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Green Living Healthy Lifestyles Sleep Tips

Greening your bedroom

Since we spend a third to half our lives in our bedrooms or personal space, it makes good sense to make it as healthy as possible. Sleep deprivation has been proven to lead to number of health problems such as high blood pressure. The body needs sleep to replenish the damage of the day can do.

Making your bedroom eco-friendly consists of making many little changes to the decor of the room. This includes getting organic bedding, made with natural cotton, wool and latex, restored furniture, “green” paint, wood floors, natural fiber rugs, energy-efficient light bulbs, a dimmer switch and cotton pajamas. Surrounding yourself with natural fibers, pieces of furniture without glue or chemicals and paints with low- or no-volatile organic compounds (or VOCs) and organic cotton pajamas is a great way to keep your bedroom free of indoor pollution. Small steps like these help ensure that you are getting the most of your sleep experience.

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Green Living Healthy Lifestyles Made in the USA Miscellaneous Natural Bedroom Natural Home Organic Comfort Products & Sales Woman-Owned

The Perfect Mother’s Day Gift: SLEEP

It is no secret that moms are some of the most sleep-deprived people in the world. They tend to juggle responsibilities all day and spend countless hours at night thinking about how to juggle even more. Studies show that mothers with small children are seriously lacking sleep, which over time can have some pretty negative effects on both physical and mental health. No matter how old her children, mothers tend to continue the habit of putting others needs before their own. Instead of shopping for the trendiest new gift of fashion or settling for the obligatory flowers, why not give Mom what she really wants (and needs) – SLEEP!
Just in time for Mother’s Day, CozyPure has assembled a bundle of some of our most popular items for the sleep deprived mom. We’ve paired together:Mother's Day Bundle

  • Our best selling LaNoodle pillow, the perfect pillow for Mom – it is adaptable to any type of sleeper, made with all natural latex and organic cotton (no harmful chemicals) and simply the coziest pillow to be found – and designed to last up to 10 times longer than conventional pillows
  • Our ever popular Pebble Pique Travel Blanket which is handcrafted in our Virginia workshop and made from luxurious Organic Cotton Matelasse and beautiful like Mom
  • Organic Lavender Linen Spray, soothing aromatherapy to relax Mom’s mind, body and spirit

This trifecta is the perfect Mother’s Day gift and will arrive packaged in our kraft bag with a complimentary handcrafted note card.

Due to the handcrMothersDay_online cardafted nature of our items, we can’t guarantee delivery by Mother’s Day on orders received after May 1st. However, Mom will agree it’s worth the wait. In the meantime, you can print out a gift announcement HERE to put in Mom’s card notifying her that the gift of sleep is on the way!

Our products are sustainable, natural and organic and made in the USA, and our company is woman-owned by a mom that grew this company while raising children of her own. She thinks sleep is the perfect gift and every mom is sure to agree!

 

The retail price for the items in this bundle is $133 – the Mother’s Day Bundle is being offered for $99.  Valid until Mother’s Day 2016.

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Environment Green Living Miscellaneous Organic Apparel & Textiles Organic Clothing Press Releases

Project Earth Day: Fashion Trashion Runway Show

As manufacturers of natural latex mattresses and organic bedding, CozyPure has a year-round dedication to earth-friendly practices.  Not only do we manufacture GREEN bedding using only renewable and sustainable materials, we are eco-conscious in all of our operating procedures right down to the light bulbs we use in our showroom and workshop.  Although we like to think of everyday as a day to celebrate Earth and her renewable resources, we join the rest of Earth’s inhabitants to celebrate “Earth Day” on April 22 each year.  CozyPure typically has a sale each year to celebrate Earth Day and of course that is well received!  This year we will be doing something new and exciting (in addition to a sale):  A fashion show in which contestants will be challenged to use their creativity to design a wearable fashion using only local business scraps and waste, otherwise headed to the landfill.

