Winter Preparations

Determined not to freeze to death like I did last year, I have spent most of this year planning for this winter's cold weather. First step on my list was to remove the old, fiberglass heating ducts as well as the Freon-filled heater and air conditioner that has made me sick for the last eight winters. It's been such a nice feeling to have the crawlspace cleared of all those toxic materials.

Next I had cadet heaters installed in the living room, kitchen, bathroom, and office. I already had two cadet heaters in the bedrooms upstairs, so that's a total of SIX! Although it's not nearly close to freezing outside, we've had a few mornings when the temperatures dipped a little low and I could hardly wait to try them out. Within minutes the rooms were toasty. This is a huge difference as the old, creepy heating system would take at least an hour to warm up the house before I would feel a difference. I have lots of hope for a toasty winter! It'll be interesting to see what happens with my electric bill. With heat this efficient, I have high (unrealistic) hopes heating costs will be lower than they've ever been.


The next step in the plan was to buy warm, comfortable, organic bedding. I was tired of cheap, formaldehyde-soaked sheets so I splurged and bought organic jersey sheets. Although they arrived with silicon gel packs to prevent mildew in transportation and storage, after six washings they now smell fine and they are soft and so very comfortable.

The final step in the plan was to purchase an organic, wool-stuffed comforter. This has been a dream of mine for many years, but cost prohibitive. Last winter when it got really cold, I used my old polyester sleeping bag on top all my blankets, comforter, and sheets for warmth. So I headed back to Holy Lamb Organics to find out about discounted merchandise.

I love this company. It's located in an old, remodeled turn-of-the-century grocery store and all the original wood counters, shelves and hardwood floors are still there. There is a sign on the door stating it is a fragrance-free facility and asking people to refrain from the stink. My kind of business!

They make their comforter shells from organic cotton and they had fabric with flaws offered at a discount. I informed the salesperson of my concerns with packing chemicals and my not-so-good experience with the organic sheets from one of their suppliers. In order to alleviate my worries, she actually went into their stockroom, retrieved a queen-sized comforter shell and let me smell it. When I deemed it safe by exclaiming it smells natural, like a plant (cotton!?), she put my name on it.

Then I had a choice between thin, medium or thick wool filling. She asked if I slept hot or cold. I said, "Oh, God...Have you ever had a hot flash?" I told her I used to sleep cold, but that's not a guarantee. Last winter I fantasized about the thickest comforter possible, but now during a hot summer day, I waffled. I ended up ordering the medium thickness as I was worried the thicker comforter would never fit in any washing machine, let alone mine.

They HAND SEW these comforters together. I wish I would have taken photos of the tables with the fabric pieces. I watched one comforter-maker climb inside the shell to strategically place the wool batting. There was something very organic watching people hand-create something. The downside to hand-made, organic items is they don't come cheap. I kept chanting to myself, This WILL add joy to my life!!!  An organic, wool-filled, hand-made comforter is definitely a luxurious item.

While shopping online I found most of the organic, wool comforters needed to be dry cleaned. Eeeww! I have seen dry cleaners who advertise they are "organic", but I don't know what that means. Holy Lamb Organic comforters may be washed, but they give specific directions on HOW to wash them and make no guarantees. Their ultimate advice is to cover them with a duvet and avoid washing them if possible.



 

It's definitely beautiful, soft and fluffy. One thing I didn't expect is it smells like WOOL, a oily, sheep-y smell. I only smelled the shell before ordering, not the insides. It smells like the vitamin D capsules I used to use for moisturizer before the side effects started. Lanolin has never been a problem for me, nor wool, so I assumed the glycerin in the capsules were the cause of my discomfort.  I intend to cover the comforter with a cotton, flannel duvet so I'm hoping it'll seal it. Or maybe with time it'll offgas. With MCS, there is always a risk with trying out new products. It could be a very expensive, money-wasting experiment OR it could be incredibly joyous. Right now I am very hopeful!

UPDATES:  Good lord, this comforter is the best purchase I've made in a long, long time! I placed a duvet cover over it and that could be why I haven't smelled the wool. The wool is amazingly heat regulating. I love it!