Glossary: Materials, Construction and Sleep Terms

A short reference to the materials, construction terms and comfort language used across Midsummer Milano bed systems. Terms are listed alphabetically. Where a material has a fuller page, it is linked.

Bed system

The complete assembly rather than a single component: base, mattress and topper specified together, and calibrated in relation to the room. Headboard height, mattress height and topper depth are treated as proportions of the architecture, not fixed dimensions.

Boxspring / divan base

The sprung base beneath the mattress. It carries load, absorbs movement and sets the overall height of the bed. A slender boxspring reads as a lighter, more contemporary geometry; a deeper one gives a more traditional profile.

Carding

The mechanical process of disentangling and aligning raw fibres before they are layered into a mattress. Carding is what gives washed horsehair its characteristic softness and sheen, and what allows wool to be built up in even, breathable layers.

Cashmere

Fibre combed, not sheared, from the Capra hircus goat at the start of spring. Each adult goat yields only 100 to 200 grams a year, and the finest fibre comes from the underbelly, where it is thinnest, longest and softest. More on Mongolian white cashmere.

Cheviot wool

One of the most hygroscopic natural fibres, able to absorb up to a third of its weight in moisture without feeling wet, then release it back into the air. This is what allows a wool-filled mattress to regulate temperature in both directions. More on Cheviot wool.

Ecological polyurethane

A foam in which a proportion of the petrochemical polyol is replaced with plant-derived polyol. It behaves like conventional polyurethane in support and durability, with a lower fossil-fuel content. Used only where a natural fibre cannot provide the required structure.

Firmness

How much the sleeping surface yields under load, soft, medium or firm, independent of the quality or height of the mattress. Soft suits side sleepers and those who prefer an enveloping surface; firm gives a flatter, more supportive plane. Firmness is a preference, not a grade.

Horsehair

Curled hair from the tail and mane, washed and carded until it takes on a soft, iridescent character. Its natural elasticity lets it compress and recover repeatedly, which is why it has been used in fine upholstery for centuries. More on horsehair.

Hygroscopy

The capacity of a fibre to take up moisture from the air and release it again. It is the property behind the thermal behaviour of wool: humidity is buffered away from the skin rather than trapped against it, which supports breathability and thermal comfort through the night.

Ingeo

A fibre spun from plant sugars rather than petroleum. It is light, resilient and quick to release moisture, which is why it appears in summer-side upholstery alongside wool and linen.

Linen

Flax fibre, valued for coolness and strength. Linen conducts heat away from the body faster than cotton and softens with use, which makes it a natural choice for the summer face of a seasonal mattress and for unbleached ticking.

Micro spring layer

A layer of small-diameter springs set above the main spring unit. Because each spring is smaller, the layer follows the body at a finer resolution than the unit beneath it, adding surface adaptivity without raising overall firmness.

Norwegian wool

Wool from sheep grazed in cool mountain summers, where low bacterial load allows the fleece to be processed without harsh chemicals. Certified by the Nordic Swan Ecolabel. More on Norwegian wool.

Organic cotton

Cotton grown without synthetic pesticides, sourced here from certified organic farms working to fair-labour standards. Naturally breathable and moisture-wicking, which suits it to warmer months and to the layers closest to the sleeper. More on organic cotton.

Pocket springs

Springs individually enclosed in fabric pockets so that each one compresses on its own. Because load is not transmitted sideways through the unit, the surface contours to the body and movement on one side of the bed is far less noticeable on the other.

Silk

A protein fibre that is smooth, strong and thermally neutral. In a topper it adds a cool, fluid hand against the skin without adding bulk, and it blends readily with wool and linen.

Static X-Silver cover

A ticking woven with silver-coated threads. The silver suppresses bacterial growth and dissipates static build-up, and the cover is certified against allergens. One of three cover options offered across the range. More on the three covers.

Ticking

The outer fabric that encloses a mattress. It is structural as well as visible: it holds the fill in place, carries the hand-stitched piping at the edges, and determines how air and moisture move in and out of the mattress.

Topper

A separate upper layer laid over the mattress, specified as part of the system rather than an accessory. It sets the first impression of the surface, the give in the first few centimetres, and can be changed independently of the mattress beneath it.

Vicuna

The rarest of the natural fibres, from a wild camelid of the high Andes. Nearly lost in the 1960s and 70s, the population recovered and controlled, sustainable shearing resumed in the early 1990s. Exceptionally light and warm for its weight. More on vicuna.

Yak

Undercoat from yaks living at altitudes up to 6,000 metres, gathered only after the animal has naturally shed it. The fibre is fine, warm and hard-wearing, and appears in the winter face of seasonal mattresses. More on yak.

15 + 15

The Midsummer regeneration service. After roughly fifteen years a mattress is returned, opened, and its natural fillings cleaned, replenished and rebuilt, so that it serves a second comparable life rather than being replaced. More on the regeneration service.