mattress. The organic ones are available for a couple hundred dollars, and we’ve been very happy with the one we have. But I knew that would be a relatively short-term solution. Our son is going to outgrow the toddler bed and the extreme firmness of a crib mattress before we know it. So although they are a lot more expensive, I started looking at organic twin mattresses.
Given that a standard twin mattress can be bought for a couple hundred dollars, the price tags on the organic mattresses were a bit hard to swallow. But I reminded myself that we’re frugal for a reason. It’s not so that we can hoard money and just save it aimlessly. Instead, we want to make sure that we use our money mindfully, on things that really matter to us. There’s a lot of controversy about mattresses and the chemicals that are in them. I don’t claim to know everything about the issue, but my gut instinct is to err on the side of caution when it comes to exposure to synthetic chemicals. That’s why the only cleaning products that make their way into our home are baking soda, vinegar, hydrogen peroxide, soap nuts, and Dr. Bronner’s soap. It’s why we don’t use any synthetic chemicals on our lawn or garden. It’s why we buy organic food.
In general, I try to balance my desire for a toxin-free home with both our budget and with our efforts to be as environmentally-friendly as possible. That means that we’re not going to replace stuff we have that is still in good shape (like our living room furniture, for example), just to get toxin-free versions. But when we need to replace something or get something new, we try to choose the most environmentally-friendly and toxin-free version we can afford.
And that brings us back to searching for a mattress. We wanted to get something that would last our son for a long time. We looked at mattresses at a local organic bedding store, and of course the solid latex ones were divine. They were also $1500 for a twin size. We decided to go with an innerspring instead, and add a latex topper to it in a few years when our son is heavier and needs a softer bed. The Green Baby Guide has addressed the fact that there aren’t a whole lot of choices available for reasonably-priced twin mattresses, and I agree. I looked at both of the ones they mentioned, but didn’t buy either one. The $600 Naturepedic is waterproof and from what I read, it’s just about as firm as the hard-as-a-rock crib mattress our son already has. I know that’s perfect for babies and small children, but not as likely to be a good long-term solution. While I liked the price tag on the $400 Natura Kidz mattress, it looks like soy-based polyfoam isn’t really that much of an improvement over regular polyurethane foam, and to get a truly “organic” mattress from natura Kidz bumps the price tag up to $1100.
I liked what I read about Naturepedic mattresses and their non-toxic fire protection system (another alternative to toxic fire retardants is wool, which is naturally fire resistant, but adds a lot more to the cost of the mattress). Eventually I settled on their quilted organic cotton deluxe mattress for $700. I felt that would give us a mattress that could be used long-term (with the addition of a latex topper as our son gets older) and was a good compromise in terms of price. I ordered it from The Clean Bedroom because they offer a ten percent discount if you become a fan on Facebook. That allowed me to get an organic waterproof mattress pad ($79) essentially for free. There was also no tax and no shipping charge.
Since we were spending so much money on the mattress, I wanted to find a good deal on a bed frame. We wanted a bed with a solid support under the mattress (so that we wouldn’t need a box spring) and we were looking for something with drawers so that we could move our son’s dresser into the baby’s room. I also wanted something made of solid wood instead of particle board and veneer. Happily, Craigslist rarely lets me down. After a few weeks of searching the listings, I came across a bed that was exactly what we wanted. Solid wood, drawers underneath, a solid platform for the mattress, and in excellent condition. We got it for $160. It looks a little odd right now, because we have the crib mattress on it while we wait for the new mattress to be delivered:
We moved our son’s dresser into the baby’s room, and all of his clothes are now under his bed. In addition, the big middle drawer holds all of his stuffed animals, so they aren’t crowded all over the bed anymore.
All in all, I’d say we did pretty well. We ended up with a solid wood bed/dresser, an organic mattress that should last a long time, and an organic waterproof mattress pad, for a total of $860. The mattress should be arriving any day now, and our son is very excited about his big boy bed. The price was more than we usually spend on stuff like this, but in the nearly three years since our son was born, we’ve spent very little money on supplies for him. And I feel good knowing that he’ll continue to sleep on a toxin-free mattress.
