Do you know the differences between down and feathers? Have you ever thought about what makes good quality bedding? In this article, we tell you about our natural and ethical down and feather bedding made in France.

A quick reminder of the benefits of natural bedding

But before getting to the heart of the matter, we think it’s important to remind you of the advantages of natural bedding (made from down and feathers) over synthetic bedding. In 2023, we expanded on this subject in a blog post entitled ‘The unrivalled advantages of duvets and pillows made from duck down and feathers compared with synthetic alternatives’.
And here’s the bottom line: duck down and feathers are recognised as a natural, high-end, eco-responsible option for duvets, pillows and mattress toppers, offering significant benefits in terms of comfort, thermal regulation, longevity and respect for the environment.

Kalani bedding: ethical French manufacturing and top-of-the-range products

Our duvets, pillows and mattress toppers are made locally in France in a family-run factory that has been specialising in the production of high-end bedding products for 150 years, with a filling of French white duck down and feathers.

Kalani bedding is no exception: it is filled with 100% premium French white duck. The filling is 90% down and 10% feathers.

The covers of our bedding products are made from 100% organic cotton percale. It is woven very tightly and is therefore ultra-resistant, preventing the passage of feather tips, dust and dust mites. Thanks to this ultra-tight envelope, our bedding is naturally anti-dust mite.

Among other things, our bedding products are certified with a DOWNPASS® sourcing and production process, a label that ensures traceability and the ethical treatment of animals. Down and feathers do not come from live animals. They come 100% from the collection of waste from the French food industry.

How do you recognise top-quality natural bedding?

What makes Kalani bedding products different from the majority of brands on the market is :

1. The very high percentage of 90% down compared with 10% feathers in a duvet. The higher the percentage of down, the higher the quality of your duvet and the greater its comfort;
2. Our down is made from large flakes of white duck down from the French Pyrenees;
3. Our feathers are small, very rounded feathers which increase the swelling power of bedding products, unlike the feathers of traditional European ducks, or worse, the flat micro-feathers of Chinese ducks reared for lacquered duck;
4. Our covers are made from 100% organic cotton percale and woven very tightly to prevent feather tips and dust from passing through (so they are naturally anti-dust mite);
5. Our duvets are healthy and 100% natural, with no synthetic materials.

Down versus feathers

Down is the small feathers that grow under the outer feathers of birds. Unlike feathers, down does not have a rigid shaft but rather the appearance of a flake. It is extremely light, soft and plump. Thanks to its structure, it traps air, so it has excellent insulating and lofting properties. It offers warmth and lightness without adding weight. It is a 100% natural, premium material used mainly in luxury bedding products because it offers superior comfort and a better ability to regulate temperature.

Feathers are small, flexible feathers. Feathers are stiffer than down because they have a small central shaft. They are curved (in the case of the top-of-the-range feathers) and denser, which makes them less light than down. Their ability to trap air is less than that of down, so they offer less insulation on their own. They are generally used in addition to down to add a little more structure and firmness to bedding products, and if they are not present in too large quantities and are well rounded, they help to give the down more space to take up the space needed for perfect insulation.

Large duck feathers are not normally used for natural bedding. They are recovered by the natural cosmetics industry for their natural keratin proteins.

The result is a product that combines softness, lightness and a little extra support for optimum comfort.

In a nutshell

• Down is lighter, softer, fluffier and offers better thermal insulation. It is a premium material used mainly in luxury bedding products.
• Feathers are more rigid, curving at the top end of the range (but sometimes very flat at the bottom end), but provide support and firmness. They are often used in addition to down to balance the comfort and structure of the product, as in pillows and mattress toppers, for example.