A feather bed can turn an ordinarily bed into a luxurious sleeping palace. If you are interested in purchasing a feather bed to place atop your mattress, there are a number of things that you should consider. First of all, make sure that you do not have an allergy to natural feathers. You may also want to find out if anyone else who may spend time in your bed (or the intended bed for the feather bed) has such an allergy. People who are allergic to feathers can develop acute respiratory reactions upon exposure.
It is also important to note that feather beds require semi-regular laundering which can be tricky. Feather beds cannot be machine-washed. Therefore, if you are interested in purchasing one, you must be willing to foot a hefty dry cleaning bill every now and then.
Once you have made sure that there is no an allergy issue, you can move on to purchasing your perfect feather bed. There are a number of home and bedding companies that manufacture feather beds and a wide range of prices. Make sure to find a company or selection of companies that you like and are also within your price range. Once you have done this, you can begin choosing from the selection available to you.
Feather beds come in all shapes, sizes, and thicknesses. If you have a bed that is a nontraditional size (i.e. not Full, Twin, Double, Queen, King), you may have to have your feather bed altered or custom made. If you have a traditional bed, however, you simply have to match the size of your bed to your feather bed selection.
The major difference in feather beds comes down to thickness. If you are just looking for a little extra padding, you can get a thinner feather bed. If, however, you want to sink into a soft feather-topped bed, you will want to choose a feather bed that is a few inches thick. There are, of course, in between options as well.
If you are interested in purchasing a feather bed, you will also want to consider the amount of warmth that you are looking to add to your bed. Sleeping on top of a feather bed is like sleeping on top of a high quality comforter. For this reason, feather beds can actually add unwanted warmth in warm weather regions and during summer months. In chilly wintertime, however, feather beds can add a lovely amount of extra warmth to your bed.