kapatt

I'm looking at quilting my daughter's queen size quilt with wool batting. She likes things warm. I noticed that Quilter's Dream Wool Batting is not suppose to shrink but it doesn't say if Hobbs will shrink. I was wondering what the pros and cons would be in using wool batting and which one is the best.

Here is a description of the two different types of batting that I have found so far.

Hobbs Heirloom wool batting-
"Queen 90" x 108" Heirloom Wool is a completely washable 100% wool batting that is resin bonded to resist bearding. It is the finest wool batting on the market today. There is no other wool similar to Heirloom Wool. Created with and endorsed by Harriet Hargrave. Easy to quilt by hand or machine. "

Quilter's Dream --

"QUILTERS DREAM WOOL QUILT BATTING QUEEN 93"X108"

Exceptional insulation qualities. Light as a feather yet 1.5 times warmer than down and 2x warmer than most high loft polyesters. Loft between 1/3 and ½ inch yet very light weight. Volume, definition and warmth without weight. Fibers are Carded, Crosslapped & Thermally Bonded. Hand & Machine Quilting. Can be Tied. Confidently stitch up to 10" apart. No prewashing necessary. 0% shrinkage. Remember, your prewashing and selection of fabrics and thread will also effect shrinkage. "

Thanks for the help.

kathy

all I know is don't put it in the dryer! I spent 40+dollars for a nice wool batt, queen size for a quilt I made my father in law. Did hand and machine quilting, it was like a dream. then I washed and dryed it, OMG, my mom and I spent days taking it apart so I could redo it with cotton.

Prism99

Interesting. The Hobbs website used to have a batting comparison chart; it is no longer there. They also used to have some kind of guarantee against shrinking for their Heirloom wool batting (shrinkage of less than 1%); however, I can't find that anymore either.

I did find an old copy of the Hobbs chart on a different website. Here it is:
http://www.how-to-quilt.com/articles/quilt-batting.pdf

What is still not clear to me is how Hobbs wool responds to machine washing and drying. I'm pretty sure it is very similar to cotton, with shrinkage of less than 3% this way. The big thing to worry about with wool, aside from shrinkage, is bearding. Hobbs wool is resin-bonded, which helps prevent bearding, but I still probably would not trust it with very dark fabrics.

From previous threads about wool batting, I have gathered that the Quilter's Dream wool has an odor when wet that goes away when dry. I don't think Hobbs wool has that.

What I would probably do is go with the Hobbs Heirloom Wool batting but maybe buy a crib size first, make a quick baby quilt with it, measure it, then machine wash and machine dry it and measure it again. If I liked the look, then I would use it in the big quilt.

One thing to avoid is off-brand wool battings. Hobbs and Quilter's Dream are the *only* battings I would trust. Others have reported extreme problems with distortion and bearding from brands I had never heard of.

quiltmaker

I have used Quilters Dream Wool and never had a problem with it. Machine washed and dried on light heat but longer in the dryer. Makes it fluff up really nice.

kapatt

Thanks for the comment. Do you remember what brand of wool batting it was?

kapatt

Thank you for the help. I think it would be a good idea to try it out on a smaller quilt. I have just the one to try.

:-)

kapatt

Thank you. I was hoping to find someone who has used Quilter's Dream or Hobbs brand. :)

buslady

I wonder if it would be adventageous to just make a pot holder or something using some of the scraps from the quilt, wash it and see what it does. Let us know, as I might use that for my DD's quilt, as well. Thanks for askingl.

miholmes

I have used the Quilter's Dream Wool on 2 quilts and it washed and dried fine for me. So I haven't had a bad experience with it.

Also I was out at a quilt shop this weekend and saw Quilter's Dream Puff....and was interested in trying that out....I LOVE down for it's warmth and thought this might be nice for a winter quilt. So you may also try that if the wool scares you. :)

kapatt

I am looking for warmeth without it being too heavy. When you try Quilter's Dream Puff, let us know what you think about it.


:-)