To most, there was no room for improvement with Bearaby's Napper blanket; it was already that good. It took the concept of a weighted blanket — something that can instantly help you relax just by tossing it over top of you — and made it swoon-worthy, elevating the traditional design with a Pinterest-ready chunky knit. However, on April 22 Bearaby's Tree Napper takes the brand's concept to an important next level: The new weighted blanket is made entirely from trees.
Or, more specifically, TENCEL Lyocell created from eucalyptus trees. "Our Tree Napper fabric is made out of raw wood pulp in a sustainable closed loop process, using ten times less water to produce than traditional fabrics. While the Tree Napper is plant-based and biodegradable, it’s also silky-soft, moisture-wicking, and breathable, which makes it ideal for summer and hot sleepers," Bearaby’s Founder, Kathrin Hamm, explains to The Zoe Report via email.
"Sustainability has been a priority for Bearaby since the beginning, as we believe that sustainability is not only the right thing to do, but ultimately also creates better products, even more so when it comes to sleep," Hamm adds. "Sleep is very personal and using clean organic fabrics for a therapeutic and soothing product that is literally so close to our skin, was just obvious and the right choice."
Surprisingly, the even-more-sustainable Tree Napper is the same price as the original version: one 20-pound blanket will cost you $259 regardless of which four colorways you choose from. (The 15-pound Tree Napper is even less, retailing for $249.) And the Tree Napper's sustainability continues into how the blanket arrives at your door; Bearaby removed any additional packaging it deemed unnecessary, using only recycled plastic-free materials. On top of that, Bearaby's partner One Tree Planted will plant a single tree for each Tree Napper sold — an initiative inspired by California's wildfires.
But to understand why the Tree Napper succeeds as a product, you should first take a look at Bearaby's original Napper blanket. "When we launched Bearaby we wanted to make a better product that is soothing and therapeutic, helping people naturally sleep and feel better. Making a better product meant to address the shortcomings of traditional weighted blankets," Hamm says. Hamm noted two of those shortcomings: The heat traditional weighted blankets naturally create and the uncomfortable (and noisy) shifting of the fillers used inside of them.
"On top of that most weighted blankets use plastic as filler weights, which is harmful for the environment and our health. That’s why we set out to create our Napper, a weighted blanket that only uses layer upon layer of natural fabrics, without any artificial filling material, so there is no heat and no shifting and no plastic," Hamm says. Even without fillers, the Napper's signature knit evenly distributes its own weight — applying Deep Touch Pressure therapy to anyone who cuddles up beneath it.
Which is the very thing that increases serotonin and melatonin, and decreases the stress hormone cortisol. Ready to bring the concept of taking a nap under the trees to a whole new level? Below, Bearaby's new Tree Napper blanket.
