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- 100% cotton
- Sleeps cool
- Extremely comfortable
- Not waterproof
- Takes a long time to dry naturally
Made of a thick cotton, the Dusk Luxury Quilted mattress protector adds a little padding to your mattress and makes it an even more comfortable place to sleep. Like the best mattress protectors, it will do a great job of prolonging the life of your mattress, but I should say right away that it isn’t a waterproof option. However, if that’s not a dealbreaker, there’s lots to recommend this protector.
At only £20 full price (in a size double), this is an extremely budget-friendly option and the thickness is particularly impressive – although don’t expect it to compete with the best mattress toppers in this department.
Dusk Luxury Quilted Mattress Protector: What you need to know
From the outset, the Dusk mattress protector appears to be a fantastic budget option: prices starting at £15 for a single, rising to £20 for a double, £22 for a king and £25 for a super king. You also get the choice of two depths depending on the height of your mattress, though both the standard fit (30cm) and the deep fit (35cm) cost the same. Being a brand that regularly offers promotional discounts, there’s a good chance you won’t need to pay full price either: expect to score between 10-20% off the RRP, depending on what time of year you purchase.
The protector is made from a thick, quilted 100% cotton and has a skirt to keep it in place. As you might expect at such a bargain price, there’s no trial period or guarantee, but you do have the option of returning an unopened protector within 28 days for a refund.
The Dusk Luxury Quilted Mattress Protector is machine washable at 40°C, and can be tumble dried on a low heat (but don’t iron it). During our tests, we air dried the protector, though I’ll tell you more about how this went below.
How well does it work?
At the time of reviewing, I was also testing the Slumberland Air 6.0 mattress, which is a whopping 33cm deep. As such, I requested the deep protector at 35cm, and had no issues at all fitting it over the mattress.
We conduct the same tests for all our mattress protector reviews to ensure consistency of results. I sandwiched the mattress protector between an old polycotton sheet and combined coffee with water in various increments (1.5tsp of coffee in 25ml of water, 3tsp coffee in 50ml of water, 4.5tsp of coffee in 75ml of water and 6tsp of coffee in 100ml of water). I then poured each coffee solution over different areas of the top sheet and waited for five minutes, before measuring the size of the stain on the mattress protector and, if applicable, the size of the stain on the second sheet underneath the protector.
I should note here that the Dusk doesn’t claim to be a waterproof protector, so it was no great surprise to see that the stains had seeped through it onto the bottom sheet. In fact, once they’d seeped though, those stains spread a little wider than they were on the protector itself – for example, 100ml of water and 6tsp of coffee produced a 35x25cm stain on the protector, which spread into a 40x25cm stain on the bottom sheet.
However, I was highly impressed by how well the protector washed, with not a single sign of stainage remaining after a 40°C wash. As I mentioned above, we air dried the protector after washing it, hanging it next to our radiators, and found that the cotton was so thick that it still wasn’t dry after a couple of days and we ended up having to rewash it and borrow a friend’s tumble dryer. Of course, it would have dried much quicker outside on a hot summer’s day, but in the UK those are somewhat rarified occasions! I’d suggest that, during winter, a tumble dryer (or perhaps another laundry drying solution such as a heated airer or dehumidifier) is essential.
Despite the fact that the Dusk protector isn’t waterproof, I think it would be more than adequate to keep your mattress free of body sweat and oils as long as you wash it on a regular basis. The thickness of the cotton will do its job here but if you like to have drinks in bed or have a toilet training child, it’s probably not your best option.
What’s it like to sleep on?
Despite its low price, the Dusk protector feels very luxurious to sleep on. With its slightly padded finish and soft cotton construction, it felt extremely comfortable throughout the night. It fitted well and there was no bunching up or sliding around as we slept on it. As I said above, the choice of two depths of skirt really helps here as you can ensure you choose the best one to fit your mattress. Nor did it make any noise as we moved about during the night.
The resident hot sleeper of the house (my husband) found the Dusk protector comfortable through the night and felt that it did a good job of preventing him from overheating. However, we tested the Dusk back-to-back with the Nectar mattress protector, which he felt was a little cooler thanks to its Tencel cover. That said, cotton is a breathable fabric and we found the breathability of the Dusk protector excellent: I think it will keep the vast majority of sleepers happy in the temperature stakes.
Should you buy the Dusk Luxury Quilted mattress protector?
If you don’t need a waterproof protector, the Dusk option is a fantastic choice. It’s incredibly budget-friendly but feels like a far more luxurious and costly option thanks to its slightly padded and quilted design. It’s completely silent to sleep on and adds a little touch of comfort to your existing bedroom setup.
Of course, the only drawback here is that the Dusk protector isn’t waterproof. But if you can live without that, then this protector certainly punches above its price point.