On April 22, 2016, The Venue on 35th in the Park Place District of Norfolk will host Project Earth Day: Fashion Trashion Runway Show. Sponsored by CozyPure, Virginia Fashion Week and The Venue, this fashion competition is open to all ages and levels of experience.  project-earthday-poster

This community event seeks to showcase Hampton Roads’ creative talent while participating in environmental stewardship through the demonstration of upcycling – also known as creative reuse, is the process of transforming by-products, waste materials, useless and/or unwanted products into new materials or products of better quality or for better environmental value.

Attendees of the event will enjoy a runway show featuring the designs, as well as Earth Day-themed live performances by area talent presented in interims throughout the show.

All interested contestants are encouraged to register at http://www.cozypure.com/projectearthday. Spots are limited, first come first serve.

The general public is welcome to attend the event on Earth Day, April 22nd at the Venue on 35th located at 631 W 35th Street in Norfolk. Doors open at 6pm. Runway show starts at 7pm. Refreshments will be available for purchase through a local non-profit organization. Contact CozyPure Organic Mattresses and Bedding for more information, 757-480-8500.

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Green Living Miscellaneous Organic Comfort Organic Mattress & Bedding

From Rubber Milk to Latex: How is your Latex processed?

In the past 25 years CozyPure has accumulated customers from all over the country; Even before the internet, we were able to serve customers nationally through our catalog. Since purchasing a mattress is quite the investment, we have customers call our Norfolk, VA facility every day asking questions to help them finalize their purchasing decision. Some common questions include: the difference between our Organic Mattress and Natural Latex Mattress, how to determine the proper firmness, what materials are used in our all natural products and just general concerns you would expect from someone shopping for a new mattress.

I’ve also noticed that some consumers do a little more research than others and have very specific questions,like is our latex “dunlop” or “talalay.” I knew the answer to be “dunlop” but I did not know the difference between the two and decided to do some research. Here is what I found:

Natural latex starts out the same; Rubber milk is harvested from the rubber tree. You can read more about how CozyPure’s latex is harvested in our blog post, “Organic Comfort Made Fresh Daily with Farm Fresh ingredients.”RubberTree

After the rubber milk is harvested the way it is made into durable and all-natural latex varies; It will either be the “dunlop” process or the “talalay” method. Dunlop latex is mixed with a gelling agent while still in its liquid form and then put in molds and introduced to heat through a vulcanization oven. This vulcanization process is what turns the rubber milk into a durable foam rubber. It is then washed out to remove any naturally occurring impurities and then dried. A fairly simple process, which makes Dunlop latex more affordable and more eco-friendly. The Talalay process is more complicated. It requires the latex to be placed in a mold and then introduced to a vacuum for expansion, then frozen. The gelling occurs when carbon dioxide gas is forced through the mold. After the vacuum, freezing and gelling, it is then vulcanized. In addition to being a more expensive and less environmentally responsible process, it is not available in as many sizes and a naturally occurring topper is not made in the process as in the Dunlop process.

When discussing with Cheryl Hahn, the owner of CozyPure, about why CozyPure uses Dunlop latex in the crafting of our CozyPure organic mattresses, she refers to the Dunlop process as “tried and true.” “What I particularly like about our Dunlop latex rubber is that we deal direct with the grower. The latex is processed on site at the plantation. We never have to wonder what it went through before getting to us.” Hahn sums up her preference by saying, “It is grown there, harvested there, processed there and shipped directly to us.”

The Dunlop process results in the most natural latex available.
The Dunlop process results in the most natural latex available.

It may have been believed at one time that Talalay latex provided a softer alternative to the original Dunlop latex, however through constant improvements the Dunlop process has become more sophisticated. Through density variations and sculpting, Dunlop latex can acheive any desired softness while maintaining the firmness that makes it sought after. CozyPure’s mattresses are available in varying configurations to accommodate the various softness needs of individuals. If you are a discerning customer that wants to know how your latex is processed, now you know!

 

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Green Living Healthy Lifestyles Natural Bedroom Organic Mattress & Bedding

Eat healthy – sleep healthy!