The only thing that bothers me about this whole process is how unaffordable non-toxic mattresses are for a lot of people. We’re thrifty and careful with our money, which helps us budget for larger purchases. But we’re also fortunate to earn a good income and be able to afford something like this if we want. For many families, a $700 mattress for a child is out of the question, no matter how carefully they budget. It shouldn’t be that difficult to get non-toxic products. I do feel like the tide is turning a bit in terms of people understanding that “better living through chemistry” might not be better after all. Hopefully as time goes by, non-toxic products will start to be the norm rather than the expensive exception to the rule.
Kelly says
I like his bed! We were also looking for something similar for my daughter. We couldn’t find what we were looking for on Craigslist so we decided to go to some furniture stores. I almost died when I saw the prices and we didn’t see exactly what we were looking for. We decided my husband was just going to build her a bed and then one day we were driving through our neighborhood and saw people cleaning up from a garage sale. They had a bed almost exactly like what we wanted (drawers underneath.) We quickly turned around and the people said make us an offer. For $40 and a little time and paint my daughter has a big girl bed she loves. It is a little bit “cheaper” that what I was hoping for, but the style is perfect and for the price it works wonderfully for right now.
Kaytee says
One other consideration to factor into the cost of the bed is the amount of use it will get. If we go by commonly quoted statistics, we spend 1/3 of our lives sleeping, and I think it is reasonable to say the majority of that time is spent in our own beds (unless you live out of a suitcase). Yet we spend more money on our cars than we do on something we use every day for years. I don’t think it is unreasonable to spend money on something that will be used so much.
I’m quasi-doing mattress research now. We have a futon for a bed and a futon for a couch. We’d like to upgrade our bed futon to a queen size for cosleeping when little ones come along, and replace the very tired couch futon mattress, with the still-has-some-life bed futon mattress. I’m doing my research now before we have children, while I still have the luxury of time.
I’m curious how you decide on which mattress to purchase without being able to test it out with a few flops for comfort? This is mainly what is holding me back from just ordering one up. Our local stores don’t seem to carry organic cotton or wool futon mattresses.
~Kaytee
FrugalBabe says
Wow, great find Kelly! I know what you mean about sticker shock on the new beds. I didn’t seriously consider getting a new one, as I knew I’d eventually find a good used one. But I did browse around online looking at the sort of bed I wanted, and the prices were crazy!
Kaytee, I agree. The amount of time we spend in our beds was part of what made me so sure that I wanted a non-toxic bed for our little guy. There is an organic mattress store in the town near where we live, so we were able to go there and do the flop test. We loved the latex mattresses, but just couldn’t justify the cost. They had a firm innerspring that was very similar to what we ended up ordering, and it seemed like a good fit for our son. He’s still small enough that a firm mattress works well (although it’s not as firm as his crib mattress). And for a few hundred dollars, we’ll be able to get an organic latex topper (they come in all sorts of thicknesses, starting at two inches) a few years down the road when he needs the mattress to be a bit softer. The combination of an innerspring mattress and a latex topper later on seemed to us like a good compromise when compared with the cost of an all-latex mattress.
Jacquie says
Not sure if you’ve written a post on the subject before, but I was wondering if you could go into some detail about the cleaning products you use for which chores. I’m currently in the process of clearing out our commercial cleaners and could benefit from the advice/info. Thanks!!!
Sam says
I went through this too. What I ended up doing was getting a 20yr old guest bed mattress from a friends parents…. it had always had a waterproof thing on it so it was very clean (I checked with a black light).
So I’m hoping that all the chemicals had worked their way out in the 70’s & 80’s… this will be what my son takes with him when he moves out… unless it’s somehow accidentally destroyed.
