Selecting Batting

[Pam D.]

I am quilting a simple quilt of 9 inch squares in rows of 6 up and down and across. I want to stitch in the ditch along each side of the squares. Then I think I want to stitch diagonally across each square in a large X going through each block. That would leave sections about 5 inches around without any quilting in them.

I have in my stash high loft polyester, low loft polyester, 80/20 Cotton poly blend and 100% thin cotton dream or dream cotton. It seems that the dream cotton would need more stitching than I intend to do and would have not much loft. If I use the high loft poly it might be more like a comforter and would have loft where not stitched. This batting recommends stitching every 2-4". But so do most of them I think. Perhaps there would be some benefit from using the 80/20. Maybe it would have more warmth as it has a lot of cotton.

I really don't know what the pros and cons of these batts are. Any advice out there?

[Pam D.]

You should be fine with the 80/20. Do you know what brand it is? The low loft poly is probably fine to use too.

The packaging for battings usually says how far apart you can quilt. When I buy packaged batting, I keep the package so I have that info, and if there is a piece left over, I put it back in that package.

If you like to quilt farther apart as a general rule, look for battings that can be quilted that far apart.

For this quilt, after you quilt the SID along the seams, and the X's, if it's still too puffy for you, go back and stitch more diagonal lines in the middle of the diagonal lines that are there. That would make the grid smaller and reduce the areas of fluff.

HTH

[Pam D.]

Hi, Michelle, Thanks for the advice. With all this batting I have it seems a shame to buy more so I can quilt further apart. What I notice on my daughter's quilt is that the areas with the least quilting look like they are not neat. I don't mind puffy in between the stitching as that seems like a comforter. For this quilt it would be ok.

[Pam D.]

So it sounds like your best plan is to use the 80/20 or low loft poly and quilt as you outlined. If you need more quilting lines, I think it will be obvious and you can add them on a second go around.

[Pam D.]

Michelle, I found a batting that could be quilted 12" apart. It says it is great for tied quilts. As soon as I get back from the weekend wedding we are going to, and after my folks from FLA visit, I'm going to baste it and get going. I am so excited. I have a lot of batting that I don't know how I'll make use of it. I think I should use it to practice on some baby quilts to donate. We shall see. Have a good weekend. Jan

[Pam D.]

Great Jan! Now remember, that doesn't mean you HAVE to quilt 12" apart!! LOL But it will allow you to do the original quilting plan without worry. And you can still quilt it more closely if you want to.

Have fun!

[Pam D.]

I am very thankful for the quilt shops (there are two in my area) that we have. One is open every day. She always has sales, too. I try to patronize them both a lot. Found some variegated thread to use that I hope works well. I have a picture that I must post on here, but where. It is of a darling sewing machine mechanic. Keep a look out. thanks, Michelle.

[Pam D.]

Try looking in the sewing machine section of the forum. LOL

[Robin G.]

I'm about finished with the top of a quilt I'm making for my niece for her college dorm, and behind that is a similar one for the daughter of friends (also to be a dorm quilt). I'm trying to decide what batting to use. I'll probably have to mail order it, so I'd like some advice before I spend the $$. Both quilts are cotton tops, with 8-inch blocks, 2-inch sashing, and 4-inch borders. I'm using a flannel backing to make them cosy for snuggling in the dorm room, and I will be quilting them on my domestic sewing machine. I wanted to use the PLA (made of corn) batting by Eco-craft, but I checked the website for washing instructions and it says it should be dried flat — the website (http://mountainmistlp.com/ecocraft.htm) describes it as "easy care," but if a large quilt has to be dried flat, that doesn't seem like easy care to me! And it's not very practical for a quilt that's going to be used in a dorm room. I think cotton batting will be too heavy (especially with the flannel backing), and I don't want to use polyester. So, now I'm considering Hobbs Heirloom wool, one of the bamboo or bamboo blends (though I've tried Nature-Fil for hand quilting, and it bearded badly), or I see there is now a soy-cotton blend (http://fiberco.com/care/soft_soy/soy.htm). Does anyone have any experience with these? Thanks! Robin

[Nancy R.]

Hi Robin -
You'll probably get more knowledgeable advice from someone else, but here's my 2 cents worth. I've used the bamboo that Joann's sells (I believe it is Fairfield but could be wrong) and found that it acted just like the Warm and Natural cotton that I generally use. I haven't had any trouble with bearding where I've used it. I haven't used it with flannel so don't know if it would beard with the looser weave. Although there are nice washable wools, I would still be leary of using it for a dorm quilt. I would just worry about how it would hold up if washed in hot water and I wouldn't expect a college student to think about that and be careful. In my family, I will use wool for quilts for my mom (who has never washed a quilt I've given her because she doesn't want anything to happen to them), but for everyone else I use cotton or bamboo since I don't trust any of them to wash carefully and don't want to put that burden on them. I don't know anything about the corn or soy battings, so can't give any opinion on those.

As usual, show us pictures when you are finished!!

Nancy

[Nancy R.]

Hi, Robin, I have only done two quilts so far with flannel on the back, but I used cotton batting for both and they aren't too heavy, they're great. I think I used dream cotton for one. I am doing a third and am using a polyester batting that allows for less close quilting. It is the same loft as the cotton batts. It says medium loft. I really love to put flannel on the back. I stretched out my flannel and basted this third quilt pretty well with safety pins and started quilting in the ditch between my blocks. The flannel rebounded and I had to rip out all the quilting due to lots of ripples in the flannel. I will baste it again this time with spray.The flannel stretches so whatever you do don't use t-pins to stretch it out to baste. If you're using safety pins, use a lot. I watched a video on Craftsy that teaches quilting large quilts. She uses only the spray baste, so I'm hoping that works. Good luck selecting your batting. Jan

[Robin G.]

Thanks, Nancy and Jan. After I posted, I found a sample package from Quilter's Dream. The wool there is lovely, and they say it can be machine washed and dried, so that's good. I've heard good things about that brand, so I've been meaning to try it for hand quilting, but maybe these quilts aren't the right subjects. Quilter's Dream also has something called Dream Orient, which is a mixture of bamboo, silk, and tencel, which is flatter like the cotton, but probably a bit lighter. Says it can be machine washed and dried. So many choices, but so hard to choose! Jan, thanks for the warning about flannel stretching!

[Pam D.]

Robin

Here is a link which leads you to a really useful pdf file, a comparison chart of different waddings. The company is run by TQS member Alibeoley and specialises in waddings.

http://www.asding.com//index.php?mai...e82ck10mgmm0o7

I have found it really useful in the past.

[Robin G.]

Wow! Great chart, Pam! Thanks! Interesting, though, it does have a "wash" column, but doesn't indicate about using a dryer. So on with my search ...