NO FORMALDEHYDE, PBDEs, OR TOXIC CHEMICALS

We use three ingredients in our mattresses:

    • Organic Cotton
    • Pure Wool
    • Natural Latex Rubber

bed-materials
Really that’s all we use.

No hidden FR barriers. No hidden polyester blends. No synthetic latex. No foams. No glues. No toxic chemicals.


WHAT’S IN THAT CONVENTIONAL FOAM MATTRESS?
Polyurethane Foam and Memory Foam is made from petroleum-based chemicals, as well as flame retardants and viscosity inducing agents. A polyol is a substance created through a chemical reaction using methyloxirane (also called propylene oxide).

This is just a short list of toxins found in an analyzed type of memory foam: Formaldehyde, Styrene, TDI (Toluene Di-Isocyanate), Polyol (Poly Ether Gycol), Silicone Surfactant, Tertiary Amine, Stannous Octoate, Flame Retardant, Pigments/Dyes.

Toluene Di-Isocyanate (TDI) is the most common isocyanate employed in polyurethane manufacturing, and is considered the workhorse of flexible foam production.

Methyloxirane and TDI have been formally identified as carcinogens by the State of California, and are on the List of Toxic Substances under the Canadian Environmental Protection Act.

The “trickery” is in the mattress law label which only discloses the final material, not what chemicals were used to make that final material.

Besides food, our bedding is the most intimate product we use on a daily basis. The FDA does NOT regulate the chemicals that go into making mattresses or bedding – and it’s not on the label.

Choose organic components and sleep healthy!

 

amaizingwool-belle


CozyPure uses only natural and organic materials in the manufacture of bedding and mattresses. For more information visit their website at www.cozypure.com

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Eco-Tips Environment Green Living Healthy Lifestyles Made in the USA Miscellaneous Natural Bedroom Natural Fibers Natural Home News Coverage Organic Apparel & Textiles Organic Clothing Organic Comfort Organic Mattress & Bedding Renewable Energy Sleep Tips

The Benefits of the Outdoors

It has been said that when one is deprived of their natural habitat they will experience a slight physical and psychological breakdown. Studies show that students whose classroom environment is close to a park, or trees, will likely do better on their tests and such. Elders who live near parks will also be more likely to live longer. A 2001 study, conducted by Frances Kuo and William Sullivan found that those who live in houses that have no immediate access to nature will experience more chaotic – and aggressive – behavior.

Mountain-Bike-Lifestyle-1

“In our studies, people with less access to nature show relatively poor attention or cognitive function, poor management of major life issues, poor impulse control,” says Kuo. In a Norwegian study, victims of severe depression who took part in a horticulture program noticed reduced symptoms within 3 months. The effects of nature reach far beyond simply looking beautiful, for it brings upon an almost calming, or serene, effect on those who enjoy it. The absorption of vitamin D in the sun does no one harm – until, of course you walk into the house with lobster claws and a blood red chest, so be sure to apply sunscreen generously. Apparently, just the sight of natural landscapes ignite the area of the brain that promotes balance. Studies have shown that when exposed to images of mountains, rivers, beaches, etc, people will most likely observe feelings of ease and well-being.

Not only does being exposed to the natural world help one feel better mentally, but physically it can ease stress, blood-pressure, and anger. It impacts our abilities to pay attention and stay alert, and studies directed toward exercise have proved that those who walk on an outdoor track, for the most part, will walk at a brisker pace than those walking on an indoor track, or treadmill. This is why it remain at the utmost importance that we continue to hold high the integrity of our ecosystem, because without it, physically and psychologically we would begin to ‘break down’ and while the human species lives to adapt, we might never be the same if we didn’t have the outdoors at our disposal. If we had no place to go in order to ‘calm’ ourselves, or to get some fresh air or catch some rays, we might just go insane.

Sitting around for too long is detrimental to our health, and so is sitting in front of the boob tube or computer screen. I don’t want to undermine the advantages that technology has granted us within the past century; however, I do feel the need to stress the importance of exercise and fresh air. Walking around for an hour a day, through your neighborhood, through the park, or strolling down the beach can all do not only your body, but also your mind a lot of justice. Doing this can cross off both one’s need to experience the effects of nature while also fitting exercise into their daily routine. Neither of these two things can be a bad thing unless abused – and by abused I mean working out until you puke and staring into the sun for far too long – which, hopefully, many will have the sense not to do.

