My grandmother made quilts from the late 1890's till she died in 1960's. I never saw her buy fabric. She always recycled before it was called that.
So I, in a pinch, have at times followed in her footsteps. Like when I used an old electric blanket for batting (after I pulled all the wires out). Boy was that a nice warm quilt afterwards! My kids used to fight over it. I had to tie that one, not quilt it.
I've also used fleece between the top and backing, eventhough I know the fleece could have been used AS the backing.
I also remember using old flannel flat sheets (2 at a time).
What have you used?

Watching this thread...

I had an epiphany one day when I fully understood WHY it was ok to cut up men's shirts to use in quilts. Heh...they're FABRIC. I know, it seems silly to have to "realize" that, but still...

i have used flannel sheets in place of batting for a few "summer" quilts i have made.

I've used blankets that I've no longer wanted or used in the house. They make great batting for "give away" quilts for charities.

I love cutting up mens shirts and even a tie now and then.

I've also used those quilted mattress pads(not the waterproof ones) and tied them, since most of my quilts are donated and I can't afford to spend tons of money for batting and such.

Oh I hadn't thought of those.
I just threw one out. :|

I only use new fabric and polyester batting. Figure if I'm going to take the time and energy to do all that work I'm using all new 'stuff'. I give most of my quilts to poeple I know or a family member knows.

I used old mattress pads, double thickness, when I made pot holders this Christmas. I had some extra quilt blocks laying around, so those became the potholder tops.

They were a bit puffy, but I could still machine-quilt through them a bit.

My ex-husbands grandmother used old blankets in hers. They were so thick that once they were on top of you, you could not move. Now that's a warm blanket.

I use blankets for batting in all kid quilts. That way they can be washed often, and no batting to be messed up.

:D :D :D

Mom made those and made denim or corderoy(sp?) tops. They weighed about 50 lbs I think, :lol: , but they sure kept us warm in that old farm house. Momma also backed one of my quilts by piecing together all my receiving blankets. 50+ years later I still have that one although it's better days have long since passed.

raptureready--
What a wonderful idea!
I think I'll do that too for my kids and grandkids.
Thanks for posting that.

I've also used old electric blankets. They are cheap, cheep in yard
sales and thrift stores!! Also for kid camping, kids who love to lie
on the floor to play, car camping, anything that I don't want my
good stuff to be ruined when used freely. Plus, as an emergency
blanket for the car trunk in bad weather....

When I was young and it was new it was okay and I liked it. Now that I'm old and we're both worn out I wouldn't trade it for a million dollars.

Those old mattress pads are also perfect to practice your quilting on!! I bought several from a thrift store and cut them up into big squares. Perfect size and weight to practice on!!

Ditter

That's a good idea too!
Since reading these posts I realize I'm not as clever as I thought...lol...

My mom and grandma made a lot of quilts and I also do not remember them buying new fabric, although mom did make quite a few quilts with fabric scraps she got from a coat factory. Not sure if she bought it or it was free. They both made most all of mine and my sisters clothes, so there was plenty of scraps to use for quilts.

Grandma always used found stuff for batting, instead of real batting. In fact my sister and I just took apart a quilt she had that had been a gift from grandma, probably 30 years ago. Grandma had used a wool blanket inside of it. So when it was washed it got very, very small and crinkly. Sis just put it in a box and stored it. We untied it and took off the binding and washed the top. I brought it home with me to iron and repair in a few spots and then figure out how to turn it back into a quilt. Not sure what the pattern is, but it has lots of little triangles.

Grandma used to give all of us quilts for our 16th birthday or when we got married or both. One of my daughters didn't get a grandma quilt because grandma passed away before she turned 16, so when I get this quilt restored it will be going to her. I just hope I can do it justice. Grandma tied all her quilts, so I will probably do that, but I did notice that tying seemed to leave some holes so I will be doing some sort of quilting as well.

So just a warning, I guess. I am new to quilt making, but have already learned that wool blankets do not make a good lining. You would think that would be just common sense, but you never know.

I used an old blanket a number of years ago. If you're old enough to remember, it was one of those blankets made of foam and when new had nice soft fibers somehow embedded. But as it was washed the fibers came out so I was left with this giant foam blanket. I made a picnic quilt using the legs of DH's Dickies work pants. (He always wore through the knees but the rest of the pants were in good shape.) Nothing fancy, just stitched the pieces together. With a flannel backing this was a very heavy quilt and perfect for throwing on the ground at picnics, etc. Over the years it somehow disappeared. I'm blaming one of my kids cause I surely wouldn't leave behind one of my creations, even if it wasn't fancy. ;)

I let a lady borrow my tied car blanket that I made. We were at a cookout and it was very cold. It wasn't much of a blanket---just a cotton print on fleece. But it was a print that said Jeep and had pictures of Jeeps all over it. (My last three vehicles have been Jeeps) Anyway, this woman was visiting from out of state and must have liked that blanket as much as I did because when she left it left with her. I still miss it.

