Review on Clara Clark Bamboo Memory Pillow by Crystal Robinson

Couldn't wait to lie on this pillow. My head actually did an audible *thunk*. It was like hitting a brick. But how could it be? It was pliable and soft in the hands after it swelled out of the packaging. Here's the problem, well, a few problems actually: The crushed foam is completely encased in hard memory foam. So no matter how soft and viscous the crushed foam is, you won't feel it. You only feel the solid outer shell. I didn't want to bother with the return, so I solved the problem by pulling the foam sheets out of the inner lining, pulling them into a clean hefti bag, tearing them up myself (see photo) and stuffing each pillow back in the middle, and then fluttering and flapping like crazy. Result? Perfection. Finally. Soft yet supportive on the inside, soft and responsive on the outside. As it should have been from the start. Other issues: The crushed foam inside is NOT the white foam shown in the description. This is VERY obviously recycled random foam sourced from other products. Some are white, some blue, some yellow (see photo with at least 3 foam colors). Some with hard protrusions of glue (yellow pieces) and marks where it was torn off from something else. This pillow is either a fake or a clear case of false advertising by Clara Clark. Some of the foam is not crushed, but crushed into foam particles. They go everywhere and stick to everything when you need to undo the inner lining - which is what you need to do to remove the hard foam shell and make this pillow magical. The process is tedious, messy, and time-consuming, but it actually turned those unnecessary items into the most comfortable pillows I have (and I'm picky about all my linens). Good News: The blue hard foam shell is actually cleaner, newer, real memory foam. No doubt they are designed to cleverly hide the motley carnage of salvaged random foams inside. Verdict: These pillows are rock hard in their original form and are only for those who need serious firm support. For those folks, you can get a couple of cinder blocks for less. I'm just saying. With some major disassembly and moderate deterioration these pillows can go from "what the heck" to "feels like heaven". By the way, the outer shell is very nice. I hated wearing pillowcases because the outer cover is really soft and luxurious. Almost like cashmere. With very discreet brand logo. "Alone I would give 1 star for the incredible outer shell. I would give the finished product 5 stars if it was originally so. That's why I give it 3 stars because it's a (very) diamond in the rough. By the way I sleep in combination but mostly on my side so I need good support but still need softness for comfort. Now this pillow is perfect. There isn't much experience with it.