Fluffo Interuptus

'K, I have been asked if I can do a thing, and I am not sure.

I've got a lady here who keeps buying made in china down comforters, and the fabric and stitching goes all to heckies very quickly. Since she is sick of leaking feathers, she wants to know if I can take a new down comforter, and use it as batting.

My first inclination, is "Sure! Whay not?" That "why not?" is starting to nag me though.

Tell me what I am not thinking of! Something is poking me in the brain, and I can't quite identify it.

Seems to me that so long as I am "loose" about the quilting, maybe just try to follow the original baffles, it should be fine. Using a machine and fairly finely woven fabric, and it should come out better than new.

But there is that nag in my head that I am forgetting something...

NightMist

Reply to
NightMist
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I wonder if it would be more difficult than expected to follow the original baffles, once they're covered by new fabric? If so, what about making a duvet cover for the new down comforter instead?

Reply to
Sandy

I would join the Witness Protect Program and before I left, I would suggest that she buy a cover for her leaky down comforters. Probably available lots of places but

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would be an okay place to start. This is a challenge that just ain't worth it. Polly

"Sandy" I wonder if it would be more difficult than expected to follow the

Reply to
Polly Esther

I have to agree with Sandy and Polly....duvet covers. Easy peasy, like big pillow covers. only do the "flap" part on the top with pretty buttons across. good luck! amy in CNY

Reply to
amy in CNY

I'd think I'd just suggest a duvet cover also. So much easier and about as simple as sewing two sheets together with buttons on one end. We just dealt with this in our house. I found a new down comforter at The Company Store (out of LaCrosse, WI) online at clearance for $39! However the only color left was bright orange and didn't fit in my color scheme. I ordered it anyway and did the duvet thing. It worked out perfect and the added bonus is that you can take it off and wash it anytime you want. So much easier. Donna

Reply to
dealer83

I would make a pieced/appliquéd quilt top- I think that's what you said she wanted? If not, then never mind. VBG Then use the thinnest cotton batting you can find and use no backing. Quilt as desired. Then use that quilt top/batting for the front side of the duvet cover- use the birthing method but leave the bottom open. You can leave it as a duvet cover--- or tack it thru the down comforter in several/many places with a tiny satin stitch tack using invisible thread (or tack it by hand) and bind the bottom to close it.

Good luck making her happy..... glad it's you and not me with this project! Squeezing all the down and fabric under the s/m doesn't sound like fun with all that bulk!

Leslie & The Furbabies in MO.

Reply to
Leslie& The Furbabies in MO.

I am trying to remember the story mom told me years ago. When she was a kid in NYC she remembers her mama taking an old comforter to a shop where they opened it up and somehow dumped all the down into another case added more and stitched it all up and together right in front of them. That always sounded so cool to me but never have I heard anything else about such a shop. I looked into reticking (I think that is the word?) a down comforter for a sis of mine. The cost of the ticking was really high and prohibitive. Not sure if that is something you might want to consider. Grandma was Czech and there was not a bit of anything remotely patchwork/quilting in her home. She did very fine needlearts but nothing as primitive as quilting. She was a snob about many other things too. I guess down comforters were just what she knew. I wish she had embraced my sewing skills at an early age and fostered that instead of being jealous of it. : ( Taria

Reply to
Taria

That's it! Well sorta...

"Double Dose Downy Dumplings"

When working with down (which I hardly ever do) you want to double stitch all seams. Make the item as for a biscuit quilt, in sections. And then for best wear add a cover or second layer that covers the original seams. "A detachable cover layer is generally prefered as it presents great savings of time as regards laundering the item in question."

Now if I could just remember where that is from I could go look for more tips.

NightMist

Reply to
NightMist

a new proper feather/down duvet cover would no doubt cost more than the original one from china. it'd be a proper one tho. i've had a couple of feather/down duvets for 30 yrs now. they do lose a feather now and then. in that time they're both smaller than when bought and cuz we're down to only the two of us living here now, i plan on opening both of them. gather up all the innards, wash the covers properly, repair it if need be, then restuff with the innards from the queen and single size in the queen size. i could make new covers but they're in good shape with few washings over the years and no idea where i'd buy the right fabric. i'm sure i could of typed that with better structure but brain is fried and if its not clear oh well. oops, gave the big one to ds when he moved out last week(its summer so didnt need a heavy full duvet), will retrieve it when we give him some brand new bedding for christmas. then i can do what i had planned. unless there is not enough innards, then i might make a smaller size out of it. who knows til i get round to tackling the job. j.

