I knew a lady who used old blankets as batting, had ask why she said it saved money and when there was a shortage of batting you got the same results.

I learn something everyday when I read these posts. Now this has opened a whole new can of worms! I can actually see some quilts finished now!

I have 2 quilts that were made as Summer quilts. They were pieced by my Grandmother and never quilted. Very thin material and they were meant to not have batting. However, when I had them quilted we decided to put in a very light batting and back. They probably weigh about 1/3 of a regular quilt.

I can't believe I never considered not using batting! Makes total sense to me to use none or a thin flannel. Too bad I have to work or I'd be in my room trying one right now!

I'm new to quilting and have only made 2 quilts, one of them with flannel as the batting. I agree with others...this is a wonderful board and I have learned so much...the good ideas seem to keep coming. Thanks everyone!

Both of my grandmothers made quilts and neither of them used batting, not sure if there was even such a thing in their time. My mom said they either used a sheet in the middle or recycled an old blanket. I love a quilt with no batting and a cotton sheet on the back, so cool in the summer and I am not a person who likes much weight to my blankets.

I remember reading about the different kinds of batting used before commercial batting was available or affordable. I can't imagine using milkweed (the fluffy white part of the seeds). What a lot of work! We've got it awfully good, don't we?

I am so happy that I began reading this forum. I have one quilt top completed and another almost ready to go. They are both for a California king size bed and are so heavy even w/o batting or backing. I am going to make "Summer Quilts" with them. Thanks for the question and all the great answers.

Many people in the hot southern states make bed toppers with no batting because they don't want the weight.

I made one with no batting, as I wanted it for a Summer Quilt. I really like it!
A friend did her long-arm for me. She said she thought it would have been better for machine quilting to have used a very light batting. She showed me several places that were hard for her to machine quilt, and she "goofed."
She said there is a light-weight batting on the market now for just that purpose. I haven't seen it, but she said you can get it at JoAnn's.
I made another one with a very light-weight blanket and it was fine. Either way for me. Also batting gets expensive.
Mariah