Nemuri Sugi Makura
Nemuri Sugi Makura is a brand-new type of pillow made from natural cedar chips. These chips contain cedrol, a fragrance component that has relaxing effects and makes you feel like you’re sleeping in the forest. They also provide great cushioning for comfortable rest.
- 2016 New Business Field Pioneer Through the Production of New Products in Fukushima Prefecture certification
- 2017 Yoshimoto Fukushima Shufuran (Handicraft Division) certification
- 2017 Utsukushima Eco Recycled Product certification
- 2017 Good Design Award
- 2017 Japan Wood Design Award
We faced great difficulties while developing the inside pockets, with the aim of creating a pillow with perfect comfort, ease of use, weight, and other qualities. During this three-year process, we began joint development with a long-established bedding manufacturer in Aichi. This led us to successfully create a pillow made from BREATHAIR® for better comfort than ever before.
*Two BREATHAIR® thicknesses are available to choose from: 2.5 centimeters and 4.8 centimeters. The wood chips are stuffed inside three separate pockets for your neck, the back of your head, and the top of your head. You can adjust the amount of chips in each to further modify the pillow height.
Unique chip shape
The Nemuri Sugi Makura is made with wood chips produced from Iwaki Sugi cedar waribashi that failed strength tests, meaning that the wood is too soft. Our waribashi chopsticks are unique for their rounded cross section, so the chips have a cushioned feel like you’ve never experienced before.
500 pairs of chopsticks
It takes 500 pairs of waribashi to make one Nemuri Sugi Makura. Craftsmen carefully cut these chopsticks, mainly by hand, to form them into chips. This expresses our pride as a maker of the finest chopsticks (which were used at a Pacific Islands Leaders Meeting dinner).
Fully dried
The chopsticks that will become cedar wood chips are dried using heat produced in a wood-fired boiler run on wood waste, etc. Compared to regular wood, these cedar chips ― cut from chopsticks that are dried to roughly one third their original moisture ― offer excellent water (sweat) absorbency.
Easy to care for, becomes more comfortable the longer you use it
Remove the cover to wash the BREATHAIR® portion by hand. The pockets inside can be washed after removing the cedar chips. The chips will maintain their sweat absorbency and fragrance for a long time if you dry them outside in the sun. The corners of the chips become rounded the longer you use the pillow, making it increasingly comfortable as time goes by.
The only pillow made from thinned cedar wood
As of 2019, Nemuri Sugi Makura is the only Japanese-made pillow to receive the Forest Thinning Mark (National Federation of Forest Owners’ Co-operative Association) and Kizukai Green Cycle Mark (Japan Wood Products Information and Research Center). *The Forest Thinning Mark promotes the importance of periodic forest thinning and usage of wood produced from thinning. This mark shows consumers that the product and its company contribute to forest maintenance and cultivation.
Helps reduce stress
Comparative testing suggests this pillow’s shape and firmness help reduce external stress. * Effects vary by individual. For the comparative testing, the TCU Industry-academic Collaboration Iwaki Satellite Center was asked to perform a sleep evaluation and effects verification. The test was performed at the Biomechanics Engineering Laboratory, Department of Medical Engineering, Faculty of Engineering, Tokyo City University.
Cedrol, a fragrance component in cedar, works on autonomic nerves to relax the mind and body. The Nemuri Sugi Makura is made from Iwaki Sugi, a variety of cedar with a great deal of highly pure cedrol to make you feel like you are breathing in forest air as you enjoy pleasant slumber. The cedar chips have few components that keep you awake, like those in hinoki cypress, so this pillow won’t impede your peaceful rest.
Iwaki City in Fukushima Prefecture, the entryway to the Tohoku region, has a mild climate with little snowfall. There are many hours of sunshine throughout the year, making it an ideal location for cedar. Iwaki Sugi grows quickly and is a particularly soft variety of cedar with excellent water absorbency.
Nemuri Sugi Makura
- Size
- 43cm × 63cm
Height: Low 60 ～ 90 millimeters (adjustable)
High 80 ～ 110 millimeters (adjustable)
Weight: Approximately 2.3 kilograms
- Structure
- Cover: 100% cotton
Fabric: 100% polyester
Filling: Cedar (thinned wood), undesignated fiber (polyester fiber)
- Country of production
- Japan
Nemuri Sugi Makura: White
This pillow contains chips made from cedar sapwood (the outer part of the tree), which has a subtle fragrance and excellent water absorbency. Suggested retail price 15,000 yen (tax not included)
Nemuri Sugi Makura: Red
This pillow contains chips of cedar heartwood, the precious inner part of the tree with a strong fragrance, lots of cedrol, and excellent durability. Suggested retail price 25,000 yen (tax not included)
Nemuri Sugi Makura: Black
This pillow is stuffed with chips made from the extremely rare black core of cedar, which is almost never seen on the raw timber market. Inquire for details (market value)
ＦＡＱ
- Can I use this pillow even if I’m allergic to cedar pollen?
- The Nemuri Sugi Makura contains absolutely no cedar pollen, so you can use it with peace of mind.
- Is cedrol really effective?
- Compared to air, it is suggested that breathing in cedrol significantly reduces mental stress. This is described in medical literature and other publications, including “Autonomic responses during inhalation of natural fragrance of ‘cedrol’ through the upper and lower airways in humans” (Fragrance Journal: 2008).
- I’m not sure what height is right for me…
- Low, with a BREATHAIR® layer of 2.5 centimeters, is for most women and also for men who prefer a thinner pillow. High, with a BREATHAIR® layer of 4.8 centimeters, is for women who like a thicker pillow and also for men in general.
- Is it hard to adjust the height?
- The cedar wood chips are enclosed in three separate internal pockets for the top of your head, back of your head, and neck. You can easily remove or add chips by unzipping the internal pockets.
- Can I make the pillow higher?
- We send pillows filled with the maximum amount of wood chips: the Low size (BREATHAIR® layer of 2.5 centimeters) is about nine centimeters thick and the High size (BREATHAIR® layer of 4.8 centimeters) is about 11 centimeters. If the pillow feels too tall, you can remove chips according to your preference.
- How long does the cedar chip fragrance last?
- The first protype we made three years ago still smells like cedar. You can restore the fragrance by drying the chips in the sun. We recommend doing this once every two to three months so you can enjoy using the pillow for a long time, and also to see how the edges of the chips are wearing down for better comfort.
- Can I use a regular pillow cover?
- We developed this product based on the largest regular-size cover (63 by 43 centimeters). In general, it will fit in a pillow cover sized 63 by 43 centimeters. We also sell replacement covers.
- Do you sell replacement cedar chips?
- Yes, these are available to purchase.
- Do you test for radiation?
- Of course, and the results indicate no issues. You can feel safe using this product, and we will enclose radiation surface dose inspection results if you request them.