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23rd May 2016

Difference between 'feel' and spring tension?

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Alan Robiette

We are looking for a king-size pocket-spring mattress with all-natural upholstery fillings, and have been comparing the top four models of your Artisan range. However even after reading through quite a lot of the information on your very useful site, I am still not clear about how the two parameters 'feel' and spring tension relate to one another. All four mattresses are available in soft, medium and firm spring tensions so we can choose appropriately there: we are both in the 11-16 stone bracket so I assume you would normally recommend a medium tension for both of us. But as far as 'feel' is concerned, we find the following comments:Artisan Bespoke 004 - Medium Feel (no other special qualification)Artisan Luxury - Softer Feel ("Our softest 100% Natural mattress with incredibly deep sinking layers ...")Artisan Bespoke - Firmer Feel ("Our firmest 100% natural fibre mattress ..."")Artisan Bespoke 002 - Medium Feel ("... our highest specification highly responsive mattress")[The softer/medium/firmer descriptions of 'feel' do not seem to correlate in any obvious way with either spring count or GSM of fillings.]How do we judge from all this which mattress might suit us best? My partner likes a soft feel which would seem to point to the Artisan Luxury; I like a firmer feel which might call for the Artisan Bespoke. Or should we perhaps compromise on the Artisan Bespoke 002 which is described as medium in feel but "highly responsive" (and what exactly does "responsive" mean in the context of soft/medium/firm feel)? Obviously we could, if we chose to, have a different tension on the two halves of the mattress - although our body weights don't seem to indicate that as being necessary - but we can't do that with 'feel' so it's important to get it right.Your help would be very much appreciated!

JohnRyanLtd Answered 6 months ago

Hi Alan,

 

Thanks for your question.

 

Every pocket sprung mattress has 2 elements to it. You have the spring tension that is determined by body weight alone as this is what provides you the support from inside the mattress.

 

You then have the fillings that sit atop those springs, acting as the comfort layer and this is what's referred to as the "feel".

 

As every pocket sprung mattress has different fillings it logically tracks that each has a different feel.

 

At your body weights we would match you both with a Medium spring tension to get the right support.

 

Bodyweight Spring tension
Upto 16 Stone / 50-101kg Medium (1.4mm)
16 Stone / 101kg Upwards Firm (1.6mm)
Available in Bespoke Products (Please Call) Soft (1.2mm)

 

The Artisan Bespoke 004 is very much a true medium in that top layer providing a slight sink but not too much. The Artisan Luxury is the softest mattress in that top layer providing a luxurious sink in sensation. The Artisan Bespoke 002 has a medium comfort layer but is given a softer feel due to the dual layered spring system inside. Due to that dual layered spring system it is very responsive meaning it picks up movement straight away and is a very bouncy and springy mattress. The Artisan Bespoke is the firmest mattress we have in that top layer having no sort of sink in sensation whatsoever.

 

Whilst we are an online only retailer and don't have a showroom of our own we do have some comparison models in stores such as Furniture Village, Harrods, House of Fraser or And So To Bed. Please see below for the full breakdown of all 4 Artisan models as well as the comparison models in those stores;

 

John Ryan By Design Artisan Bespoke 004 Vi Spring Regal Superb
1 1200gsm Blended British Fleece Wool and Cotton 900gsm Blended real Shetland Isle Fleece Wool and Cotton
2 Hairproof Cambric Cover Hairproof Cambric Cover
3 200gsm Soft Bamboo NA
4 1200gsm Pure Horsetail 1200gsm long stranded Horsetail blended with British Fleece Wool
5 1000gsm Bonded British Fleece Wool and Cotton 1000gsm Bonded British Fleece Wool and Cotton
6 1600 Calico encased Pocket Springs [ 49mm ] [1.28mm] 1720 Calico encased Pocket Springs [48mm ] [1.28mm]
Total GSM 3600 gsm 3100 gsm

 

John Ryan By Design Artisan Luxury Vi-Spring Devonshire
1 1200 GSM British Fleece Wool and Cotton 600gsm British Fleece Wool
2 Hairproof Cambric Cover 1700gsm Devonshire Fleece Wool
3 1200gsm Pure Horsehair NA
4 500gsm Pure Wool NA
5 1200gsm Pure Horsetail NA
6 500gsm Pure Wool 300gsm Bonded British Fleece Wool and Cotton
7 1476 Calico encased Pocket Springs [51mm] [1.42mm] 1326 Calico encased Pocket Springs [54mm] [1.52mm]
Total GSM 4600gsm 2600gsm

 

John Ryan By Design Artisan Bespoke 002 Vi-Spring Tiara Superb
1 1200gsm Blended British Fleece Wool and Cotton 1200gsm Blended real Shetland Isle Fleece Wool and Cotton
2 Hairproof Cambric Cover Hairproof Cambric Cover
3 200gsm Soft Bamboo NA
4 1200gsm Pure Horsetail 1200gsm hand-teased long-stranded horsetail blended with real Shetland Isle fleece wool
5 1000 gsm Bonded British Fleece Wool and Cotton 1000gsm Bonded British Fleece Wool and Cotton
6 2508 (2 tiers) Calico encased Pocket Springs [56mm] [1.40mm] 2242 (2 tiers) Calico encased Pocket Springs [60mm] [1.42mm]
Total GSM 3600gsm 3400gsm

 

John Ryan By Design Artisan Bespoke Vi-Spring Herald Superb
1 500gsm British Wool 1200gsm Blended British Fleece Wool & Cotton
2 1200gsm Blended British Fleece Wool and Cotton NA
3 Hairproof Cambric Cover Hairproof Cambric Cover
4 1200gsm Pure Horsetail NA
5 1200gsm Horsehair 1200gsm Horsehair
6 1000gsm White Cashmere Insulator 1000gsm British Fleece Wool
7 1600 Calico encased Pocket Springs [49mm] [1.28mm] 1476 Calico encased Pocket Springs [51mm] [Gauge: 1.42mm]
Total GSM 5100gsm 3400gsm

 

These comparison models will give you a good idea of what our models feel like. Please note that we now also have a new product; Our Artisan Bespoke 003. This again has a dual layered spring system, similar to the Bespoke 002 but it has a significantly higher GSM, including Alpaca and Coir Coconut Fibre. It is a slightly firmer feeling model than the Bespoke 002 and also has our longest guarantee at 15 years.

 

 

I hope this has answered your questions fully but if you do have any further queries please don't hesitate to contact our office on 0161 437 4419. We are open Monday to Friday 8am to 8pm and Saturday and Sunday 10am to 4pm.

 

Kind Regards, Lee.

 

 

 

 

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