Batting - cotton vs poly blends?
 

I have used the Warm n Natural and Warm N White batting for years but at $15/yd its getting REALLY expensive - to the point that when I get Joann's coupons, I seem to spend all my money on batting and backing and nothing fun (like fabric!). I would like to switch to perhaps one of the polyester blends, but I'm afraid they won't hold up, or quilt well (I machine quilt on a mid arm). i use 100% cotton fabric. Any suggestions?

Connecting Threads is having a 30% batting sale. Their Heirloom cotton Queen is $16 now. Not sure if the prices are better than Joann's with coupon.

If you have a Hobby Lobby near you, you can use their 40% off coupon, for batting.

In the last 3 years I have used 100% coton batting but the last 2 times have used an 80/20 blend. I find I actually like it better for quilts as it is not as heavy and is more flexible. I still like cotton for wall hangings.

I really like Hobbs 80/20. I'm not sure about cost, but I have heard many rave reviews of Quilter's Dream cotton batting and Dream poly batting.

Years ago I made two quilts for children in the same family. One was made with 100% cotton batting, and the other was made with a no-brand polyester batting. I saw the quilts about 10 years later, after *many* trips through the washer and dryer, and it was very clear that the cotton batting had held up much better than the polyester batting.

From what I have heard about it, Dream polyester batting is the only poly batt I would consider using.

My very first quilt I used a THICK poly batting on. It was tied, not quilted, quilted, but it worked very well. I don't have any poly fibers sticking out through the fabric and it hasn't bunched or gathered over the last 20 years. It isn't as thick as it once was, but it is still nice and warm in the winter lol I don't even want to think about how heavy that thing would be if it had cotton batting in it! So much lighter in physical weight, without a major loss of heat retention.

I'm not a big fan of polyester binding. I have used the Hobbs 80/20 on a couple of things and it seems to be fine. My first choice is Warm N Natural - I just like the feel of it and it's easy to quilt. I used to be able to get it at our WalMart for like $6 or $7 a yard, but now they have reorganized their sewing department and I can't find it there anymore. JoAnn's is next best. I haven't bought it by the yard for a while -I didn't realize it had gotten so expensive. I usually buy the packaged queen size when I can use a coupon.

I use the 50/50 blend by Warm Company. I order an entire box online at Joann's and I wait for the right coupon. I love this batting. I think with a 50% off coupon it ended up to be about 6.50 a yard... Not sure if anyone else has had this problem but when I first started quilting I kept getting a rash. I researched and switched to a resin free batting and no rash(which this one is). The quilt on my bed gets washed weekly with hot water and it has held up beautifully.

I used a Pellon recycled fiber 80/20 recently - about $15 for a queen with a coupon. It made a nice heavy quilt which is what that daughter wanted. She says it's washing very well. Hobbs 80/20 is on sale at Connecting Threads - about $14 for a queen, I think. I like that one, too. Free shipping if you order $50 worth of anything, which isn't hard to do. At $7 a yard, the batiks are hard to resist.

I've used a Quilter's Choice 80/20 by Fairfield from JoAnn's. I liked the first ones, but the last seemed light, but it was right after the heavier Pellon one, so that may have been why. Mountain Mist polyester made a nice feeling quilt for a daughter with allergies who wanted a lighter, but warm quilt.

Batting have come so far in the last decade or more. Poly was not such a great choice till they started bonding the fibers. The old poly bats would have fibers that would migrate through the weave of the fabric on the top and then cause bearding. Check your poly to make sure it has bonded fibers or some have a layer of thin , what looks like sheer interfacing on both sides .
Poly is a very exceptable batting , it dries quickly , does not shrink , is warmer, and costs less. It is lighter in weight, and some prefer the weight of cotton. I have great luck with the blends that are out there . Maybe try a new batting on a smaller lap quilt and see if you like the way it performs before using it on a larger quilt.