question about sandwiching a quilt
 

I have a baby quilt that I am making I have the top all done and the backing is a flannel. I want it to be a very light quilt because the baby will be born in the end of july. is it okay you think to just put in basically a sheet? it is a fabric that I am not supper in love with and have not found a good use for. so i don't mind using it as a "batting". but do you think that it is okay to use quilt fabric for batting instead of something else? hope that this is clear as mud.

You don't have to put anything between the top and back if you don't want to. If it is for the summer I don't.

I've made quite a few baby quilts with just one layer of flannel and one layer of regular quilting cotton. It makes a great quilt that is light weight, yet warm enough for cooler evenings. They are super fast and easy to sandwich/quilt. You won't get much definition with your quilting....it ends up being a pretty design. The quilting doesn't have to be close together either as there is no batting.

If you do put the quilting fabric between, will the design show thru to the front? That is something to think about. Is the sheet pattern something that a baby might like later on? I used to make a small sheet for my kids when they were babies. It was lightweight and I used it to cover them for their naps when it was hot in the summer. They had a light cover if the air was on, but they did not get so hot they sweat in their sleep. You can also use it to cover the front of the stroller from the sun and they can still see the light and breathe. I don't know why companies do not make a "top" sheet for babies.

the quilt top is really "dark" boyish fabrics so there is no way for the fabric in the middle to show threw. and I actually did spray baste it. I do agree about the top sheets that you can buy for crib mattresses. but I understand why they don't because there would be a mom who would tuck her new born baby in the top sheet and it would end up dying for some reason. (not making light of sids or any form of a child dying) they say the only thing in a crib for the first 6 months should be just a baby. no blankets pillows or toys. not even the crib bumper. (they do make mesh bumpers that are supposed to be safe now.)

I wouldn't bother putting a sheet in it. If you are using flannel for the back, it will be plenty heavy for a summer quilt. I have a summer nap quilt made by my great grandmother that is pieces of house-dresses (frocks), sewed onto muslin squares (flour sacks), some hideous cheeto-orange fabric added for wide sashing strips and an old table cloth for the backing. She tied it with 2 strands of embroidery floss and used a knife edge binding--tucked in the back & front and top-stitched it all around.

Although, the cotton fabric in the middle might just add a bit more body ....

i've used regular- lt wt muslin in the centers before- when i needed just a little more 'body' than the top/backing provided- it does add a little weight- but not as much as batting- make sure you wash the cotton for the batting and the flannel- they will not shrink/behave the same when finished- they need to be pre=washed....but other than that there is no reason you can't do it if you want- i like the ones i've used muslin in.

I wouldn't put anything in the middle. I find parents tend to put too much on babies anyway; don't want the poor little thing to get too hot.