Road Test: I tried hotel-quality pillows to see if they’d improve my sleep

“No word of a lie, I had one of the best nights of sleep I’ve had in a long time.”

Adulthood is littered with humbling moments. But some of the most humbling are the times when you realise you don’t know something most other adults do. For me, this will usually be something resoundingly practical that I was probably told at some point growing up (it went “In one ear and out the other!” as my mother likes to say).

The day I found out that pillows expire (yes, they have a best-before date) is a textbook-worthy example of an adult piece of information that somehow I never absorbed. Equipped with this newfound knowledge, a few years back I replaced all my manky, yellow-tinged pillows with fresh ones.

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As it turns out, pillows harbour dust, skin cells and oil, and the quality of the pillow dictates how long it will last. As the adage goes, ‘Buy cheap, buy twice’. Investing in quality pillows genuinely does make a difference to your sleep – we all know what it’s like to toss and turn all night, attempting to fluff up a pitifully flat excuse for a pillow.

Recently, while changing my bedding I noticed that two of my pillows had passed their expiry dates. And in a stroke of divine timing, this week I was asked to review the Australian-made bedding brand #GoKindly, specifically two of its pillows (I love my silly little job!). I lugged the box of pillows home, chucked them on my bed and put them to the test.

Pillow talk

#GoKindly is an Australian-made bedding brand with a very worthwhile point of difference – 50 per cent of its profits go towards supporting women and non-binary people experiencing housing stress.

A certified B Corp, its range includes pillows and quilts and the brand has a strong focus on minimising its environmental impact. Its products are manufactured locally, it doesn’t use single-use plastic packaging and it’s created Australia’s first pillow recycling program.

So what are the pillows like? I trialled two styles, the Signature Pillow and the Luxury Hotel Pillow. In terms of comfort and fullness, by comparison, they both made my current pillows feel deeply uncomfortable and flat. I’m used to sleeping on two pillows, but these were plump enough that I only needed one.

The clear standout for me is the Luxury Hotel Pillow. Having stayed at a hotel very recently, this pillow put that very fancy establishment’s pillows to shame. No word of a lie, I had one of the best nights of sleep I’ve had in a long time. My head and neck felt incredibly cushioned and I woke up so comfy that it was quite the challenge hauling myself out of bed.

The Signature Pillow is probably too voluminous for my liking, but my housemate tried it and said it was her perfect pillow and according to the brand’s website, it suits 80 per cent of sleepers. So either I’m in the 20 per cent that prefers a different style of pillow, or maybe I just love the touch of luxury the hotel-style pillow provides.

Knowing that I’m sleeping on a pillow that’s kinder to the environment and supports people in need inevitably adds an extra layer of coziness as I drift off each night, and who wouldn’t want that?

#GoKindly is offering Fashion Journal readers 25 per cent off with the code FASHIONJOURNAL25. You can find out more about the brand and explore its range here.