What kind of batting do you use?

Well now. I live a bit south of Buffalo NY, and in this part of the world we know from cold. I'm surprised that you haven't regularly been living the minus 10 lifestyle up there in Michigan, I've never thought of you guys being warmer than us'ns.

I generally make warm quilts and less warm quilts and we rotate them seasonally. I use various sorts of batting depending on how warm the quilt is intended to be, and what I am doing with it. The coolest quilts have Hobbes cotton batting and a cotton cloth backing. the warmest ones have Hobbes wool batting, and flannel backing. I do use warm and natural, and find it warmer than the Hobbes cotton. I have used a layer or two of Hobbes Thermore on some quilts. Generally for people who cannot have a heavy quilt for some reason, most often small children or the elderly, it is good and warm. In natural fibers it is hard to beat wool for warmth. I absolutely hate polyester, but it is very warm.

I do not hesitate to make wool topped quilts when I have the scrap for them. It makes a difference in warmth. The cloth is expensive, which is why I just use the scrap for quilts.

I was recently given a box of worn out wool sweaters that somebody thought I could use. They saw this:

lambs?ref=related-1 and thought of their sweaters and me. I may try my hand at such piecing, I may not. However the worn, frayed and generally otherwise unusable bits will certainly be felted together with an eye to batting a small quilt. I will also throw in the odd bits leftover from spinning as well. I should probably get enough for a lap or crib sized quilt out of the whole lot. I may make a coat instead, depending.

Our house is heated with gas, but a good many friends and relatives have wood stoves, one is still heating from a coal hole that has been in the family for some generations. So good warm bedding is critical. Single stove heating makes for a warm center of the house, but the bedrooms will be more than a little chilly.

NightMist

Jeepers! I buy Warm & Natural by the bolt when Joann has it 50% off... and that's all I use. Quilts made with it are heavy to lift and I find them t o be very warm. I admit- I wash the batting in hot water and a hot dryer b efore using it in quilts (I pre-wash my fabrics, so this step was originall y intended to eliminate shrinkage in both fabric and batting). That pre-sh rinking may make my W&N batting more dense as it shrinks???

I, also, made un-quilted window coverings for the coldest winter and hottes t summer months. I used insulated drapery lining, Warm & Natural and cotto n fabric and used the pillow turn method to sew the layers together leaving an opening at both ends of the top to insert a tension-type curtain rod. The rod holds the 'blinds' inside the window frame about an inch from the g lass. They are quick and simple to make and made a HUGE difference in my u tility bills plus eliminated all the cold drafts. I own a 125 year old Vi ctorian cottage with many large tall windows and 11 ft. ceilings. I *need ed* the extra insulation on the windows even tho I dislike living like a mu shroom in the dark. ;-)

Leslie & The Furbabies in MO. where the snow and ice is finally melting in

45 degree ra> With the bitter cold we are experiencing in most of the US right now,

I made this jacket from felted sweaters last year. and (This facebook album is public so you should be able to see it even if you're not on facebook)

I made it in a community ed class. The pattern we used is at

Julia in MN

NightMist: Yeppers it's pretty cold here too. Today is the first day in 6 weeks that has hit 30 degrees! Mostly temps in the tens and below zero. We have about 4-5 feet of snow that has been on the ground since before Thanksgiving. But I think you east coasters have had a lot more snow and bad weather than we have up here in northern MI this year.

I've considered wool batting but am concerned about users with allergies to wool. Or maybe it's been treated to be hypo-allergenic? If that's a problem, I'll try polyester on a small quilt and see how that works. Thanks for your ideas.

KT.

"Leslie & The Furbabies in MO." wrote in message news: snipped-for-privacy@googlegroups.com... Jeepers! I buy Warm & Natural by the bolt when Joann has it 50% off... and that's all I use. Quilts made with it are heavy to lift and I find them to be very warm. I admit- I wash the batting in hot water and a hot dryer before using it in quilts (I pre-wash my fabrics, so this step was originally intended to eliminate shrinkage in both fabric and batting). That pre-shrinking may make my W&N batting more dense as it shrinks???

I, also, made un-quilted window coverings for the coldest winter and hottest summer months. I used insulated drapery lining, Warm & Natural and cotton fabric and used the pillow turn method to sew the layers together leaving an opening at both ends of the top to insert a tension-type curtain rod. The rod holds the 'blinds' inside the window frame about an inch from the glass. They are quick and simple to make and made a HUGE difference in my utility bills plus eliminated all the cold drafts. I own a 125 year old Victorian cottage with many large tall windows and 11 ft. ceilings. I *needed* the extra insulation on the windows even tho I dislike living like a mushroom in the dark. ;-)

Leslie & The Furbabies in MO. where the snow and ice is finally melting in 45 degree rain

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Thanks Leslie, I'm going to try hot-washing and drying W&N next quilt to see if that doesn't puff and warm it up. Love your ideas for window coverings!

KT.