IF

Once again, people can all do their own part in keeping the environment clean if only by throwing away their own garbage, and not making it somebody else’ job to do. Don’t forget to experience the natural effects of latex, wool, and other various organic materials in your own bedroom by checking out CozyPure and the Organic Comfort Zone.

 

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Eco-Tips Environment Green Living Healthy Lifestyles Made in the USA Miscellaneous Natural Bedroom Natural Fibers Natural Home Organic Apparel & Textiles Organic Clothing Organic Comfort Organic Mattress & Bedding Products & Sales Sleep Tips

Well Under Way With 2014

Now that 2014 is well under way, it might be time to actually begin trying to workout your ‘new’ years resolution. I myself have kept up a decent gym schedule, with the exception of March in which I spent a chunk of time vegging on the couch due to injury. Now that June is on the way, and I’m back in the gym, and “things are looking up, oh finally,” I think that it might be time to begin working on some more pressing resolutions. For one, I’d like to get some of my other work published online, or featured in magazines and what not. I should probably stop snacking, but things take time, right?

earthday_NY

Many of you will be looking for ways to conserve the environment around you, and as I’ve posted before, there are literally hundreds of ways that you can help out without having to make any donations to BS organizations or even going more than within a blocks radius of your house. If you look around, and I mean really look around – and there are exceptions to this – but most neighborhoods will typically have a lot of trash lying around on the streets. We’ve become accustomed to this, especially in our own towns, and tend to not notice litter until its too late and there is a swarm of plastic bags angrily making their way across an empty parking lot, searching for its next host to latch onto a suffocate.

Now, granted, as I said before, there are exceptions, and for the most part there are a lot of neighborhoods that tend to remain pretty clean; however, there is always that trashy McDonald’s Styrofoam cup or that nasty, wet plastic bag, or the tragic array of broken beer bottles that one we will stumble across when trying to enjoy a stroll through the park. All I’m saying is that if you have a problem looking at these horrific sights then you should make it a resolution to pick it up, walk ten feet, twenty feet, half a mile, and throw it away. Perhaps you could go out with a trash bag and some gloves and pick up the trash in your neighborhood. If anything it will make you a Saint while everyone else draws their curtains and begins to resemble something more of a pig than human – at least in my eyes, that is what those who toss their trash to the wind on the freeway look like. And God forbid a condom washes up on the beach while your trying to catch some rays, at that point its time to pack up and leave. Leave for a better existence somewhere else.

recycle

When I’m out I do my best to pick up trash that is lying around so long as there is a trash can within eyesight. If not, no one is asking you to pick up someone else’ mess if you really don’t want to, and if there isn’t a dumpster in sight then who can blame you. In the end, what is really important is that you don’t actually contribute to the debris and filth that occupies our streets. This is our Earth, it’s the only one that we have. Screw YOLO, who cares if You Only Live Once if all you are doing is making the ecosystem fog up with smog and waste.

Other things that can be done include recycling your plastic and paper, and reusing various other household equipment. Perhaps using less hairspray or fa-breeze to lower the amount arousal cans being disposed will lighten Mother Nature’s load. Perhaps using less toxic chemicals to clean will alleviate the strain that is constantly taunting to rip apart our world. One of the best places to get in the mood for ‘saving the world and other extreme sports’ is in the bedroom, and now you can clean up your own bedroom with natural bedding from the Organic Comfort Zone, which features a wide array of cozy mattresses and pillows to blankets and pillow toppers. Don’t stop now, you’re on a roll with your new years resolutions, take it one step further and add CozyPure to your list of things to look into before the year is out.

 

 


eric-SAT-picEric is currently a student and part-time team member for Norfolk, VA based business Organic Comfort Zone, manufacturers of CozyPure organic bedding and mattress. For more information visit organiccomfortzone.com or cozypure.com or call 757.480.8500.

