I used an old blanket of my grandma . The only problem I found was the weight. It is very heavy but lovely and warm on very cold nights. Second problem was when I told ' the police' they all said no,laughed and said it would be criticised in a show. Well I got a very good review in theNEC Birmingham 2010 and was very pleased as it was my first show. A tip would be to watch colours in the blanket donot show through the quilt top.