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Bedding and bed accessories
Materials and features
Comforters
Comforter batting is divided into the four types below.
Down
In a down comforter, at least 50% of the batting is the breast down of waterfowl such as ducks and geese.
This material excels in moisture absorption, moisture transpiration and heat retention, and its lightness makes it less constricting to the user.
Goose down is coarser than duck down, which gives goose down superior heat retention.
Feather
In a feather comforter, at least 50% of the batting is feathers from waterfowls. This is similar to down, except that the feathers in a feather comforter include the hard shaft.
A feather comforter is much lighter than a wool blend or cotton comforter, although the feathers make slight rustling sounds.
Wool blend
In a wool blend comforter, the batting is a blend of wool and polyester. Wool excels in moisture absorption, moisture transpiration and heat retention, and polyester excels in durability.
Polyester
The batting consists of artificial fibers produced from petroleum. It is recommended for those with allergies, because it generates less dust. Another feature is its lower price.
Mattress
Mattress batting is divided into the two types below.
Wool blend
In a wool blend comforter, the batting is a blend of wool and polyester. Wool excels in moisture absorption, moisture transpiration and heat retention, and polyester excels in durability.
Polyester
It is recommended for those with allergies, because it generates less dust. Another feature is its lower price.
Pillow
Pillows are essential to proper sleeping posture. Select the pillow that best suits your preferences for firmness and thickness. We provide a wide variety of pillows made from the materials described here.
Buckwheat hulls
Pillows stuffed with buckwheat hulls are the most commonly used pillows in Japan. These are soft and pliable enough to ensure a comfortable fit for your head size and shape. But since buckwheat pillows are made of a natural material, it’s difficult to keep them for long.
Feather
Pillows stuffed with feathers are soft, with just the right springiness.
Pipe
Pillows stuffed with small polyethylene tubes are preferred by those who are allergic to buckwheat hulls. Such pillows are particularly popular in summer, because they let air through.
Polyester
Pillows filled with this elastic material hold your neck firmly. A notable feature is its machine washabilty.
Memory foam urethane foam
This type of pillow eases shoulder and neck stiffness, because it lets your head slowly sink and makes it feel lighter. A variation called the “Memory foam urethane chip pillow” uses fine chips of polyurethane foam as the filling.
How to make up a bed
The futon set consists of six basic items: a futon comforter, comforter cover, futon mattress, bottom sheet, pillow and pillowcase. The bedding set has more items than these. This makes it fun to coordinate your bedroom.
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Bedding: Proper care
In spring and summer, you sweat easily and the humidity is high. Bedclothes tend not to stay fresh. During the rainy season, a futon cannot be hung outside, so it tends to become damp, musty and full of bed mites. Here we advise on the care of bed clothes for cleanliness and comfort.
Using a bedclothes dryer or an air-conditioner
During the night, one loses about a cup of water through perspiration. The high temperature and humidity of spring and summer tend to make linens sweaty and slow to dry out. When you cannot air your bedclothes, try to dry it out with a futon dryer, an air-conditioner or an electric fan. If no dryer or electric fan is available, try to dry at least the surface by using a hairdryer or an iron.
Keeping your bedclothes comfortable
Most users pay attention to moisture absorbency, but not to moisture permeability or desorption. Even in a dry season, cotton comforters and mattresses that are not aired out for a long time absorb humidity from the air and the tatami floor, which makes them hard. You feel a chill when you use them. You might as well dry them with your body heat. Advances in comfortable bedding have brought the development of new materials and bedclothes with excellent moisture permeability and desorption. Also, there are bedclothes whose features are inside temperature and humidity control or mite, bacteria, and odor control.
How to maintain a feather comforter
Simply dry it out once a week. Nitori’s feather comforters are “home-washable”, so they’re easy to take care of even when soiled.
1.Fold the comforter compactly and put it into a cleaning net.
Vertically fold the futon a third and while removing the air, roll it up to put into the cleaning net
2.Put liquid detergent into water cooler than 30℃.
Dissolve liquid detergent in water cooler than 30℃, and let the water penetrate the feather comforter by squeezing it lightly. If there are stains that are hard to remove, do partial washing in advance with a solution of detergent and water.
3.Wash on the gentle setting.
Wash the futon on a gentle setting. The trick is to wash it gently like fine clothing.
4.Rinse it thoroughly.
Rinse the futon in cold water three or four times to completely remove the detergent. Spin-drying for a few minutes in advance of rinsing helps to rinse it faster.
5.Spin-dry the futon for about 5 minutes, and then place it in the sun.
Dry the comforter well in the sun after about 5 minutes of spin-drying. To dry the comforter completely, fluff the feathers first, and then hang the futon out to dry. That protects the futon from mold and bed mites. We recommend turning it upside down and/or rotating it 180 degrees every one hour or two hours during drying.
Handling bedclothes during the rainy season
Dry them in the sun, when the sun is shining.
When the sun shines in the rainy season, air out your bed clothes in the sun, even if only for 30 minutes. Turn comforters and mattresses over. Sheet covers, pillows, pajamas and stuffed animal also should be placed in the sun. Let feather comforters receive direct sunlight for 30 minutes on each side. If the weather turns cloudy or hazy, quickly take them in to keep them from getting damp.
Hang unused bedclothes out to dry as well.
Pull out all unused bedclothes, kotatsu covers, and cushions from the closet and put them in the sun or breeze, even if only for a short time.
Dry your closets as well as your bedclothes.
There’s no point in hanging out your bedclothes if your bedroom and closet are humid. Open the window and closet door to air them out. Don’t forget to open both sides of the closet doors to get a good breeze. The use of a compact closet dehumidifier is recommended.
Wash covers, sheets and pajamas frequently
Frequently change and wash covers, sheets, and pajamas that come in contact with bare skin. Use clean and well-dried ones, especially for infants and children, who have high metabolism, and for junior and senior high school students, who are prone to rashes. When the laundry does not dry completely, try using a washer-dryer, an iron, an air-conditioner or an electric fan.
Machine-wash dirty comforters and mattresses.
Immediately machine-wash in cold water any comforters and mattresses that have been soiled by bedwetting or with sweat. No matter how many times you hang such a comforter and mattress outside, It won't because urine and sweat contain salt, attracts dampness. Cold water helps wash this out.
Re-fluff cotton comforters and mattresses
A bedding store can re-fluff a quality cotton comforters and mattresses. Generally, a comforter can be re-fluffed every 5 years (3 years for a mattress) up to a total of three times. When adding batting, use cotton for futons and polyester for comforters, so that they become more comfortable to use. If you have the cotton for futons extracted to the total weight of 4 kg, it becomes easy to carry. Spread it over a mattress. Then, it will feel soft and warm, even in winter.