 

 

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Environment Green Living Healthy Lifestyles Made in the USA Miscellaneous Natural Bedroom Natural Fibers Natural Home Organic Apparel & Textiles Organic Clothing Organic Comfort Organic Mattress & Bedding Products & Sales Sleep Tips

Buckwhat?

While buckwheat filling is somewhat hard and crunchy, that does not mean that it is uncomfortable. The thing about buckwheat is that it conforms to your head and neck while also being dust mite resistant. Because it conforms to all of your bodily contours (head, neck) it is highly recommended by some chiropractors and physicians to relieve neck and spinal pain. CozyPure’s Organic Buckwheat pillows are encased with 100% Global Organic Textile Standard (GOTS) certified Organic damask fabric casing. While it remain relatively hard to recommend a pillow, a buckwheat pillow will equip anyone with a good nights rest. Especially during the hot summer months these pillows tend to stay a little cooler than the standard synthetic pillows; they aren’t exactly a ‘chillow’ but they are great for chilling out. Buckwheat pillows are filled with buckwheat hulls, which is different from latex, cotton, wool, or Kapok, which all can retain heat to a certain degree (not that they get ‘hot’.)

 

 


eric-SAT-picEric is currently a student and part-time team member for Norfolk, VA based business Organic Comfort Zone, manufacturers of CozyPure organic bedding and mattress. For more information visit organiccomfortzone.com or cozypure.com or call 757.480.8500.

 

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Eco-Tips Environment Green Living Healthy Lifestyles Made in the USA Miscellaneous Natural Bedroom Natural Fibers Natural Home Organic Apparel & Textiles Organic Clothing Organic Comfort Organic Mattress & Bedding Products & Sales Renewable Energy Retailers Sleep Tips

When Choosing Your Latex Mattress

Before buying your next mattress you must keep some very important things in mind on your search. First of all, you have to wonder whether or not you are going to want – or need – to buy a new mattress, once again, within the next ten years. If the answer is yes, and you think that buying a mattress every ten years is a good idea, then you have been sleeping on the wrong mattress’ for far too long. If your bed starts to wear down within a couple of years, overcome by dust-mites and destroyed by time and erosion, then you are either a.) having TOO much fun on your mattress, or b.) your mattress plain sucks. Durability is a sure sign of whether or not you have succeeded in purchasing a quality bed – or anything for that matter, and lets face it, they just aren’t making things these days like they used to. In fact, many mattress’ these days are made so that they can break down in only a matter of years, and therefore the company can sell more product once the customer once again goes into the market.

CozyPure LaNoodle Topper

Believe me when I say that a mattress is not a product that you want to be looking for the cheapest version of. The thing about your bed is, that whether you like it or not, you are going to be spending up to one third of your entire life on it with your face pressed against the pillow, with your body matted to the cushion, so you are going to want to invest in something that is, I don’t know, worth the investment… Try looking for key words such as “quality” versus “cheap” and “organic” over “synthetic”. The reason you want to buy the best quality product is, of course, in case you didn’t see the word the first couple of times that I used it, because of the QUALITY! You don’t want to spend money on something that is going to break down because then you’ll just be spending money on money trying to find a product to replace it, so why not just bite the bullet and buy something that will last for years the first time around. Also, spending money on petroleum based products just sounds icky, especially in the case of your bedding which your face is pressed up on all night and your lungs inhaling the fibers around you.

custom-cozy

There are many different mattress’ to choose from, and in those mattress’ there are many things that you yourself can do in order to make it fit your own needs. You can order a triple layered mattress or you can order a core, its your choice. Ordering a mattress with more layers gives you the option to remove them if necessary, and ordering a core foundation gives you the option to order pieces to place on top of your mattress. Its good to keep your options open, on the bed, off the bed, in the bed, its always good to have options no matter which way you might spin it. “Zoning works by providing more density (firmness) where you need it most (center of the bed). We created lateral zones which are symmetrical so the head and foot are the same, and the shoulder and lower-leg zones are the same, with the large middle section in the center third of the mattress acting as the most expansive zone. This allows easy rotation of your mattress keeping the more critical zones in-tact (shoulder area and mid-section).”

