The Difference

Polyester Pillows- are made by the hundreds of thousands daily because some people and hotels will only spend the bare minimum to have something on the bed. There are plain polyester pillows that use a continuous solid filament which makes a nice looking and feeling pillow in the short term, but will pack down in a very short time. It is usually in a poly/cotton ticking and is washable, but will become lumpy when run through the wash/dry cycle. A better grade of polyester is termed "hollofill". This is again a continuous filament, but has a hollow core which will give the pillow more loft for a longer period of time, but still probably not much more than 10-14 months. It is normally in a poly/cotton tick and washable, but will without a doubt, become lumpy after a couple of cycles.

Synthetic Down Pillows- are varied in their composition and worthy of testing to be sure they will perform as indicated. The synthetic down filling we use is made from patented tiny "puff balls" of twisted and crimped hollow polyester fibers. Under a microscope, a cross section of these fibers would look like a honeycomb. This provides for better loft, for a longer time, and unparalleled support for the head, neck and shoulders. These pillows are made with 100% cotton ticking, sewn 10-12 stitches per inch and are so durable that it has been washed and dried at the Atlantis Casino and Resort in Reno, Nevada 8 times and still is not lumpy, but soft and lofty. The Parris Island Marine Corps Recruit Depot has laundered it 10 times and claim the only change is the ticking which is fading (they wanted a blue stripe). THIS IS A DURABLE PILLOW !!!

Feather and Down Pillows- have the greatest range in quality and prices. You can buy a feather pillow which may have on its law label 5% down and 95% feathers but actually is entirely feathers...and cheap feathers at that. Government controls are very loose in the feather and down industry. There is plus or minus 10% variance allowed on the amount of down put in a pillow. Therefore, if a law label states even 10% down 90% feathers it can be all feathers. It is very important to either have the ability and knowledge to take a pillow apart and test it, or deal with a trustworthy company that is willing to give you references or back up what they claim in some manner.

Quality of Down- often pillow companies' pricing will differ even when comparing the same blend of feathers and down. Down is rated by "fill power" which is the volume of space in a calibrated cylinder that one ounce measures. The higher the number, the better the fill power, the larger the cluster of down, the better it fills your pillow, and the softer it will be...and, of course the more expensive it is. Down comes from waterfowl, ducks and geese. Duck down and feathers are smaller, more plentiful and less expensive. If a pillow's law label states "waterfowl" it is probably duck feathers because most pillow manufacturers will state "goose feathers" when using it.

Washing Pillows- It is a mistake wash feather and down pillows because of three factors 1) the detergents used will dry up the oil in the quill of a feather faster, causing the feathers to turn to dust more rapidly 2) the sizing that is applied at the fabric mill to making the ticking feather and down proof will be washed out, allowing the fabric to leak dust 3) you simply cannot wash out all the dirt that is trapped inside which, again comes from the decomposition of the feathers.

How to Clean Feather and Down Pillows The only effective method to truly renovate a pillow is to run it through a pillow cleaning machine. This sifts the dust out, allows all the filling to be exposed to an ultra violet germicidal light to kill bacteria and deodorize, fluffs the feathers and down allowing the compressed down to open up. This results in a like new pillow with new ticking.