Thank you for all of the thoughts. I do know that elderly people can tend to be cold - my 92 year old mother-in-law is always freezing and my sister-in-law has to keep the heat cranked up. I don't know about my aunt, but both she and one of my cousins told me that she is really in pretty good shape - no major health issues, other than some neuropathy in her feet that makes them numb, but she said they're not painful. She's also still very active in her church and is always on the go.

In fact, she just went out and ordered herself a brand new SUV! My cousin told me that she wanted a red one, but she ended up ordering a metallic blue one instead. She said she got tired of driving my uncle's old pick-up truck (he died 10 years ago.) Ya just gotta love a woman like that! :D

I have a question for those of you who have used both QD wool and the Select cotton batting - are the cotton quilts significantly heavier than the ones made with wool? I think I need to call one of my cousins and ask her some things - I want this to be a surprise for my aunt, so I don't want to ask her.

I like bamboo for snuggle quilts. The drape is great. It acts like rayon.

Well, I just called my cousin and explained the difference between wool and cotton batting, and she said to go with the wool because of the lighter weight. So I can quit agonizing over it now. She also told me that my aunt wears socks at night because her feet get cold. AND that she still does not have central air! :shock: She still has the window/wall units. I sure hope I'll be sleeping in the main part of the house...

I just finished my first quilt with wool batting. It's washed and crinkly and light. It, so far, is not too warm. I find the cotton battings get too warm.

We lived in Corpus Christi, Tx for over 20 years before we retired in 2005. I was very surprised they quilted baby quilts without any batting. Wow! It was a real 'wake up' call on the difference between the midwest where I grew up. Dh brought eldest daughter back to Iowa to visit his mother...no air and 105 temperatures...they sweated out that visit! Yes, you may want to dip in the ocean and cool off down there in the summer. Or go to the W. I used to visit four quilt shops there...and had a ball doing it.

They had snow the last Christmas we were there; first snow storm in 100 years. The furnace in our rented house went out and land lady had no sympathy for us because hers was out too. It did not last long, quickly warmed up again.

aww, you could consider making a nice pocket for her to put her feet in on the underside towards the bottom, I've seen some quilters do this for people that are always trying to keep their feet wrapped up in the quilt

I can sure sympathize with the stories about older houses and heat/ac issues. I lived in Florida over 20 years ago and had an older house without heat. It was never needed, but couldnt have survived without the air conditioning. We had central air installed and gas logs for a fireplace (which had never been used either) I think we turned them on once or twice as a heat source. This was before my quilting days, so I cant comment on that!

I live in West Texas, where the summers are hotter than Blazes and the winters can chill you to the bone. My “go to” batting is Hobbs 80% Cotton/20% Wool. It breathes in the heat, yet warms in the winter.

My husband wears wool socks year around for it’s breathability.

I guess I wouldn't use any batting just a firm backing.
Lynda

Is your aunt the type person who is cold a lot of the time? My sister is ALWAYS cold and she's not that old, so you might want to consider that. Maybe it wouldn't be too warm for her. Good luck.