Have you tried down?

I've been in a similar situation. They've stopped making the kind of pillow I used to love. What I finally found most comfortable is buckwheat hulls. I would so like an old fashioned firm but lofty pillow, but at least the buckwheat hulls are supportive and malleable, and suffice for side sometimes and back others, and I'm not allergic to them. They're kind of hard though. :)

I have several of the latex pillows from bed bath and beyond, absolutely love them! I hate to sleep on anything other than a latex pillow. I am a side sleeper. If you decide to go to bbb for one there's a code to them for firmness but it's not on the label. You have to unzip the cover and on the end of pillow will be a number like from 1 to 6 one is the softest and 6 the firmest. I had to go through a bunch of pillows to find the ones I wanted. Their latex pillows are about the best price you can find and they are talalay latex.

And, when you wake up p-log, with some milk you've got breakfast.

I'm not much of a shopper, are these widely available? I hate any form of latex or foam and my old down pillow needs to be replaced. I need low-medium height, soft, scrunchable to adjust the shape and become a bit more firm.

I just purchased a latex pillow for DH...he is a happy camper. (after reading the long discussion some time ago, thanks) For me I got one of the round 'log" ones, in the hope of not having the one side of my hair sticking up always. Sorta working, but it does need to be less round.

I have a water filled pillow, like a water bed, that can be adjusted any way you'd like. I got mine from my chiropractor, but they are available on Amazon. Best pillow I've ever had.....

I have the worst time with pillows, what feels good in the store doesn't translate to sleeping on them like I expect. I have six on the bed right now. DH is using one, firm density down (Charter Club, I think Vail). I have that one too, and two soft density down I'm scrunching up and moving around, using three pillows for various sleep positions....I sleep on both my side and my back. The two firmest on the bed don't even get used, more often thrown to the foot or onto the floor.

Nanny, you have one side of hair sticking up in the morning? I could scare the fur off the cat with mine with the way I nest and burrow. My paper carrier can't even see me in the morning, I duck and hide.

SW, it's the hulls. The breakfast part isn't in there anymore.

I don't know if your question was addressed to me, so I'll assume it was and put the information up for anyone interested. Yes, the buckwheat hull pillows are widely available in California, and if not locally to you, they have them on Amazon as well as many other places online. My friend's b-i-l thinks they're too noisy. I don't wiggle a lot once I've found a comfortable spot to sleep in, so the sound of the hulls rubbing together doesn't bother me. When I do turn my head and adjust, I like the sound. I can't vouch for the tolerance of your bedmate to night sounds, but it's really not loud enough to bother her/him unless there's a big sensitivity to small sounds. They aren't "soft", per se--they're actually hard--but infinitely scrunchable into your preferred shape. You can adjust the scrunchability by adding or taking away some hulls (you can get refills separately). If you're big on night sweats, the buckwheat hulls shouldn't make you hot, but you should dry your pillow in the sun to keep it fresh. Similarly, choose the shape/side/depth of the case to suit the height you want, then scrunch away. When I roll on my side I fatten mine up, and when I lay on my back, I flatten it out with a neck ridge.

I don't like latex or foam either, but I do miss old fashioned Dacron, with no anti-microbial chemicals (I'm allergic to them--I'd rather have the mites).

Have any of you checked out Sleep Like the Dead.com?

I could not stand the scratchy sound of the hulls when I tried one, it made my skin crawl. And it was hard! I just as soon grab a sack of rice. Definitely not for me but had a friend that lived with us for a while that loved his. I swear when I wake up in the morning I have the best mowhawk hair going on lol. I don't let anyone see me, I keep a cap on the dresser in case the doorbell rings, I grab the cap.

Another vote for the buckwheat hull pillow. I've been a fan for over 20 years. It's smaller than a conventional bed pillow, and heavier, but it conforms so nicely to whatever position one chooses to sleep.

If you sleep on your back, make a depression in the pillow for the back of your head and there's comforting support under the neck; it's like a cradle. On your side, push up a mound to support your head and avoid neck strain.

If you choose to give one a try, be sure to get the buckwheat hull one. Avoid the pillow with the tiny poly beads as those don't hold their shape like the buckwheat hulls do; I find them very unsatisfactory.

Here's the brand I first bought many years ago and which I replace periodically:

http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/store/product/sobakawa-buck-pillow/1017217151?Keyword=buckwheat+pillow

We would get new pillows every 6-12 months until we purchased MY Pillow - http://www.mypillow.com/promo-code.html. LOVE them because they can be washed, which refreshes them almost like new again, and we've washed ours over and over several times a year, and it's been at least 3-years since we purchased them (they have a 10-year warranty). I have the green level and hubby has the larger blue level. If you don't like it, you can return it.

-Grainlady

Natura Ultimate Latex pillow. It is awesome.

Read the threads here on it.

http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/3061084/natura-pillows?n=27

http://ths.gardenweb.com/discussions/2629444/natura-latex-pillow?n=138

I've always liked down because I can scrunch it any way I like--especially for neck support. I tried buckwheat, but it was too hard for me, especially if I turned on my side.

I've always had goose down, but my current pillow is filled with duck down, by Eddie Bauer. Squishable, soft enough, and not prohibitively expensive.

Well, I may have been interested in trying a buckwheat pillow until plllog and Raven mentioned the noise. There's no way in the world that I wouldn't find little crunchy noises in my ears and skull hugely distracting!

I tried a latex pillow, Natura Ultimate, after reading about it here, I believe. I am a lifetime down pillow user, but couldn't find a replacement for my much loved bedmate. And I was suffering because of it!

