going "batty"
 

I am making a very special quilt and want a soft, light weight drape. I have done searches and read almost every post on this board trying to decide on the batt. I want something a little softer and lighter than Warm and Natural. I had decided on wool and then read that there are problems with odor when it is wet and shrinkage in the dryer. Lost focus and ended up reading a lot about "green" batting made from recycled bottles - fumes?? I have used Dream Puff and it was a challenge to quilt. My top has a lot of black and I'm also concerned about bearding. How do I decide? This is not an experiment, I need to get it right the first time.
I have been reading previous post from all of you on the board because I trust your advice. Thank you for your input.

When I used it, wool batting shrunk less than cotton. Hopefully others will reply with their experiences. Yes, there is a bit of 'wet dog' fragrance when you wash it, but it's not overwhelming and temporary.

Quilters Dream Request is awesome. It is thin and drapes nicely. I use it for almost all my quilts.

I've used Dream Green (recycled plastic bottles) in several quilts and like it a lot. It's thin and drapes beautifully. The only thing you need to be careful about is, if you have light colored fabric in the top, the green may show through a bit.

For light weight and a wonderful drape , I use Cream Rose or Cream White . It is a 100 percent cotton batting. I have a sister who does not like warm and natural because it does not drape quite as nicely , but love quilts made with either of the two I mentioned. Hobbs 80/20 is also a very nice batting . Hobbs also makes a black batting , but do test your quilt , to see if the other fabrics will have a shaddow of the black batting showing through.
Do read the quilting guidlines for how close your stitches need to be. For many,that is a critical point in making a decision.

I prefer Thermolam. It is a polyester batting i believe. But if you like a little dimension but yet want it drapable, this is my personal preference.

Chris

Just what I was going to suggest! Great batting...love all of Quilter's Dream battings!

If you want something a little softer and lighter than Warm and Natural, my recommendation would be Hobbs 80/20. I have never heard of this one bearding.

While QD Request is really nice, it is a very thin batting compared to Hobbs 80/20, with has a soft loft to it.

Quilters Dream Request is mostly designed for hand quilting. Their Select loft cotton is nice. I can confirm Dream Wool DOES NOT have any odor. I used it in a quilt for grandson who lives with us and have washed it a number of times. I like to lay it flat to dry but you can put it in the dryer.

I just finished a quilt using bamboo batting from Winline Textiles. It was wonderful. It washes beautifully. The shrinkage is the same as Warm & Natural. Check out their website.

www.winlinetextiles.com