I remember my Grandma in the 'Hills of WV' collecting unwanted coats. She would cut them and sew them in a flat sheet then she would put pieced tops on them and tie them. One of my first hem jobs was on her binding. Never knew what happened to all those HEAVY quilts, might be glad. But wool was her choice of inside stuff, as she called it. Thanks for bringing this up. Great memory jolt!
Blessings, Ruth

I am using lightweight flannel for my sons new quilt. No batting.

Thanks for the interesting read. I will keep an eye out for blankets on sale. Sometimes plain ol' thin blankets are pretty cheap, cheaper than batting.

I started out recycling old blankets in my quilts which were always tied and lap size. My first hand quilted one was a dresden plate that I bought cotton batting for. My next dresden for my daughter I used polyester. While choosing her purple fabrics, I landed a job at Hancocks teaching the BOM Sampler's Club. I enjoyed doing that for 5 different quilts. I used Hobb's 80/20 in two, but a friend quilted them on her long arm and prefers that. I am going to try bamboo on the next one I put in the frame to hand quilt. One of my favorite quilts that I use most every night is a top I found. I tied it to a sheet as backing, then turned the edges over for binding. Someone had put three of these tops out on top of the trash bin! {the bin was empty, so they were put on top to be found} It was my treasure! Some blocks were hand pieced and some were machine pieced. They were all scrappy and old.

My grandmother made all of her quilts with courderoy and wool, all pieced and hand quilted. I don't know what happened to those quilts but I sure loved them when I was a kid. The batting was flannel. Now...I love that pattern in your avatar, the red and white one ....What is the pattern called and where can I get it?
Thanks much. Its raining in sunny Arizona today, how awful!!!!! I have always used w and n since I started to quilt years ago. I have never used anything else.

Terrific ideas here in this thread. Thanks for the ideas, especially the electric blanket one.

I mostly use batting. My favorite is the Bamboo. I do use flannel in children/baby quilts. I have an old mattress cover, but I was saving it to make bibs. Have to rethink that. I don't have any blankets as I have so many quilts the blankets had to go.

We have a discount store near where I live called Roses. They sell blanket "seconds" for 6-7 dollars. I have been using them. They make a great warm quilt. I tie them. But I don't have to worry about them coming apart like some batting will. Whenever I find them in king, queen or full size I will purchase 5 or 6 at a time.

I just had to pay 35 dollars for a king batting, I needed it quick and could not wait for it to go on sale. So 6-7 dollars is a steal.

I also have used sheets for backing.

My aunt made me a flannel quilt when I was around five. She had all these wonderful little flannel squares of snowmen, snowflakes and wintery things. She backed it with flannel also. The batting was an old wool army blanket. I loved that thing to death. I called it "My Cold Blankie" because everytime I snuggled under it, it was cold. Then it warmed right up to toasty perfection.

Years later, I gave it to my daughter when she was seven. Some of the flannel had shredded and the back was in strings. I took out the ties and put on a new flannel back. I didn't quilt but was in it to give my daughter my treasure. I just cut squares out of fabric and zigzagged it on to the existing quilt top to cover the holes!

My daughter loved it...because it was cold! She called it the same thing I did and loved it until it completely shredded apart.

We had four daughters and when they grew up and left home I had a double closet full of wool blazers, slacks, and skirts. I cut them into squares and backed them with a cotton sheet and tied them. Everyone enjoyed those quilts until they fell apart because they were so warm and since they were cotton and wool they sort of breathed so that they didn't get all sweaty when they slept under them. Since there was no batting they were fairly light weight too.

I haven't used these things for quilts but this Christmas I made "Tortilla Warmers" and used old clean towels for "batting". The old terry towel was just the perfect weight and insulation and it made several warmers!

I'm glad I'm not the only one :oops:

I just bought some fleece remnants to use as batting for a quilted pad for my mom's cat. Yes, her cat and don't ask. The cat needs a flannel pad to sleep on when my mom puts away her flannel bed sheets during the warmer months but the cat still wants flannel to sleep on. Got the flannel at JoAnn's - all their flannel is on sale right now.

I also use old blankets or mattress pads, especially for children's blankets and I use regular batting also in my larger quilts. I have never used an electric blanket tho! Good thought!

I am just finishing hand quilting a queen size quilt with bamboo batting. I ordered it on line, but was still quite expensive. I can not tell any difference in the bamboo and any other batting I have used. When I started quilting we used the Hobbs 80/20 and is still my preference for quilts. You might like the Quilters Dream also. I love that for baby quilts.

Dix

my first quilt was entirely made from men's plaid shirts I bought at Goodwill. I loved the variety of plaids and the quality of the fabric. I actually started a trend in my guild -- not bad for a beginner. Someday, when I get the quilt finished, I will post a photo.

I buy blankets at Dollar General . You can get a queen size for just 8.00.There not very lofty,but they are the warmest quilts ,and they,re great for machine quilting.

And how!

My DH's grandma made quilts from suiting scraps (which are heavy in their own right!) she got from a factory. I have no idea what she used for batting, but one literally NOT move under this quilt! BTW, she also pieced the backs of these quilts with suiting fabric! I think we still have one...I'll try to find it and post a pic...

have often thought to do this ,presume too thick to quilt, so must tie??
do subscribe to reuse of everthing if possible, afterall the original quilting ladies did.