deedum

Not understanding the real diffrence in batting! Am I the only one confused? I buy polyester, ok, that works. I have bought warm & natural, that works nicely also. I have bought many types but it all seems the same or is it? What is the bottom line on batting? Why one over the other?

I know many prefer a certainly type, why? I just buy whatever is on sale and I say " that will work nicely" and it does.

JanetM

I know a little bit about it. Polyester is good if you are looking for loft but lightweight. Warm and Natural is denser and will make for a flatter and warmer quilt. Wool batting will make a very warm quilt.

I'm sure others here will have much more to add.

sueisallaboutquilts

I love cotton batting b/c up until now all my quilts are hand quilted and I love the look ( like the antique quilts) and also enjoy quilting with it more than poly.
I've never used wool but would like to.
I've heard poly-down is good also. I used to use poly and I didn't like the way it bearded but that was some years ago.

sueisallaboutquilts

Oops

ckcowl

there are alot of differences in batts- different companies- different production techniques, different properties-
fiber content varies, poly, cotton, wool, silk, bamboo- and combinations of them. there are different lofts...from very very thin to very high loft- there are different shrinkage rates, some don't shrink at all- some shrink alot.
different requirements for quilting- some are ok to use for tied quilts- some need to be quilted every 2" (dense quilting) others can have up to 10" between quilting lines.
some batts (smell weird) some batts seem stiff-

it is best to read the packaging- see if the batt meets your requirements for the project you need it for.

there are some people who bought a warm & natural- or a hobbs batt the first time- and have never considered anything else since- other people buy what ever they find on sale- and pay no attention to it's properties-

i use lots of different batts- each project determines the best batt (for me) to use at that time.

i keep a (batt-journal)
each time try a new batt from a new company- or a batt i've not tried yet I cut a 6"square from it to add to my journal-
i include the name of the batt, what it cost, where it came from, fiber content, loft, shrinkage estimate, stitch requirements- anything else i think is important- then after i use it i add notes about using it- if i liked it or not- and why. if it was hard to needle-
some batts are fine when hand stitching/quilting- others are next to impossible to push a needle through by hand

when i find a sale on line i can grab my batt journal and see if the batts being offered are ones i would like to get a couple of to have on hand.
i do tend to (lean toward) the same batt most of the time- but i LOVE LOVE LOVE the wool batts (a bit expensive though so saved for very special quilts) I also love love love all of the batts offered from the DREAM company-- dream poly, dream cotton, dream orient...all of them.
try them all- and see what you like best- but in the mean time-
READ THE PACKAGING- IT HOLDS ALL THE INFORMATION YOU NEED TO MAKE A CHOICE. :thumbup:

gus

good info

deedum

Thanks much for the info! I like the idea of a batt journal. That is very helpful. Some packaging has more info than others. By the time I finish a quilt, I forget what batting is in what. Since I have an assortment of diffrent ones. I do stay away from high loft though.

Aurora

I do not do polyester anything, so it is only Warm & Natural for me.

Scrap Happy

I like Warm and Natural. I prefer cotton over poly. I've heard hand quilters say it is a pleasure for them to work with wool batting. Since we live in FL wool is warmer than what we need, otherwise I would give it a try for winter quilts.

sylviasmom

Try the bamboo and cotton blend. Very soft and denser than warm and natural and price is about comparable.