I've never much liked working with or the result of warm and natural. I have a Hobbs wool bat that is waiting to be used. Maybe someone has some feedback on that. We use a down comforter in addition to a quilt or two. Most of my quilts now have Hobb's 80/20. I think you would get a warmer quilt with more quilting on any bat you use. It is about 83 out here today. I am in the high desert of So.Cal. and it usually is in the 60's for the high this time of year. Today we have shorts on. This is crazy. Taria

With the bitter cold we are experiencing in most of the US right now, it's been a good time to "test" all those quilts we've made. Big disappointment for me. With one exception, I've always used Warm and Natural needled cotton. I like it because it can be quilted up to 10 inches apart. But I don't like the thinness or its drape, and now have discovered there is NO warmth to it at all; like sleeping under a sheet. So I'm gonna change, especially for quilts used for wrapping me in. But to what, in order to get at least a bit of loft, nice drape (hang), and WARMTH. I know I'll have to give up the 10 inch quilting but that's ok as long as I can still get about 6 inches apart. What do you use or recommend?

KT. in MI

Thanks Taria. Next trip into town I'll pick up some Hobbs wool to try on a small quilt. And some Hobbs 80/20 for comparison. You just have to rub it in with the 83 you've got in So. Cal, huh? ;-) Sure hope we get that kind of temp this summer. Last summer it was very mild, mostly in the 70s (which I love) but 80s is much better for swimming and boating.

KT.

I am a fan of regular 80/20 batting. If something is not warm enough, I usually layer, because my own body temp can change so rapidly. What is comfortable now isn't, in 10 minutes. I am t rying to work on a flimsy for my bed, that will have no batting at all. In the winters it will cover the extra blankets on the bed.

G> I've never much liked working with or the result of warm and natural.

I see you Ginger! Where you been hiding? Bet you are warm over on the coast too. I am worried we are all going to cook this summer! All the trees and plants are really confused. Glad to 'see' you. Taria

I am a fan of regular 80/20 batting. If something is not warm enough, I usually layer, because my own body temp can change so rapidly. What is comfortable now isn't, in 10 minutes. I am trying to work on a flimsy for my bed, that will have no batting at all. In the winters it will cover the extra blankets on the bed.

G> I've never much liked working with or the result of warm and natural.

One time maybe 5 years ago I bought some wool batting off a roll at Joann's. I found that the other day when I was sorting out the sewing room. Not sure if they have that any more or who even made it. You might check for that for a small piece to test? Taria

Thanks Taria. Next trip into town I'll pick up some Hobbs wool to try on a small quilt. And some Hobbs 80/20 for comparison. You just have to rub it in with the 83 you've got in So. Cal, huh? ;-) Sure hope we get that kind of temp this summer. Last summer it was very mild, mostly in the 70s (which I love) but 80s is much better for swimming and boating.

KT.

I see you across the pond, too! Good to see you - missed you.

I finish a quilt so rarely that I hardly know what batting I use. However, for all my wallhanging type quilts, I use fusible: I really love that for the purpose. I think it would be too stiff for a cosy bed quilt; and I doubt it would be warm.

If I ever do antoher bed quilt, I will try wool of some sort. Any of you experts know whether it still needs pre-washing?

Pat on the Green

I use mostly Hobbs 80/20 in my quilts. You can always layer multiple quilts or use both quilts and blankets. We are in a cold climate, but the bedroom in our condo is quite warm. We have only one quilt on our bed, but we each have a smaller quilt at the foot of the bed that we can pull up if we get chilly. When we were in a house, our bedroom was quite cool and we had a down comforter (and sometimes small quilts over that). You can always piece a cover for a down comforter, too.

Julia > With the bitter cold we are experiencing in most of the US right now,

"Julia in MN" wrote in message news:ldp75q$9aj$ snipped-for-privacy@speranza.aioe.org...

Am definitely going to try the Hobbs brand next. I usually use just a quilt to cover up when I take a nap in the living room, so I don't want to fool with more than one coverup and that's why I want good heat from it. Thanks for your ideas! KT.

and I hear that hobbs if from Texas!

"Julia in MN" wrote in message news:ldp75q$9aj$ snipped-for-privacy@speranza.aioe.org...

Am definitely going to try the Hobbs brand next. I usually use just a quilt to cover up when I take a nap in the living room, so I don't want to fool with more than one coverup and that's why I want good heat from it. Thanks for your ideas! KT.

Hancock's of Paducah used to have a chart of the various battings in their catalog- I couldn't find the chart on their website. I saw they also have down battings for sale online. I wasn't brave enough to look at the prices for down. ;-)

I did a search for "comparison of quilt battings" and got a bunch of hits.

Leslie & The Furbabies > With the bitter cold we are experiencing in most of the US right now,

I have never pre washed wool batting, having said that I'm not sure what brands I have used most likely Mini Jumbuck or Matildas. I recently purchased a box of cotton at a great saving so the next few quilts I make I will bee using that.

Dee in Oz

Pat on the green

What about pure silk. I have a double bed size silk batting. Never got around to using it and eyesight not very good with cataracts forming but not ready to be removed.

I also have a silk filled duvet that I do not use because I found it too warm. However it is packed away in case we ever get power cuts.

we are fortunate that the floods are not affecting us because we live

640 feet above sea level. Hugs Shirley

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Shirley 
www.allcrafts.org.uk

I've certainly been tempted, Shirley! . Pat on the green