So, I bit the bullet and ordered the latex Natura from Overstock several months ago. I just knew that I wouldn't like it the moment I unpacked it, but decided to give it a try for a night.

Well, I liked it SO much that when Robert asked to try it for a night to see if he might want to buy one, I wouldn't let him have it, lol.

It's soft, yet extremely supportive; it doesn't get hot, or lose its shape, or require fluffing and turning. It's not scrunchable, though, Snidely, a characteristeric I, too, thought was necessary for me to like it. I was wrong.

Our Natura pillows (yes, Robert did buy his own) come with a travel bag and I know why. Mine will go with me when I go anywhere overnight!

The bed-head issue is interesting. I wake up ready to go but was attributing that to my newish hair style but maybe it's the pillow! They both happened at about the same time.

I'll take a look at the latex pillows at BBB. Thanks for the tip on the firmness level, Raven. The Naturas look good, not my price but would be worth it if I sleep better, for sure. Buckwheat, no way, but good to hear others like it. Down too mushy.

I didn't realize we had a pillow thread going previously. Thank you everyone!

To morz8

Nothing to say about pillows, but I had a good laugh at the expression "scare the fur off a cat."

Never had heard that one before.

I bought this one recently I like it. its a "Mlily" aloe vera

rhizo, does your pillow have any push-back to it? (I'm not sure how to describe it) That's what I don't like about foam pillows, the same sensation as compressing a piece of foam or a soft ball, where the material resists the force and pushes back. I find that bouncy feeling incredibly uncomfortable.

Some down pillows act that way too, as if inflated with air, because the cover seems too airtight and it's as if it's blown up like a balloon. A desirable down pillow for me is scrunchable and offers a gentle softness but no push-back.

Im a big fan of latex pillows, been using them for quite a few years now and couldn't imagine using any other type. I like mine to be soft but dh prefers a hard one. I just have to make sure I don't mix them up when I change the pillow cases. At first it was a bit weird, was so bouncy that I found I woke up a few times during the night (dh noticed the same thing) but I think you get used to it after several days and it stops being a problem.

I have 2 Tempurpedic pillows. I have the hard one that one side is for back sleepers and the other side is for side sleepers and I also have the just regular tempurpedic one that looks like a normal pillow. I love them both. The firmer one really does conform to the way you sleep and your head seems to cradle in it instead of sink down with your neck pushed up if that makes sense. It does take a few nights to get used to them but now I can't use a regular pillow, I even take it with me when I travel.

I will warn you neither of them are cheap but if you watch the sales at Bed Bath and Beyond and use the 20% off you can get them at a decent price.

Snidely, it's very hard to describe the 'head feel' of my pillow. The manufacturing process includes layering and wrapping that prevents that bouncy feeling....but without your head sinking in a leaving an impression. The pillow never compresses, yet the top layers are very comforting and giving.

There is a buoyancy to it from deep within, but not on the surface. Again, it's not a pillow that you can scrunch and poke and prod until it's 'just right'.

See? I really can't describe it.

Purchased the Natura Ultimate Latex pillow for myself and all my family. My granddaughter swears she quit having problems with her neck hurting after sleeping on the pillow.

I've been looking at Natura on Overstock & Amazon.

I don't see why spend so much more for the name, the pillows are made the same way, with out a cover on them you would not be able to tell the difference, they are made of the same materials, the same way. But I am not a big name buyer on anything. I do go for good quality and workmanship. I bought them for my RV too because I will not be with out them.

Yeah, I don't get paying a huge price tag for the same thing. I LOVE my BBB pillow! It's awesome! It was about $24 with the coupon. If I didn't like, I could have just taken it back.

Raven, I'd have to examine those other pillows with my own eyes and hands before I'd be assured that they weren't a knock-off. Next time I'm in the market for pillows, I'll check it out.

I bought a Martha Stewart down alternative pillow at Macy's when they were on sale. I actually like it a lot I'm also a side sleeper and don't like a pillow that is too firm or too soft. This is just about right b

I have done comparisons, they are all made exactly the same way with the same type of latex with out a cover on they look just alike. Same holes same weight. It wouldn't be a knock off anyway there are hundreds of companies that make and sell latex pillows Natura is just one such brand. Amazon has multiple choices, eBay does too. It's just brand name choice.

I used to have so much trouble with stiff necks. Then I discovered the Tony Little Pillows. I have been using them for probably 6 years and have not had a stiff neck since. In case the link doesn't work just look up Tony Little Pillows. They aren't hard or noisy. :)

Mammie, that's what made me start the thread! They had those pillows on HSN the other evening. I read the reviews, and they often commented that the stitching came undone. I considered ordering them.

We shopped pillows for months and have settled on a custom pillow (made by us). We blended wool and shredded latex. For a queen pillow, we mixed 1.2 lbs of fluffed wooly bolas with 2.5 lbs of shredded latex. For us it's a perfect combination of squishy firm, not floppy like 100% shredded latex and less than half the weight; sleeps very cool; and doesn't push back (a common characteristic of latex). It makes for a great side sleeper pillow since it has an adjustable loft which is very important for side sleepers.

I have the Natura Ultimate, and one difference that should be noted are the sizes. Natural is a Canadian company, and the pillow sizes are not the same as American pillow sizes. The "Standard" Natura is very small, I think more for a child. The next size is somewhere between an American standard and American queen. Pillow cases don't fit it all that well.

Rhizo is absolutely right and in fact echoes what both Holly-Kay and I said to try to describe the pillow, that it's very hard to describe: it is soft, but very supportive.