My name is Ryan North. I am the co-owner (along with my wife) of Moss Envy. I am 36 years old and have spent about 13,350 nights sleeping on a mattress. That’s about (give or take a few all nighters in college) 106,800 hours spent laying, resting, sleeping, reading, and uh… doing other such things on a mattress. This (to me) is a lot of time. A great amount of time in fact. A large percentage of my life – and yours – is spent on a mattress.
Now, go with me on this mini-journey. You have had a long day at work. You come home, take a bath, put on your PJs, watch some TV, and decide to retire early to do some reading. You escape to your bedroom, light a candle next to your bed, and start reading that novel that you’ve been waiting to sink your teeth into. About 15 pages in, your eyelids start to droop, and you begin the half conscious, half un-conscious battle. As you give into sleep, you pull the covers over your body and slip into dreamy time. What you didn’t notice is that when you bundled up, the corner of your blanket landed above your candle and caught on fire.
Luckily for you, 
however, your mattress didn’t catch on fire, but resisted igniting due to the fire retardant chemicals present in your mattress. Chemicals that “protect” you with names like antimony trioxide, ammonium polyphosphate, boric acid, decabromodiphenyloxide (DBDPO), melamine, and vinylidene chloride.
Yeah. It’s great that mattresses are designed and regulated by our government to give you time to escape in the very rare instance that your mattress catches on fire. This piece of legislation was introduced in January of 2005, and became a national law on July 1, 2007. It mandates that all consumer mattress be made flame proof, in such a way that they can withstand an open flame blowtorch for 70 seconds and not ignite for a period of 30 minutes afterwards.
Reports on how many people per year are saved from mattress fires due to these measures range from 21 to 330. Regardless of which number you accept, double or even triple that… the number pales in comparison to the U.S. population of approximately 311 million who are put at some level of risk from sleeping in toxic chemicals. This is not just speculation. There is ample evidence to cause concern. Here are just a few articles in support of the danger posed by these chemicals:
A majority of the population is unaware of the chemicals in their mattress and have no idea that their choice of mattress could be compromising their health.
You may say that you’ve been sleeping on a chemical filled mattress for years – decades even – and haven’t noticed any health ramifications. I also know that I try to eat organic food, I am aware of the ingredients list of the products that I rub on my skin, and I don’t use chemicals to clean my house. My family and I take reasonable precautions to avoid potentially hazardous substances. Are we perfect? Of course not. Do I keep myself and my family away from all potentially harmful substances? I’m sure I don’t. BUT, if there is a risk that any of these chemicals might trigger a degenerative disease, I’d rather avoid them and find alternatives. Fifty years ago, asbestos was used in construction materials. Today, the law requires that specialists in protective gear remove the same asbestos. Fifty years from now, what will we be saying about the synthetic chemicals in mattresses? So what can you do? Do you have a choice?
FORTUNATELY, YOU DO HAVE A CHOICE! A choice in mattresses that will contribute not only to your quality of restorative sleep, but do so without exposing you to the use of synthetic and potentially harmful materials. The flame proofing of your mattress can be safely achieved by non-chemical, inert, and even organically certified materials.
Our most popular mattress – the Serenity by Savvy Rest – gets its flame resistance from simple, organic wool. Regular wool that is safely harvested from sheep raised on organic farms is quilted between layers of organic cotton. This allows the Serenity to pass the government’s stringent open flame testing and keeps you safe from your mattress bursting into flames. Organic wool/organic cotton is utilized in the casing that envelops three layers of natural, botanical, and supremely comfortable (and durable) latex rubber!
SO WHAT ARE YOU WAITING FOR??? Hopefully, by you reading this, I have helped remove the first barrier to getting you in a healthier mattress – simply knowing about them. You can’t make an informed choice if you don’t know you have one. Done! The second and third barriers are timing and money. Perhaps you just bought a mattress and it doesn’t make sense for you to buy a new one right now… but with every passing day we get inevitably closer to needing a new mattress. The time will come! For some people, the hardest barrier to overcome may be financial. Right now, our popular queen size Serenity Dunlop Latex Mattress costs $2299. However, take into consideration the durability of natural latex. Unlike synthetic polyurethane based foams, it does NOT readily break down, forming an impression or trench where your body lays. All of Moss Envy’s latex mattresses carry a 20 year warranty and will most likely out-perform their warranty period. Think about how many mattresses most people buy over the course of 20 years… at least two, maybe three. When purchasing with sustainability in mind, you are often paying more up front for a quality product that will serve your needs longer. An organic latex mattress from Moss Envy is a long-term investment in your immediate comfort and health!
BUT IS IT COMFORTABLE? I don’t care how sustainable or healthy a mattress may be – it has to be comfortable and serve your needs as a sleeper. Savvy Rest’s Serenity mattress is designed to be completely customizable, providing a proper fit for your particular body type and sleeping style. Visit Moss Envy to work one on one with our mattress experts to choose the firmness of each of the three layers of natural latex. We can also accommodate two sleeping partner’s individual needs within one mattress.
RESEARCH IT, TRY IT, BUY IT! We encourage you to do your own research and come to your own conclusions when it comes to the important decision of choosing a mattress. I believe that by choosing to sleep on one of our own Serenity Mattresses – I have positively impacted my health and my future wellness. Not to mention… It’s so darn comfortable! However, don’t just take my word for it… Read some of the reviews that our Serenity Mattress is garnering (follow the link and scroll down) or come in to Moss Envy and see for yourself!
The first one is called the Smokey Amp! Beloved across the globe by guitarists – the company that makes the Smokey Amp, claims that it is the most popular guitar amplifier in the world! Take one empty cigarette hard pack and jam it with some electronics and a speaker and you got the Smokey Amp! Plug your electric guitar into the input port and you’re ready to go. It’s actually pretty loud for its size. The volume is controlled by the volume knob on the guitar. There is also an out port that you can use to hook up to speakers – the Smokey Amp acts as a pre-amp! Love it! It makes the perfect gift for the guitarist in your life. It beats lugging around even a small regular amp. Just throw it in your case and you’re ready to jam anywhere. Moss Envy sells it for $33.00. Click on the pic to buy it.
This next product is perhaps the crown jewel of eco-geekiness! The zenith of sustainable-nerddom! Introducing the Solar Array Backpack from Voltaic! The Array Solar Backpack both carries and charges your laptop. It’s like having a spare laptop battery! It will also charge cell phones, tablets and digital cameras. The front solar pocket is removable and can be attached to other bags for convenient charging. Besides charging all your electronics, it has 1,500 cubic inches of storage space, a padded laptop sleeve, integrated phone pouch and plenty of other pockets. It’s also made with recycled PET (soda bottles),which is waterproof, lightweight and UV resistant. This bag definitely turns heads. Be prepared to field questions and take compliments. We suggest you have some Moss Envy business cards on hand ready to pass out. Find this at www.mossenvy.com for $389.00. Click the pic to buy!
Ask any owner of an independent, local store what some of their favorite experiences are when they are on duty, and I will bet my employee discount they will include the daily interactions with their customers. Every time we hear the door chime or your voices as you step across the threshold, there is a shared anticipation by the employees as to how our greeting will be received and how we can make your visit a pleasant experience. With a “Mom & Pop” store there are no scripts, no strategies, and our greetings are usually based on our own personalities. I can almost hear the cringing that goes on behind me from the register when I am having an exceptionally exuberant day. But much to my relief, customers usually cut me a little slack when I all but droll over their beautiful children and babies. I’m a seasoned Grandma, what can I say…?”
