Frequently asked questions

Wool is nature’s insulator and buffer against temperatures variations

What is Tog, and what Tog ratings are associated with Southdown duvets?

Read more here.

Will the Southdown duvet be warm enough in winter? If so, will it not be too warm in summer?

Wool is nature’s insulator and buffer against temperatures variations. In colder times of the year, it is a very effective insulator, keeping you warm.

In summer, you will not overheat under the duvet and the wool fill will “breathe” wicking moisture away from your body, preventing disturbed sleep caused by sweating.

When you first meet a Southdown duvet, you may think that it is too light and thin to do the job properly. But sleep under one and you will appreciate its remarkable thermal qualities.

How come the Southdown duvets needs dry-cleaning when internet research shows that there are machine washable wool duvets on the market?

Without chemical treatment, all wool will felt if it is washed. To render an item of wool machine washable, the wool is treated either with chlorine or coated with a silicon resin. This in our opinion alters the wool, stripping it of its naturalness of wool and greatly reduces the purity of the final product. We have taken a decision to keep our Southdown duvets as nature intended – pure wool in pure cotton covers with as little chemical intervention as possible and this means dry clean only.

How often will I need to dry clean my Southdown duvet?

In the absence of any serious spills or accidents, the duvet is protected in your duvet cover. Air your duvet once a week when you change your bed linen and you should only need to dry clean your duvet once a year.

Remember, that the moisture that the wool absorbs from your body just evaporates away and therefore your duvet will remain fresh and clean.

If the Southdown duvet is made from British wool, how come they are manufactured in Italy?

When we researched the whole Southdown duvet project, we had lengthy discussions with the British Wool Marketing Board, folk who know a lot about wool.

Their advice was clear – the Italians have the expertise and experience to treat superior quality wool to its highest specification. They have doing this in the foothills of the Alps for generations, building up their experience and optimising on the freshest cleanest Alpine mountain waters which are best for washing our Southdown wool.

How is the wool sewn into the Southdown duvets?

The scoured and carded wool which looks like a thick layer of butter-coloured cottonwool is sewed into the cotton cover in one huge piece that spans the entire length and width of the duvet. Channels about 8-10 inches are then sewn down and across the cotton cover anchoring the wool in snug squares. So there can be no bunching of filling like feathers and no hot and cold spots in your duvet, just an even layer of soft bouncy comfort.

How can these duvets benefit asthma sufferers?

Feather, down and synthetic duvet fillings over time begin to breakdown and disintegrate . This generates dust which aggravate all kinds of breathing allergies and conditions as well as encouraging the presence of dustmites. Wool does not disintegrate like this and therefore does not generate dust.

What about other health benefits?

Because wool wicks moisture away from your body from where it evaporates through the fibre, not only you but also the duvets remains comfortably dry so there is no dampness which might encourage the growth of mildew or mould.

What happens if a Southdown duvet does not suit me?

Let us know within seven days and provided the duvet is not damaged, we will arrange to have it collected from you and will refund you in full. That is how confident we are that you will not be disappointed if you buy a Southdown duvet.

Has anyone ever returned a Southdown duvet?

Yes but very rarely. Everyone is different and what they need out of their bedding to get a good night’s sleep is as varied as our customer’s personalities. One gentleman said our duvets were too light but he had been brought up under UK boarding school horse hair blankets during the war. He admitted he needed to sleep under a bag of coal! Another said our duvets were too heavy but he was used to Siberian goose down. One lady loved the duvet but said she needed a squashy pillow and ours were too bouncy. We understand and celebrate our collective differences and are happy to accommodate our customers. But one thing is for certain: no one has ever returned a Southdown bedding product because of sub-standard quality of materials or manufacturing or poor service. So you can feel confident when you order from us, we will honour our return policy. So you have nothing to lose and everything to gain by coming to us for a potential remedy for your sleep issues.

How does a Southdown duvet differ from other wool duvets and why are they more expensive that other wool duvets?

It’s all in the wool and there are a number of reasons. Firstly, Southdown wool has a short staple length which is the length of each fibre. This means that Southdown wool does not make wonderful knitting yarns but it excels as a duvet filling – bouncy and thick. Other wools that go into duvets typically are taken from Texel and Merino sheep. The wool has a longer staple length and the resultant duvet, although perfectly acceptable, lacks the body and bouncy comfort offered by Southdown duvets – the other duvets have been described as “flat”. Secondly, the Southdown breed as only recently been removed from the rare breeds list and there are a limited number of Southdown sheep living in the UK. This limits the amount of wool that is available annually to make the Southdown bedding products. So when you buy a Southdown duvet, pillow or mattress cover, you are buying a limited edition and when we sell out – that’s it for the year. We then have to wait for the next year’s shearing when we can collect this precious commodity and make more lovely duvets and stuff. And finally its all in the manufacturing. Our wool is treated by people who understand the fleeces and are passionate about the material. They manufacture the duvets to the highest specification. There is no mass-produced sweat shop stuff here. If you are content with cheap and nasty, these duvets are not for you.

There is such a huge array of different duvets out there, what should I be looking out for to ensure I get the one that is best for me?

Buying a duvet is very much an example of you will get what you pay for. After all your research we hope that you will buy a Southdown duvet. But if you elect not to, at least do yourself a favour and spend the absolute maximum you can afford because anything else over time will prove false economy. A poor quality duvet could result in disturbed sleep and nightly discomfort which will impact on your wellbeing. What price can you put on a really good night’s sleep?

But here are some other pointers...

Don’t do cheap. If you settle for a cheap synthetic duvet on the basis of “oh that will do” think again because your long term health and wellbeing, linked to the quality of your sleep, is at stake.

You will sweat under a synthetic duvet and it probably will not keep you warm enough in winter. Like feathers and down it may cause allergies, blocked sinuses and result in a stuffy nose and difficult breathing.

Watch out for feather/down ratios. We have seen apparently good value “down” duvets which actually contain more feathers than down. Feathers are inferior insulators and their little quills often poke through the covers, causing much annoyance.

Check carefully how the fill in sewn into the cotton cover. Make sure it is channelled in squares that keep the filling from bunching at the bottom of the duvet, causing unpleasant hot and cold spots. Be aware that the tog rating measures warmth but NOT necessarily comfort. A very high tog duvet for example can be warm but also very heavy and may cause night sweats. Think twice before buying a duvet that has a polyester or cotton/polyester mix cover. Pure cotton only for real comfort.