Our Materials

What Are Buckwheat Hulls and Millet Hulls?

Buckwheat and millet hulls are the outer shell or armor that Nature provides to protect the kernels of grain from insects and/or extreme weather. At maturity, they are dark brown or golden respectively, but green when the plant is in flower.

Buckwheat is a low-input crop that grows well on land that is wet or unprofitable for corn, soybeans, or wheat. Although it needs to be planted in well-prepared ground, buckwheat does not require fertilizers, pesticides, or tilling. Because buckwheat deters weeds, dramatically improves the texture of the surface soil, and makes more phosphorus available for later crops, it is frequently planted as a cover crop.

Millet is a collective term for a variety of grasses that produce small, rounded seeds for harvesting. It originated in Africa 4,000 years ago, and continues today to be a staple grain. It grows quickly and easily and is a major crop in India and southern Asia. Here in the West millet is grown primarily for use in commercial birdseed and animal food, although it is available in most health food stores for human consumption. The buckwheat and millet in Serenity Pillows is certified organic and comes from farms in South Dakota.

Why use Buckwheat and Millet in Pillows?

Buckwheat hulls and millet hulls are superior fillings because they mold to your contours exactly, keeping your head elevated for proper alignment, and supporting your neck passively, without the upward pressure that foam pillows exert. When you nestle into your Serenity Pillow you’ll feel it cuddle up to you, cradling your neck and head with steady, gentle support.

Grain fillings have been used in Asian countries for centuries, being prized for the comfort and support they provide. By keeping you in alignment, buckwheat and millet filled pillows help to eliminate stiff neck, shoulder pain, back pain, restlessness, headaches, TMJ, and sometimes even snoring.

What Is the Difference Between Buckwheat and Millet Hull filling?

Both Buckwheat and Millet hulls are very pliable and mold easily to your body’s contours. The differences are slight and superficial. Buckwheat hulls are heavier, coarser and odorless, but make a slight shuffling sound as they move with your changing position. Under the layer of wool, the coarseness disappears and the sound is muffled. Millet hulls are lighter, smoother and more quiet, but have a slight grassy scent that dissipates within the first month, especially if the pillow is allowed to air out.

The Why and What of Eco Wool

Wool is a natural insulator that keeps you at an optimal temperature. It buffers your body against an undesirable level of either heat or cold in your sleep environment. It won’t trap heat around your head like synthetic fibers and feathers and it wicks moisture away from your skin, letting it pass through its fibers to evaporate. Since we lose about a pint of water during our sleep, this wicking action keeps you drier and prevents a clammy neck.

Because wool doesn’t hold moisture, it is naturally resistant to mold and mildew. This helps make it almost entirely hypo-allergenic. Most people who are allergic to wool are actually reacting to the strong and often toxic chemicals used to wash conventionally processed fleece.

The wool we use is washed with biodegradable detergent and is free of harsh chemical residue. Since allergies to wool are contact allergies, and since the wool in Serenity Pillows is held under a layer of organic cotton, which is held under a second layer of your pillowcase we can honestly say that we have never had any customer with an allergic reaction to one of our pillows.

Our organic and Eco Wool is carded on a full wool carding line in Northern California that produces the finest wool batting available. Wool is more durable than most other natural fibers, retaining its warmth and resilience. Over time it will flatten or “nest” where you lay your head but it will re-loft if you shake it out or vacuum it with the small attachment. Additionally, wool is naturally flame-resistant and will not ignite, making it a safe material for use in bedding.

The difference between organic wool and Eco Wool is that the organic sheep rancher has committed to a costly certification process.. Eco Wool, from Woolgatherer Carding Mills, is tested to ensure that there are no traces of chemical fertilizers, herbicides or pesticides in the fleeces and like organic wool it adheres to the following criteria:

• Proper Grazing Methods – Adequate field rotation decreases soil erosion and reduces the risk of the sheep picking up parasites.
• Predator Friendly – Herders use trained sheep guardian dogs and llamas to guard the flock, thereby eliminating the need for trapping and shooting predator animals.
• Healthy Veterinary Practices – Only certain medications and supplements can be used to treat the sheep. Alternative care is encouraged to keep the sheep healthier with fewer chemicals.
• Control Testing – Routine wool chemical testing insures that the sheep are grazing in fields that are not treated with herbicides and pesticides.
• Skirting – This is a process that removes the less desirable wool from the belly and back end of the sheep to be used for other purposes.
• Cruelty-Free - Wool fiber is a renewable, sustainable resource, harvested annually by shearing the sheep. The farmers who grow the wool we use practice ethical, and humane treatment of their flocks. The sheep are never dipped in chemicals and are carefully shorn to avoid any cuts or bruising. Unlike geese, ducks and many other animals, the sheep’s life is not sacrificed for its coat.
• Biodegradable Processing – No harsh chemicals are used to whiten the wool.

Why Organic Cotton?

Most of us think of cotton as fluffy, white, and benign. After all, it clothes our newborn babies, dries us after we shower, and covers us up at night. When we think of cotton we think clean and safe. Unfortunately non-organic cotton farming produces results that are anything but clean and safe. Over one-third pound of hazardous chemical fertilizers and insecticides are used in growing the one pound of cotton that’s knit into a T-shirt. These chemicals are absorbed into the cotton plant, the air, the soil, and eventually into our bodies.

Less than 3% of all arable land is used in the cultivation of cotton, yet 25% of all toxic chemicals used in agriculture are used for this one crop alone. Five of the nine main chemicals used on cotton are known carcinogens! The World Health Organization reports 20,000 people in developing countries have died as a result of the chemicals sprayed on non-organic cotton. Besides polluting our air, water and farm workers, the toxic chemicals used in modern farming techniques threaten our natural ecosystems and contribute to soil erosion and nutrient depletion..

By contrast, organic cotton farmers use no hazardous chemicals on their crops. Instead, they follow both ancient and modern methods of natural cultivation. They keep the soil healthy with crop rotation and natural organic matter instead of toxic fertilizers and they control pests with beneficial insects and trap crops.

By using organic cotton you get a pure and luxurious fabric that feels wonderful and looks beautiful. In addition, you help to protect the environment and eliminate any personal contact with chemical residues. This is particularly important in bedding and pillows since the delicate tissues of your eyes, ears, face and neck are in touch with it for long periods.

What’s Missing?

Petrochemical VOCs and residues from toxic flame retardants that are found in synthetic foams and fillings. In fact memory foam is entirely made from polyurethane and if you read the back of a can of it you’ll see that the surgeon general warns that breathing in the fumes can cause brain and nerve cell damage.
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