A pocket sprung system is created by turning high tensile steel into individual springs which are then wrapped into their own pockets. The springs are either placed in the mattress by a machine in rows, or on more expensive models they are put in place by hand and secured by a stitch which is also done by hand, this is called 'hand nesting' and is a very labour intensive process.

The mattress is then filled and layered with a variety of fillings in very much the same way as the open coil mattresses. The fillings again range from natural fibres such as pure wool and lambswool, mohair, silk, cashmere and even latex, to man made fibres such as reflex foam and memory foam and supersoft white fibres which all have their own brand names like 'superluxe' and 'ultraluxe'. The most luxurious mattresses will have silk, cashmere, pure lambswool and/or memory foam and latex.

You will find that the majority of the pocket sprung mattresses on the market are hand tufted. The exception to this rule is mattresses that are topped with memory foam or latex, these will be micro-quilted as a hand tuft will lessen the effect and feel of the memory foam and latex on the surface.

Good quality pocket sprung mattresses have a horizontal side stitch, this can be done by machine where the stiching will join together the other fabric and some layers of filling. The best pocket sprung mattresses are hand side stitched. This is a very labour intensive process that involves physically putting a 5" needle in by hand through the side wall of the mattress, the needle is fed around the pocket springs at least two rows deep and then pulled back out through the mattress wall at the same point it went in.

This 'stitching' will pull the springs back towards the wall of the mattress providing a firm edge to the mattress. The side stitching runs around the complete wall of the mattress. The number of rows of side stitching varies according to the quality and cost of the mattress.