"Polly Esther" wrote ... I would join the Witness Protect Program and before I left, I would suggest that she buy a cover for her leaky down comforters. Probably available lots of places but

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would be an okay place to start. This is a challenge that just ain't worth it. Polly

"Sandy" I wonder if it would be more difficult than expected to follow the

Reply to
J*

i've always used covers for the 2 feather/down duvets we have. cant imagine who'd do otherwise. j.

I'd think I'd just suggest a duvet cover also. So much easier and about as simple as sewing two sheets together with buttons on one end. We just dealt with this in our house. I found a new down comforter at The Company Store (out of LaCrosse, WI) online at clearance for $39! However the only color left was bright orange and didn't fit in my color scheme. I ordered it anyway and did the duvet thing. It worked out perfect and the added bonus is that you can take it off and wash it anytime you want. So much easier. Donna

Reply to
J*

Been there, done that and WILL NOT do it again :-). Do what everyone else suggest and make a duvet. As for covering the comforter and then sewing through all the layers along the already stitched baffle lines 00 it's near impossible to keep the new top fabric in place unless you literally glue everything down and then those pesky feathers still want to get in the way. A total and absolute P.I.T.A. and if anyone out there has any tips on how to do it easily, I would LOVE to know about them :-)))) So, there are a few things I have learned in my years of making home dec stuff -- especially duvets and doubly especially ones for down or feather comforters. Those puppies slither around inside the duvet something fierce. I have used velcro tabs to keep the two pieces together. I have used pieces of twill tape to tie the pieces together. Now I have gotten to where I add little tabs of fabric along the four sides of the comforter and the inner seam of the duvet. Then I get those comforter clips and use them to clip the comforter in place inside the duvet. This is the easiest and looks quite nice when all put together. Good luck and let us know what you finally decide to do, OK? CiaoMeow >^;;^>

NightMist wrote:

Reply to
Tia Mary

Reply to
Roberta

Are you going to be charging her a fair/reasonable rate for materials, labor, etc.? I think I'd sit her down and have her add up what she's spent on all these cheapies plus fair value of repairs, improvements, etc., then re-evaluate if it was really worth it or if she might now consider investing in something more substantial to begin with (i.e. quality), which would most likely be less expensive in the long run. Probably won't work with that kind of mentality, but it's always worth a shot...

Doc

Reply to
Dr. Zachary Smith

We have been using duvets for 40+ years, and have never had one move around inside its cover. Duvets are now the norm in the uk.

As Duvets are now the bedding of choice in much of Europe I think their construction has been refined, and you can now get them with different heat retention qualities depending on time of year and personal preference. Our down one = warm and light but D SisIL has a flimsy summer one all year round and is still too hot.

I couldn't find any uk comforters on the web - I know they used to exist because my sister almost bought one about 15 years ago before she thought about how she was going to wash it. Then they weren't as puffy as a duvet and really used as just a decorative bed spread. They were more of a thicker quilt. Our duvet has separate pockets stitched down about 9" square each filled with down but not stuffed tight so that it can trap warm air in it. It has a pretty washable cover and this is the only bedding we have on top of us at night. It is lovely and cozy.

I tried to Google the difference, but none of the explanations were the same and they all seemed to be US ones. Some even said that a duvet was the cover you use, and that a duvet only came to the edge of the bed and didn't go over the sides at all (Brrrr!)

Perhaps it needs someone with experience of both sides of the pond to define!

Sally at the Seaside~~~~~~~~~~~~~uk

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Roberta wrote:

Reply to
Sally Swindells

What was called an "eiderdown" when I was a child? It went under the candlewick bedspread and over the blanket, but didn't dangle down like the bedspread did....

I still remember the excitement of getting my first duvet (or as it was called a "continental quilt") and it being light and puffy and warm and not needing any extra warm layers and having a cover that matched my curtains and my wallpaper....

