Cotton or wool batting seems to be the preferred choice for most quilters now, and that's all I've used for quite a while. But recently I haven't been happy with the way cotton batting looks in the quilts I make for guild service projects. The flatness of the cotton doesn't seem to say warm, cozy, and cuddly for a small child. Also, the easy care of polyester seems a good thing for these quilts. Not all families have access to washers and dryers with gentle settings, or the time for line drying.
So for this one, I bought Mountain Mist 100% polyester with medium loft. At the halfway point in the quilting, I'm very happy with it. I like the puffiness, and it clings as well to the fabric as the cotton battings do, maybe better. There are no pleats or puckers, at least so far. When it's been bound and washed, I'll know better, but right now it seems a good choice. Good thing, because I bought a king size batt at JoAnn's half price sale, planning to make four child-size quilts.
Maybe it's the stiff, cheap batting sold by the roll that gives polyester a bad name. This is quite different, worth a second look.
7 comments:
I have been experimenting with fleece lately. I bought a fleece blanket at Anna's Linens the other day & used it in my Hankie Quilt. It's a bit flat but very drapeable. It's thinner than fabric store fleece but it's in a wide width. So far, I like it & I think it is a good weight for Houston quilts. It may be too thin for your Indiana winters.
I use a lot of polyester batting. Cotton is outrageously expensive up here and wool is nearly impossible to find locally. If I order online I still have to pay a big tax so it's polyester except for very special quilts.
I have said for a long time that there is nothing wrong with poly batt. I use it in my table runners, etc. I like the thin drapiness of cotton for lap quilts, but I use wool in my art quilts, because it shows off the quilting so beautifully. Aside from the color, there is very little discernable difference between wool and poly. You would think wool would be heavy, but it is light as a feather and fluffy.
I like the washability of polyester myself. But I don't have a lot of experience with the different options. I would think the cheaper stuff would be just that. You get what you pay for, I guess.
It's good to experiment until you get the results you want, and I agree, a lot of man-made fibers get a bad rap. They certainly have their uses though.
I started with poly but learned to really dislike the rolled bats I got at Joann's. Then I found Quilter's Dream and used their poly exclusively. Recently I started using QD's 70-30 cotton/poly blend and really like that for bed quilts. I still use poly for kids quilts but both wash very well.
I would second Gari's thoughts. The cotton poly blend is a little more dense and you notice that with the machine quilting-also a heavier result for the quilt overall. I do like it though and for service quilts poly is a great choice. For my art quilts I usually use the thinnest cotton loft I can find.
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