Cool pillow cases offer new energy-saving option ahead of predicted power crunch (JAPAN)

Employees hold cool pillow cases and pillows at the Yagihashi department store in Kumagaya, Saitama Prefecture, in this recent photo. (Mainichi)

KUMAGAYA, Saitama -- A local department store in this famously hot city started selling cool, colorful pillowcases on May 20, as energy-saving products gain increased attention ahead of a serious power shortage predicted for this summer because of the nuclear crisis.

The pillowcases, produced by the Yagihashi department store in collaboration with bedding supplier Nishikawa Sangyo Co., are available in four colors -- blue, green, red and yellow -- that make the cooled pillows resemble syrup-flavored ice treats.

Each pillowcase has a pocket for a vacuum-sealed pad containing refrigerant moist fiber, which will keep the pillow cold long enough for users to "sleep comfortably on sweltering summer nights without having to worry about energy consumption," according to a Nishikawa Sangyo official.

A pillowcase with a refrigerant pad is available for 2,079 yen (about 20 dollars US), and a whole set with a pillow goes for from 6,279 yen (around 60 dollars US), Inquiries about the product can be made to Nishikawa Sangyo at... more

http://mdn.mainichi.jp/mdnnews/news/20110528p2a00m0na021000c.html

Billy Dee Williams

:)

No pun intended.

Very cool!

I'm such a warm sleeper. This would be a dream for me!

when I was going through menopause and having hot flashes and night sweats. You could sell a boatload of these to menopausal women. :)

It doesn't use a gell, but plain old water with a foam interior.
I saw they made similar things for pet beds, but our dog prefers
to lay on the linoleum when it's hot.

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