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White Goose Down Comforter
How to Buy a White Goose Down Comforter
Sleeping in luxury is no longer for just the privileged,
bed & breakfast or five star hotels. The soft warmth of
a white goose down comforter is now an affordable luxury
and can make your bedroom a haven. There are just a few
things to keep in mind when investing in your first down
comforter.
Thread count is exceptionally important when choosing
your white goose down comforter because this is what
will help keep your down clusters where they belong—in
the comforter. The higher the thread count the more
likely you are to keep most of the down from flying
around your bedroom or decorating the duvet.
An average thread count is 300 for many comforters;
however the higher the thread count, threads per square
inch, the better. Some stores carry white goose down
comforters with thread counts of 1000 and higher. The
higher thread counts are also softer and will typically
last longer.
Fill Power is how much volume an ounce of down will take
up. The higher the fill power, the more room one ounce
of down will take up. This will make your comforter
warmer and lighter. The lower fill powers are often down
mixed with feathers. The feather can be prickly and make
the comforter heavier.
Fill powers range from less than 500 to 750 on average.
Usually a higher fill power is more expensive and
contains a higher quality of down. There are affordable
comforters available with fill powers between 500 and
650.
Down is the insulating layer underneath the feathers of
ducks and geese. It is light and fluffy. The type of
down in your comforter will contribute the quality and
fill power of your comforter as well as the allergen
rating.
Comforters with a combination of down and feathers will
have a lower fill power and could be less comfortable
since feathers have quills that can come out and get
stuck. It will also be heavier, but it will probably not
be warmer since feathers are flat and do not insulate
like down.
Duck down is generally considered not to be as high of
quality as goose down. Goose down from geese in colder
regions is more rare and higher priced. Eiderdown and
Hungarian goose down are prized for their high fill
power and rarity.
Make sure the down comforter you have purchased has down
that has been thoroughly cleaned to reduce allergens.
The way a comforter is constructed will make a
difference in where your down ends up by morning. The
most common way to keep down from shifting is by using a
box-stitch or baffling. Box-stitching is where the
comforter has been sewn into squares to prevent the down
from moving.
Baffled box construction keeps the down in place, but
also keeps the thickness of the comforter throughout.
This is accomplished by an internal layer of fabric sewn
between the top and bottom of the comforter. The layer
of fabric strips forms a box and keeps the feathers from
compressing and moving.
The advantage of baffled box over box-stitch is that the
box-stitch can bind or compress the down at the edges of
the box while the baffled box will allow the down to
move freely.
When you purchase a white goose down comforter keep in
mind all of the characteristics that are important to
you and make your choice based on quality instead of
name brand. A high fill power, a high thread count,
quality goose down and the construction all contribute
to a sound investment in your sleep.
About the Author
Melissa Nedved is a freelance writer and a contributor to
http://comforter-n-duvet-cover.com.
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