I have to get a new mattress for myself soon & am in the same dilemma….. Also wondering if I should get a cheap box spring to put under it or if that’d have too many chemicals too. I don’t want to get rid of my old victorian bed or be too close to the floor (winter drafts & like to be high enough the dog can’t jump in).
Jennifer S. says
Thanks for sharing your story about the importance of a safe sleeping environment!
This was also something we researched like crazy before we bought. I ended up buying my daughter an economy organic latex mattress from organicgrace.com. (It was expensive, but the warranty is 10 years and I found many ways to justify the price.) We previously had bought my son’s organic innserspring crib mattress from Organic Grace. I highly recommend them…prices are competitive and customer service is excellent. I will say that after purchasing my daughter’s latex mattress I most likely would not go back to innerspring. The latex is incredibly comfortable. We top our children’s beds with wool puddle pads and have found they protect well when we have that infrequent wetting or sickness issue. I had a waterproof covered crib mattress for my daughter and found she sweated all the time so Naturpedic was not an option for us.
Cassy says
Hi, I have been following your blog for quite a while and has been and being inspired by your posts. Thanks for sharing your thoughts and experiences. I understand the importance of Eco-friendly and non toxic products. We are looking for a mattress as well( full size for our future kid and can be used as guest bed when needed occasionally) I really liked one tempurpedic mattress which is a floor sample and is offered at 600$. Is tempurpedic considered organic? We bought one for ourselves and we love love the feel and comfort of it.
Just another question out of curiosity? Where do you get these soap nuts from?
Frugal Babe says
Cassy,
I don’t believe Tempurpedic makes any organic mattresses, but I don’t know that for sure. A full-size mattress for $600 isn’t likely to be organic or made with non-toxic materials, but again, you’d have to check with the store to be sure. Good luck with your search!
I get my soap nuts here: http://stores.buysoapnuts.com/StoreFront.bok
A 1 kg bag lasts me about 16 months or so. I make liquid soap by boiling the nuts in water, and then I use that soap to wash all of our laundry. I only use cold water, and line dry everything. I’ve been thoroughly satisfied with the soap nuts, and have been using them for about a year and a half now.
Mercedes says
Captains beds are awesome space savers, and I think great for kids! I never knew that they made organic mattresses before! The only criteria I’ve ever had is one with not latex in it as I have an intolerance for it. A lot of the items we use day to day are actually rather harmful for us once you really look into what they are made of! Same that the organic beds cost so much, but if you do a cost per use analysis of them, it doesn’t feel quite so bad!
Leah says
Love the set up! I don’t have kids yet, but when I do, having a non-toxic mattress is a priority. I’m actually getting married soon and hoping to find some non-toxic pillows to register for. Any ideas?
re: the bed, these can also be built from old waterbed frames. My dad likes solid wood, and he built all of us captain’s beds from old frames we got at a garage sale. We did have waterbeds. But if you don’t want a waterbed, it’s simple enough to frame in a bit and make the bed mattress-sized.
marycat says
i’m curious if you explored twin organic futons? i have thought about going that route when we need to replace my daughters twin mattress
FrugalBabe says
Marycat,
No, I don’t know much about organic futons, as we didn’t look at any for our son. I wanted to get something that would hopefully work for our son for many years, and I assumed a mattress would be the best bet. But I know futons have come a long way, and that might be a great option – good luck!
Roohi says
Hi,
I have a 6 month old whos ready to move out of his co sleeper so we’ve started to look for bedding solutions for him, get a crib, a toddler bed, a twin bed etc etc then then what type of mattress to get. too many choices!
I do like the idea of organic matressess but they are just too expensive. I wonder if a cheaper solution would be to get a regular mattress (mediocre quality in terms of organic-ness) and then cover it with a high quality 100% organic cotton mattress pad and use organic bed sheets would be better? Any thoughts??
Awesome blog btw!!
Nursery furniture sets says
I think this is brilliant and wish I’d known about it for our kids. We coslept (and still do with the youngest) and I think this would have been a good alternative to those times when they were in a crib, or in our room. Love it!