A guide to down

The down collection is designed to promote a better night’s sleep. Comprising European goose down duvets and pillows, each piece is produced in Denmark according to high standards. Learn more about the collection and its production.

Inspecting

A sample from every batch of down and feathers is tested in the factory lab before use, to verify the fibre has come from a goose and is of good quality. Goose down is used exclusively in Tekla duvets, as its larger size gives it superior warmth. Once verified, lab technicians measure its fill power.

Cleaning

The down and feathers are pre-washed, thoroughly washed, and dried at high temperatures to remove bacteria, mould and other contaminants. A small amount of natural grease is retained to keep the fibres from breaking, in the same way skin relies on its own natural barrier.

Sorting

Clean down and feathers are sorted by weight in a machine that blows them from one chamber to the next. The lighter the fibre, the further it travels – and the further it travels, the higher its quality.

Production

The sorted down is pulled into a chamber and weighed by cassette weight, then blown through pipes into casings fed onto them by hand. Each piece is stitched and labelled by hand, then checked to ensure an even distribution of down and high quality.

Understanding down

Down or feathers?

Down is a three-dimensional structure made up of thousands of fine filaments clustered around a central core. These filaments trap air, which insulates because air is a poor conductor of heat. The more a cluster of down can loft – expand and hold air – the greater its warmth.

Feathers are flat, two-dimensional structures that birds use for flight and waterproofing. They offer some insulation, but far less than down. Feathers are heavier and bulkier, with a rigid central shaft – called a rachis – that gives them structure rather than warmth. This is useful in products like pillows, but makes for a heavy duvet without much insulation.

This is why Tekla duvets are made using 100% European goose down, for warmth without weight, while pillows use a mix of down and feathers for a supportive, comfortable fill.

Goose, duck or chicken?

Geese are larger birds, so their down clusters are typically larger too, giving a higher fill power. Duck down can be of good quality, but a duck's smaller size generally means a lower fill power than goose. Chickens do not produce down in the same way as geese or ducks — their feathers are sometimes used as filling in lower-grade products, but without down, offer limited insulation.

Fill power or TOG?

Fill power measures how many cubic inches one ounce of down expands to fill, or "lofts". To measure it, down is placed in a chamber and left to loft fully. A weighted disc, roughly equal to the weight of a duvet case and cover, is then lowered onto it. The space the down continues to hold after compression is its fill power.

TOG measures a duvet's heat retention: a heat source is placed beneath the fabric, and the temperature reached above it determines its TOG rating.

TOG measures warmth, but not weight or quality. Two duvets can carry the same TOG rating and still feel very different — one light and loftier, made with high fill power down; the other heavier and bulkier, made with low fill power down. This is why Tekla uses fill power in its duvets: a measurement that captures down's true insulating properties.

Lightweight or extra-warm?

All-season and extra-warm duvets use baffle wall construction – small internal fabric walls that let the down loft fully in every direction, thus eliminating cold spots. Light duvets are stitched through instead, which flattens the down along each seam and creates deliberate gaps for air, and therefore heat, to escape. Which is best comes down to personal preference and local temperatures.

Discover the down collection