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Hey, it was just an idea. We do have that stuff in abundance around here, but I also have other options. One of the easiest, since most people want to go the chemical free route for allergies and other concerns, would be just to buy a good cheap plush mattress and a quality mattress cover...
...unless i want to go the used mattress route, and that's really not so bad here. The local second-hand shops do carry mattresses that are safe.
Why not just get an air mattress? I have used them for years, both for guests and myself (when my back was bad and I wanted to be able to make the mattress firmer). It takes like 25 seconds to blow up, all you do is push a button and they are pretty comfortable, especially given that you can control how firm or soft they are, and you can just shove it in a closet when you're not using it. To me having some kind of permanent guest bed in a studio apartment, especially an apartment that is not neat and clutter-free as a general rule, seems like too much.
Why not just get an air mattress? I have used them for years, both for guests and myself (when my back was bad and I wanted to be able to make the mattress firmer). It takes like 25 seconds to blow up, all you do is push a button and they are pretty comfortable, especially given that you can control how firm or soft they are, and you can just shove it in a closet when you're not using it. To me having some kind of permanent guest bed in a studio apartment, especially an apartment that is not neat and clutter-free as a general rule, seems like too much.
I already have sleeper sofas. I was looking for something more comfortable to replace them. Air mattresses are just a nuisance. You can feel the floor underneath you because they are really thin.
That's not true in the slightest, they are close to real mattresses now and some are high off the ground like a real bed. (not talking about a $20 camping air mattress).
No used mattress is going to be comfortable, or it wouldn't be in the thrift shop. No second hand shop will even take mattresses here, since the bed bug outbreak several years ago. Nothing you make, let alone straw, is going to be comfortable and it's going to look terrible.
Regardless, that is the least of the things you should be wasting energy on anyway, so I will keep quiet.
That's not true in the slightest, they are close to real mattresses now and some are high off the ground like a real bed. (not talking about a $20 camping air mattress).
No used mattress is going to be comfortable, or it wouldn't be in the thrift shop. No second hand shop will even take mattresses here, since the bed bug outbreak several years ago. Nothing you make, let alone straw, is going to be comfortable and it's going to look terrible.
Regardless, that is the least of the things you should be wasting energy on anyway, so I will keep quiet.
I guess you think it's a waste of time and money, but I don't think you would have that opinion if you were sleeping on something less comfortable than a camping cot. Luckily, we haven't had a huge issue with bed bugs around here, so it's easy to find a quality used mattress, and there are new discount mattresses being sold, too, for under $100. I should probably invest in some. Plush mattresses are apparently not a favorite around here, because it's easy to find a soft mattress for cheap.
If there were no mattress stores and no credit cards and no Craigslist and the world's last mattress was gone, I might consider sleeping on a mattress stuffed with hay or straw.
Not me, nope. I slept on a straw mattress for two summers at summer camp back in the 1950's and it's not an experience I would like to repeat. Straw mattresses get lumpy, they're dusty and there's always something rustling around in there that you'd like to think is just the straw shifting but that you really know, deep down in your heart, isn't.....
Not me, nope. I slept on a straw mattress for two summers at summer camp back in the 1950's and it's not an experience I would like to repeat. Straw mattresses get lumpy, they're dusty and there's always something rustling around in there that you'd like to think is just the straw shifting but that you really know, deep down in your heart, isn't.....
Okay, it might be a terrible experience, but if it is I'll know after I try it, if I try it. I imagine tossing the straw around with a good weed wacker would probably kill any unwanted vermin as well as soften the straw. Plus, what I had in mind was putting the straw in a waterproof mattress cover, wrapping it in a mattress topper, and maybe wrapping all of that in another mattress cover.
Another idea is to stuff it with shredded paper or cardboard, but where oh where would I be able to find that much shredded paper?
Straw is a lot stiffer than it looks. I think if you chopped it up with a weed eater you'd just end up with shorter sharp pieces that would poke through your mattress covers. You can also get something like straw itch mites in your straw and the weed wacker isn't going to do anything for that.
Have you checked Craigslist? I was looking at CL for Mobile, AL since you list that as your location and there are some sleeper couches and futons that were pretty reasonable. A futon is not the most comfortable thing to sleep on, but a memory foam mattress topper makes it feel a lot better. Sleeper couches can be pretty awful too, it just depends on the particular couch and how heavy your guest is. I used to have an ottoman that pulled out into a twin bed that I bought for my sister to use when she slept over, but since it was small and she was large, she always ended up sleeping on the sofa instead.
As far as mattresses go, the cheaper ones don't usually last long and that's why you see them for sale really cheap. If you're picking it up against the wall when it's not in use, the springs will shift in some of the lower-quality mattresses and you'll end up with one side that feels like a squishy cave and one side that feels like a rock pile. And then you have to get rid of it if it turns out to be really uncomfortable, and it can get expensive to take a mattress to the dump.
Straw is a lot stiffer than it looks. I think if you chopped it up with a weed eater you'd just end up with shorter sharp pieces that would poke through your mattress covers. You can also get something like straw itch mites in your straw and the weed wacker isn't going to do anything for that.
Have you checked Craigslist? I was looking at CL for Mobile, AL since you list that as your location and there are some sleeper couches and futons that were pretty reasonable. A futon is not the most comfortable thing to sleep on, but a memory foam mattress topper makes it feel a lot better. Sleeper couches can be pretty awful too, it just depends on the particular couch and how heavy your guest is. I used to have an ottoman that pulled out into a twin bed that I bought for my sister to use when she slept over, but since it was small and she was large, she always ended up sleeping on the sofa instead.
As far as mattresses go, the cheaper ones don't usually last long and that's why you see them for sale really cheap. If you're picking it up against the wall when it's not in use, the springs will shift in some of the lower-quality mattresses and you'll end up with one side that feels like a squishy cave and one side that feels like a rock pile. And then you have to get rid of it if it turns out to be really uncomfortable, and it can get expensive to take a mattress to the dump.
I have literally never had any of the problems you are describing.
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