JC Penney Down Alternative Comforter

JC Penney carries a wide variety of down and down alternative comforters, with easy-to-understand names such as 3 star, 4 star and 5 star to reflect what is likely the cost and quality of each item. On sale the highest tier synthetic product is marketed on sale at $89.99 to $99.99 as of the

time of this article. The company claims that's reduced from the original price of $160 to $180, although such sales may really last indefinitely.

"Down Alt"

Here we mainly talk about the 5 star "down-alt" product, which is their down alternative comforter. The cover is advertised at a thread count of 400 count. The internal fill is something they call the "slick polyester gel fiberfill". The synthetic is claimed to be hypoallergenic like all other synthetics. In order to minimize shifting of the interior polyester, the comforter is given a baffle-box design, which is more expensive than the simpler sewn-box design.

Baffle Box Construction

What is a baffle box and why should you care? The fill (whether its synthetic or natural) that goes inside has a tendency to shift, which creates excess or insufficient fill in spots. To prevent this, the manufacturer may have introduced sewing of internal compartments for isolating and holding the fill. A baffle wall is a strip of vertical fabric inside the comforter. Several baffle walls help keep the top and bottom of the comforter separated, allowing the fill to attain higher loft.

Cover it with a Duvet

Of course, if you don't like JC Penney's down alternative comforter covers, you can always sheathe it in a duvet to your liking or to the decor of your bedrooms. JC Penney says their down alternatives are machine washable, unlike a few other synthetics that we've looked at. Tests indicate that the comforter was very robust to washing, due to what seemed to be very strong fabric.

A "Slick" Gel Fiberfill

As the "slick polyester gel fiberfill" is JC Penney's proprietary material, it doesn't have the advantage of Primaloft which is the industry gold standard for synthetic down alterative warmth-to-weight ratio. Given this, the JC Penney comforter was found to be a bit heavier than its down equivalents or even some of the other comforters we've reviewed.

The 4 Star Alternative

JC Penney also has a 4 star comforter priced as low as half of the 5 star, making it a real bargain. The lower price comes with a disadvantage, as the internal filling is compartmentalized with a sewn-box design rather than the superior baffle-box. A sewn-box design will certainly keep the fill evenly spread over the down alternative comforter, but doesn't provide as much loft capacity as the baffle-box. Similarly, a 3 star product is available with likely what is lower thread count and a sewn-diamond stitching to maintain even fill. The 3 star comforter is priced the lowest of the three making it affordable for any family.