"Extra firm down pillow" means the pillow is firmer, i.e. thicker in density. Thicker pillows are ideal for people that sleep on their side and have a wide 'Comfort Gap'. For reference, the "Comfort Gap" is the area between the side of the head and the crown of the shoulder. The larger the "Comfort Gap", the thicker a pillow needs to be.
Extra firm down pillows are soft but are also very thick. You will sleep much more "IN" this pillow than "ON" this pillow. If you prefer a soft and thick pillow, the best pillow is our extra firm down pillow.
The degree of pillow firmness for side sleepers depends on keeping the spine level with the bed. The challenge is finding the right pillow density or thickness so that when someone lays their head onto the pillow, their head doesn't sink too much (or not sink at all). We call this area we are trying to fill with the pillow your 'Comfort Gap'.
Yes, firm down pillows are extra thick while remaining very plush, soft and light. Customers will sleep much more "IN" firm down pillows rather than "ON" this pillow.
Our best extra firm down pillow is made using our legendary 850 fill power Hungarian white goose down. Depending on how much you 'fluff' your pillow it can be 8" - 10" inches thick in extra firm when it's just resting on your mattress. 850 fill power down can loft extremely high creating a very thick pillow. But, because our down is so very soft you will sink more "INTO" this pillow than sleep "ONTOP" of this pillow.
We design and manufacture all of our luxury down pillows and our extra firm pillow is definitely overfilled. Overfilling the pillow allows it to be thick for those side sleepers with broad shoulders.