They don't want you using a white back because the white back will show on the front. You could use a white background if the flannel itself was a light color. Since you're a male, I'm guessing you're going to be using darker colors in which case you wouldn't want that white showing and there's no way around that. You really won't like that white coming through the front of a dark quilt. It will be extremely distracting from the overall look. You can use cotton on one side and spend the extra money on a better flannel... Use cotton on one side, flannel on the other all the time for these and it's just fine. Where are you looking for your flannel that they only have the one with the white background?