What to expect when your pillow arrives

Unboxing

• Your pillow arrives ready to use — there's no need to wait for it to expand or decompress like a boxed mattress.
• If you like, give the latex an hour in fresh air before its first night. It's optional, but nice.

The new-latex smell

New natural latex has a faint, slightly sweet smell — a little like vanilla. It's completely harmless and it is not chemical off-gassing; it's simply the natural scent of the rubber. It fades within a few days, faster if you air the pillow in a ventilated room.

Giving it a fair go

Your body adapts to a new pillow much like it adapts to new shoes. Latex feels supportive and springy — it holds your head rather than letting it sink — which can read as firm at first if you're used to a soft, collapsing pillow. Give it at least two weeks of consistent sleep before you judge it. Most people are settled within a month.

• Use it every night, with a pillowcase, in your usual position.
• Try not to compare it to your old pillow on night one — give your neck time to adjust.

If it's still not right

Sometimes a pillow just isn't the match — and often it's the loft, not the latex. If a different height might help, the Sizing guide can point you to it. And if it's not right at all, your 100-night trial means a free return and a full refund, with a prepaid label and nothing to pay.