So earth day got me to thinking about alternate fiber sources again. I've yet to do the hemp fabric though do plan to try once the prices come down just a wee bit.

Anyway, I saw bamboo batting at the quilt show and have thought about it ever since. Once again priced a bit out of my league, but wow was it soft stuff. I'm thinking it may be a nice alternative, like the hemp and natural cottons, but wonder if anyone has used it and could tell me more? Is it good for hand quilting?

http://www.beyondthereefpatterns.com/bamboo.html

I think what I heard about bamboo was that is has a scrim on it; that is, a thin layer that you could peel up that holds the fibers together. For that reason it might be harder to sew through then some others.

Yeah, I read about the scrim but wasn't quite sure what that meant. Thanks for the explanation. The lady at the show said it was easy to hand quilt but then again she was selling the stuff.

I also just found bamboo fabric on sale and am wondering how it quilts as well, any ideas? Cheaper than the hemp, but miss the prints:

http://www.hartsfabric.com/bamboofabric.htm

I've used only a small sample of it, didn't really think it was alot different using it for handwork. At guild the other evening a lady showed 2 quilts she'd just finished & said she found the bamboo had alot of "fluff" that floated around as she manouvered the quilt at the machine & she found it bothered her breathing. She said it didn't beard like some of the older craft poly batts but that the little pieces that floated were all stuck to the right sides of the quilt.

I bought some a while back but haven't used it yet - it is soooo soft, seems like the fibers are more like silk than cotton. The package warns of shrinkage and advises to pre-shrink by washing and drying before using.

I have heard stories about it being a natural antibacterial, and great for folks with allergies. I guess that only applies once it is inside the quilt. It's not cheap though - I used a 50% off coupon to bring a queen size down to my price range.

like your ideas steve...hmmm...hemp, suppose if you can stomache the smell, what do you think? :)

I've never quilted with bamboo batting so I couldn't tell you how well it quilts. I've heard that its anti-bacterial and eco-friendly since bamboo is a very renewable source....that's about it.

On the subject of alternative fiber sources, Keepsake Quilting sells one called EcoCraft Eco-Friendly Batting. Its a 50/50 blend of cotton and PLA (made from corn). Personally, I don't know how well it quilts. It says it offers the performance of synthetics and the peace-of-mind of natural fibers. Soft, durable...hand or machine quilted up to 4" intervals. These are what the prices are:

Crib: $8.99
Twin: $19.99
Full: $23.99
Queen: $27.99

Interesting, I'm glad eco-friendly sources are being examined. It's funny but I think for 'my quilt', when it happens, is going to be an eco quilt, out of GP.

Honestly, if they'd figure a way to work it into my budget, they'd all be eco quilts (well 'maybe' if there were a print or two too to boot).

Still cotton is soft as a bunnies tail and most affordable, so what's to do?

I'm toying with the idea of ordering up a bit of the bamboo fabric just to try it (yes I will report). Some of the cottons I've bought are as expensive anyway. :roll:

an [allegedly] eco-friendly product isn't helping anything unless everybody can afford it. the label is a marketing ploy that plays on misplaced guilt to sucker bigger wads of cash out of your pocket.

if hemp and bamboo fabric & batting start to sell big, they'll just slash and burn acres of old forest to clear land in developing countries for planting more of them. people are already going hungry so the wealthy can feed their chi-chi ethanol cars. do you really want to add to that cycle?

the "to do" list is easy. worry less. read ALL the reports - not just the hysterical hype being shoved down our throats by the Chicken Littles who care more about their own agendas than they do the long term benefits, causes & effects, and the truth.

bicycle, car-pool, public mass-transportation if they're available and practical in your area. and buy what still makes the most sense for your quilts, your budget and the planet. which is still [preferably] cotton, but poly if that's what fits your budget best.

I was curious about the bamboo batting too. Somewhere along the line I heard that it is not so eco friendly because of the amount of energy it takes to process.

How much truth in that-I don't know but worth checking into if you are using it for that reason.

i have not used the bamboo batting, but i don't see where it is any more eco friendly than cotton. however, i have heard that quilters dream has a new batting that is made 100% from recycled 2 liter bottles. a friend of mine was at the show in portland last week and said she was really impressed with it. she also said it was very affordable. now, i just have to find some to try!

