There are a lot of cool things out there that make us wonder — do they really work? In our I Tried It series, we set out to use them in the real world and have determined that, in fact, they really do.
The Product on Trial
The down-alternative Miracle Comforter
The Tester
Melanie Yates, who loves fluffy bedding layers, hates sweating at night
The Brief
With temperatures (finally) rising bit by bit each day, the wardrobe and linen-closet changeover is well underway. As soon as it becomes warm enough to sleep with the windows open, the heavy down comforter that I've slept with since November goes right into summertime storage.
While many summer-weight comforters (like the excellent Buffy Breeze) are very cooling, they tend to be a little flatter than the luxurious, jet-puffed texture that down provides. Less filling equals less heat retention, so it's a small sacrifice to make for comfy and cool nights. However, the Miracle Comforter changes all of that completely.
This down-alternative, 700-fill-power comforter comprises a blend of Tencel and polyester fill in its all-over quilting, but the secret to its success lies in its gradient filling. The Miracle Comforter contains the most fill at its ends (covering your neck and feet), then each consecutive row until the middle contains less fill. This helps dial down the bulk of the comforter while also lessening the heat retention.
The comforter's smooth, non-crinkly, 680-thread-count outer shell is also a notable feature of the bedding layer. It's made of 90% Supima cotton and 10% Silverbac polyester fiber, a material that is said to prevent 99.9% of bacterial growth so that the comforter is more hygienic and less likely to retain body odor.
Over several weeks in the early spring when I tested out the Miracle Comforter, the temperature fluctuated from the 30s to the 60s, and even still, I never felt like this lightweight comforter was too wispy to provide enough warmth. On the coldest nights, I'd just put on a pair of socks with my PJs.
While sleeping under it, if I ever wanted to create a cooling channel of air or just to feel less wrapped up in the comforter, it was also easy to tent in various directions. And even though the comforter does retain some body heat when sleeping under it, it's large and puffy enough to air out to find a cool spot again.
The Closing Argument
The Miracle Comforter is a surprisingly lightweight, airy, and very cool all-season comforter that manages to retain its puffed-up look, even after swaddling in it all night. It's the exact twin of your favorite winter-weight comforter, only with much smarter construction for year-round enjoyment.