Lizzy

Reply to
Lizzy Taylor

I was taught -- a loooooong time ago -- that a duvet is the *cover* for a comforter which can be filled with feathers, down, down substitute, poly fiber fill, etc. Comforters are quite puffy and are not necessarily pretty but made of plain, serviceable fabric, especially if the filling is feathers or down. They are not usually washed but are professionally cleaned which can be quite expensive. The duvet, OTOH,

*is* washable and provides protection for the comforter which is usually quite pricey, especially if down filled. I wonder what the difference is between the comforters in Europe that keeps them from moving around inside the duvet? Every one I have dealt with will slither around inside the duvet and needs to be nudged and fluffed, etc. to get it back where it belongs! Maybe it's just me, or more likely, the fact that DH sleeps like a wild Indian -- LOLOL! Anyway, when I make duvets for people they are the decorative type that are used as a bedspread, taken off the bed at night, folded up and set aside. As such, the comforter will wriggle all around inside the duvet and needs to be held in place. CiaoMeow >^;;^<

PAX, Tia Mary >^;;^< (RCTQ Queen of Kitties) Angels can't show their wings on earth but nothing was ever said about their whiskers! Visit my Photo albums at

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Reply to
Tia Mary

here in nz we have duvet (any filling) inners and duvet covers. take off the cover to wash regularly as needed i guess. mine doesnt get washed everytime i change the sheets as i do use a top sheet with the duvet. the inner gets washed couple of times a year but aired about 6 times a year and if it is full of down/feathers gets fluffed up nearly everyday when the bed gets made. just how i do it tho. the inner doesn shift, just the down/feathers inside it, hence the fluffing up. tho we dont use it at all in high summer, too hot. in spring/autumn the feathers are fine if them migrate to the bottom as all fluffed up to the top would again be too warm for us. tho all that said, dh and i have different temp requirements so we have to adjust bedding all year to suit each of us accordingly. j.

"Tia Mary" wrote ... I was taught -- a loooooong time ago -- that a duvet is the *cover* for a comforter which can be filled with feathers, down, down substitute, poly fiber fill, etc. Comforters are quite puffy and are not necessarily pretty but made of plain, serviceable fabric, especially if the filling is feathers or down. They are not usually washed but are professionally cleaned which can be quite expensive. The duvet, OTOH,

*is* washable and provides protection for the comforter which is usually quite pricey, especially if down filled. I wonder what the difference is between the comforters in Europe that keeps them from moving around inside the duvet? Every one I have dealt with will slither around inside the duvet and needs to be nudged and fluffed, etc. to get it back where it belongs! Maybe it's just me, or more likely, the fact that DH sleeps like a wild Indian -- LOLOL! Anyway, when I make duvets for people they are the decorative type that are used as a bedspread, taken off the bed at night, folded up and set aside. As such, the comforter will wriggle all around inside the duvet and needs to be held in place. CiaoMeow >^;;^<
Reply to
J*

I told her I would look at it, and I have. I now know why they go to hell on her. The one she brought by appears to be some sort of thin, nonwoven faux suede. She said she chooses that type because she feels it holds up better than the synthetic satin ones she has gotten in the past. She brought the most recently self destructed one along and from what I can tell there seems to be a double lining behind the surface fabric. One is more like an ultra low loft poly batting, and the other is that tissue thin non woven interfacing that tears if you breath hard on it. Badly sewn channels too, uneven, and by all appearances using a machine that can't keep it's stitch length. Though perhaps it was pulled through the machine, which would give much the same effect. The new one already has feathers poking out the stitches, so they didn't give any thought to their needle either. Just the way it is made I would guess that it is completely non-cleanable, and designed to self-destruct after no more than a single season of use.

My first inclination was to send her off with the proverb "penny wise and pound foolish". Then I thought for a second, and asked if she had more. Upon learning that she has some five years worth of the things stuffed in bags in her closet, I told her to hang on to them while I looked for proper ticking. It is allowed that if I find ticking at an agreeable price we can negotiate. Never let it be said that I sent some pounds of clean feathers begging! Sterile feathers are dear, and I would as soon have some and just let her pay for the ticking.

NightMist

On Tue, 08 Dec 2009 14:01:35 +0100, Roberta wrote:

Reply to
NightMist

I did some googling and couldn't find anybody who defined "duvet" as anything but a comforter filled with feathers. Duvet is the French word for down. The thing that goes over it and can be taken off for laundering is a duvet cover.

Here in Germany, a down or feather comforter is the standard bedding. Poly fiber "duvets" exist. Each person generally has a separate one, so no fighting. Never used with any other extra sheet or blanket. We put a bottom sheet over the mattress, a cover over the duvet, and we're good to go (to sleep). Launder the covers every time you launder the bottom sheet, in my case once a week. It's just a gigantic pillowcase, after all.

The duvet itself is (relatively) easy to wash >Sally Sw>

Reply to
Roberta

Reply to
Roberta

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