Another way to be eco friendly is to stop using plastic bags. The amount of plastic bags going into landfills, as well as just blowing in the wind, daily is phenomenal. Stop leaving the store with 1 or 2 items in a plastic bag when you could just as easily carry it without a bag. Just keep your receipt handy when you leave the store. All of the grocery stores in my area sell inexpensive reusable bags and they hold a lot. The store I shop at even has insulated bags that zip closed. These bags are very affordable. You can also make your own out of fabric from your stash. I take mine back out to the car as soon as I empty them. If you're not convinced, please read the numbers:

http://www.reusablebags.com/facts.php?id=4

Once the earth is used up, where will our children go? :cry:

http://www.quiltersdreambatting.com/dream-green.htm

Well, I have to say, the pandas need to eat the bamboo. Save the bamboo for the pandas.

But, quilting and hobbies are my escape from the insanity of environmentalism and other activism. So I'm not really thinking "renewable" batting and fabric.

My quilts aren't in the landfills.

Now, I'm all for activism when it comes to all that excessive packaging on the products we buy that we have to cut off and bulk up our trash cans with. And I'll drink out of glass bottles. But, that's as far as I go when it comes to "environmental friendliness."

hmm.... my poly batt quilts are much warmer than my cotton batt quilts. So that means I can turn down the thermostat at night, right?

Bamboo is an interesting yarn - like hemp, it continues to grow softer and more absorbant with each washing. I wouldn't mind trying it for a wall quilt or table runner, but I don't think I want to risk using such a new product in a larger quilt in which I have invested a lot of time and money.

I just bought 2 metres of Bamboo batting for a quilt I am working on now. I did prewash it and it did shrink like they said it would. I dried it in the dryer on the lowest setting and it took a long time to dry, but that took out most of the fluff so I am good to go. So far I have quilted 2 of the 4 panels of this quilt and I have a Janome Jem gold and it is handling it nicely. I don't hand quilt, so I can't help you there, but I did hand baste the panels and that went smoothly also.

I got it on sale for about $10.00 a metre and that is a lot better than the Warm and Natural that I pay $18.99 a metre for, so you be the judge. I only buy batting when it is on sale at 50% off, so I paid about 1 dollar more for the bamboo.

:) since I am quite new to all this, I didn't know much when I saw bamboo batting packaged at JoAnn one day, looking lonely in a big box by itself in the middle of the floor. That was a few months ago. Since then, I have used it with my Asian fabrics to make a Zen quilt for DH - see photo in the photos section. I didn't wash it before and didn't read the directions so this may be another oops on my part. I like the texture, it is much like cotton. It does give off some lint,maybe that is the scrim? Don't know for sure what scrim is. I used a lint remover roller. I machine quilted with no problems. Now that I have read all these posts, I am afraid to wash it! Also note that it was on a special sale so I got a deal, as I usually do!
judee

Be sure you wash it is cold water and either hang over a railing to dry or dry it on very low in your dryer. Good luck

Before quilting with mine, I soaked my bamboo batting in the washer and then ran the spin cycle. Dried it in the dryer and it turned out beautifully. Good luck.

You can buy Bamboo Batting directly from a company in Texas

FiberCo inc.


www.fiberco.com

Bamboo seems to be the magic product to make everything out of. I'm surprised that bamboo juice hasn't replace gasoline by now. :roll:
Bamboo is free, cheap to grow and easy to harvest so why does products made from it so expensive? I have oodles of bamboo growing in my backyard, it grows a foot overnight. A few stalks will multiply into a jungle in no time.

Growing and harvesting are the easy parts, processing it without chemicals is the hard part (and expensive) I'm guessing.. :mrgreen:

if you get on their website and look around they offer samples of their line for a small fee. i haven't gotten them, but it seems to be a good way to test each one out before making a major purchase.

Bamboo is renewable and organic in nature so it's earth friendly. Products are labeled as earth friendly are not necessarily chemical free. I can buy chemical free untreated cotton batting but it's not being labeled as earth friendly. I wonder why?

do you sometimes feel that the cotton and cotton/poly (80/20) has a stiffer hand? i like it, but to me it does feel stiff. the bamboo is fluffier and from what i've heard, very warm. you can also quilt a little further apart with the bamboo.

in the ne, bamboo has become an invasive pest plant and hard to control. people grew them as living fences and now their yards are filled with bamboo. so it's a VERY renewable source. it grows like weeds, which in the usa, it is. so i love the idea of using it.

the other good one is quilter's dream GREEN. king uses up 28 green plastiic 2-litre soda bottles, and the energy it takes to make the batting still saves energy as well as keeping things out of the landfills fpr a while. i believe they will also send samples for a fee. REUSE, REDUCE, RECYCLE!

wasn't that the idea behind quilting?

I've used the bamboo batting in the last 3 lap quilts I have made. I love it! It washed up just fine and I didn't notice much shrinkage. I didn't prewash it either. Right now it is my favorite batting.