Grace creates

I am considering using bleached muslim as a background for my next quilts. I do not quite understand what the difference is between a bleached muslin and a white cotton. Can you help me with this question. I also have seen muslin now comes in color's. I guess my question is what exactly is muslin. I always thought it was fabric that is not printed on, but now I am a bit confused. Does muslin work as a nice background or a nice backing?

MadQuilter

There are different quality muslins on the market. Some are almost see-through so those are to be avoided. Others are a solid, tight weave and work well for backgrounds. There is a great selection of colors available too.

Missouri Star Quilt Co sells Bella Solids which (I believe) are from Moda. There is also the Kauffman Kona Cotton line. I like both.

GagaSmith

Good question. I don't know the difference but I have used good quality musliN (musliM is a religion) in a couple of quilts with good results. I have also used Kona cotton which MadQuilter seems to indicate is also a muslin. I didn't know that. Always learning something here.

snipforfun

My avatar has good quality muslin in it along with Ricky Tims hand dyes which by the way is muslin.

BrendaK

I used muslin for the background of one of my table runners. It was a tight weave and it worked out fine. I didn't realize that it came in colors. This may sound dumb but is the colored muslin still called muslin or does it go by another name? BrendaK

nanna-up-north

I'm using muslin for a cathedral window quilt right now. The muslin was a lot cheaper than regular fabric and I had to get a lot .... 20 yards was what I was told. So I decided to buy a bolt of muslin but after shopping around I found that there are a lot of different qualities of muslin out there being sold. The box stores were cheap but poor quality so I ordered it from my LQS..... and I love it.... nice quality and I will have some for other projects. The LQS owner told me that there may be some flecks of cotton seed, etc in muslin that you won't get from regular fabric because it is less processed. That didn't bother me because I wanted the more country look. So look around to find exactly what you want.

zennia

I use it often with no problem. I didn't know it came in colors. Will look for it.

Geri B

A good quality muslin is a joy to work with..after it is washed it is as soft as marshmallow( my opinion) and I use it on the backs of all my quilting projects....I only know of bleached, unbleached, natural colors...will have to keep eyes open for "colors"

jcrow

My dearly departed sister made blocks using muslin and I acquired it and finished it. I loved the muslin look. I bought muslin for the back and think it turned out beautifully. She appliqued stars to the muslin and satin stitched around each one. I gave it to my daughter. I can't remember how many stars there were, but there were a ton of them. It really looked old fashioned with the muslin and I loved the look. Now I'm wanting to use muslin more and more for the old fashioned look.

ckcowl

muslin make wonderful quilts- many people I know always back their quilts with muslin, either bleached or natural- it washes up nicely becomes softer & softer with wear & laundering and is a wonderful inexpensive utility cotton fabric. their are many different *grades* of muslin, some are quite thin, loose weaves - which do tighten up some when pre-washed- and make good foundations for foundation/paper piecing- some are much heavier- some almost as heavy as any broadcloth. muslin has been used in quilting since the 1700's (maybe even earlier) the difference between a bleached muslin and a solid white fabric is---muslin is a natural cotton fiber that is a tan-creamy color- it is bleached to make it white- white solid fabric is made with white threads woven together. muslin also dyes beautifully- you can purchase it generally for a lot less than other solid fabrics then dye it any color you want it to be if you want to.