A flame retardant mattress is a good mattress. Nowadays mattress’ must be manufactured to meet federal guidelines, which ensure that one’s mattress won’t, you know, burst into flames at any given moment (not that mattress’ are particularly known to spontaneously com bust or anything, but there is always the odd cigarette fire and what not.) Many people resort to meeting these guidelines by adding more chemicals to cancel out the other chemicals that will aid in igniting the fire. A popular method among natural latex bedding that is used to combat flames is the use of wool batting either in the latex itself or in the mattress casing. Also, the great thing about the use of organic cottons and wools in one’s bedding is that these components are good for wicking away moisture, which you might find will keep you from waking up in a puddle of your own sweat at night. These materials also enable air flow, unlike synthetic fibers they ‘breathe’ with your body.

services

 

 


eric-SAT-picEric is currently a student and part-time team member for Norfolk, VA based business Organic Comfort Zone, manufacturers of CozyPure organic bedding and mattress. For more information visit organiccomfortzone.com or cozypure.com or call 757.480.8500.

 

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Eco-Tips Environment Green Living Healthy Lifestyles Miscellaneous Natural Fibers Organic Clothing Organic Comfort Organic Mattress & Bedding

Azodicarbicannotbelieveweareeatingthis

Remember when Subway had plastic in their bread? It turns out that they’re not the only ones, but at least they have promised to discontinue their line of plastic bread. It is not that the bread is actually made from plastic (because that would be insane), however, the product did contain a certain chemical – Azodicarbonide – which was used as a bleaching agent in breads, is also the same chemical used in plastic as a foaming agent. Seeing as many people throw plastic to the wind these days, for our environment to choke on, its pretty ironic that many are actually munching on the product themselves in the comfort of their own living rooms and kitchens.

You see, many products sold from the grocery store contain Azodicarbonide, and many fast food places still create their munchies with the ingredient. In fact, the chemical is found in nearly 500 products, including Wonder Bread, Little Debbies, and White Castle’s microwavable hamburgers.

Experts say that there is not enough of the ingredient added into the bread to make it toxic to us humans. That sentence alone has so many things wrong with it. The fact that a toxic chemical – in any dosage – is being administered into our food is disgusting. Repulsive! Steer clear of your white bread, that stuff will kill you. Stay away from that Pillsbury Dough-boy because you know that wherever he goes trouble is sure to follow. Hostess honey buns are OUT of the question! My goodness, what will we survive off of?

I don’t know why it irks me so much that they are putting chemicals into our food products – oh wait, maybe it’s because they are putting chemicals into our food products! And it is saddening that our society as a whole has been resorting to this kind of grotesque processing in almost every product. Fabrics and bedding dipped in petroleum and formaldehyde. Pesticides. The list goes on and on. It gets worse, though. We, as a society, give in to this kind of stuff. We purchase these products so that they can be made again and again, not thinking about the harm that it is inducing on us and our environment. Luckily here at CozyPure we don’t dip our products in oil and ship them off to our ‘happy’ customer, knowing that every night they are putting their heads on a fire hazard.

Of course, there are always the healthier, non-toxic foods on our supermarket shelves. Some of these foods include locally grown fruits and vegetable, whole wheat breads (although certain brands must be watched out for) and meats such as poultry and fish (preferably free range, but not necessary.) Quaker Oats, Simply Organic, and Peppridge Farm products tend to stay away from the use of Azowhatever in their breads. So next time that you are at the store, keep this in mind: you never know what you’re eating until you actually read the ingredients – and you never REALLY know what you’re eating until you are able to pronounce the ingredients.

 

 


eric-SAT-picEric is currently a student and part-time team member for Norfolk, VA based business Organic Comfort Zone, manufacturers of CozyPure organic bedding and mattress. For more information visit organiccomfortzone.com or cozypure.com or call 757.480.8500.