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favorite batting?


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My first practice piece is on the machine right now. I bought a bagged queen size(batting) and put it between muslin. I did the suggested and let it out of the bag earlier. My question is what is the best batting? Is it better to get it on the roll? What is the easiest to work with? I am a beginner and want the best for a beginner. quarter inch loft? half inch? I want this to eventually be a business so I also want something affordable as well. Anyone out there got any ideas for me? Itching to get going on this. Janey

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Janey,

By no means an expert, I would suggest you try it all and see what you like. As a professional, unless you specify you only use... then you will get it all. I personally haven't found a big difference in the results based on batting but I probably don't know what I am looking for. I have a roll of Hobbs 80/20 and a roll of Hobbs wool and I like it because it is there when needed (for customers and for myself). In the past, I bought a roll of Warm and Natural from a Joann's that was going out of business. The only suggestion I have is to see what is "appropriate" in the quilting circles near you. Some areas are ok with polyester but where I am, they raise their noses to it, read that as probably not good to get a roll of polyester.

BTW, rolls of batting are very reasonable especially if you make a lot of large quilts. Much cheaper than individually wrapped. Always remember that Hobby Lobby and Joanns do 40% off on a regular basis.

Good Luck

Donna

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I second what Donna said. Different regions seem to request different batts. My clients in CA and in the Baltimore area all want Quilters Dream. Otherwise, Hobbs Heirloom 80/20 is a favorite. I personally don't like Warm & Natural because I find it too flat. The Quilters Dream is so very flat also but it quilts so nicely and works so well, I just can't not love it. Hobbs Heirloom 80/20 has just enough poof so that quilting shows up nicely.

I prefer working off the roll -- less folds and I can just whack off the amount I need.

I haven't really had any batting that was so bad I couldn't use it. I even use Mountain Mist without much trouble.

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I found some I don't like!! I bought a 30 yard roll of a medium (60 wide):poly...an "off" brand. I used it for practice pieces...and even they came out stiff and difficult to fold. I will say my quilting stitches show up! It was about $45.00 for the roll on sale or with a coupon....I'm saving it for dog blankets. I did find a poly that is similar in weight to warm and natural, pretty soft and quilts up nice...It was on a roll 90 wide and about $6.99 a yard. With the coupon it's not too bad. I like having it on a roll, but storage is a problem. Of course having a stack of prepackaged stuff doesn't store that well either!

Cheryl in Iowa...waiting for the big snow!:D

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Guest Linda S

I'm fairly new to the machine quilting game, but I have always liked the Hobbs products. I like the 80/20 and I love the wool batting. A newer batting I have tried and absolutely loved is Thinsulate by 3M. It's a little harder to find, but it quilts up really nicely, has a similar "poof" to 80/20, and is supposed to be great at adapting to the body temperature under it (?). It also can be quilted up to 10 or 11" apart, so is great for doing those t-shirt quilts I so dearly love. :P

P.S. I forgot to say that I have heard of problems with the Hobbs 80/20 in the individual packages - something about the consistency of the thickness of the batt. I have it on the big roll, and I guess that is not a problem for most folks. It's the smaller packages that seem to have quality control problems.

Linda

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I like the Hobbs 80/20, I order a variety Premium, Organic, some poly. I don't like the Warm and Natural as it almost always pokes thru the back and shows if you use a needle over 3.5. I have one on the machine right now and the customer brought the batting and the thread. I had to use a size 4 needle and the back is dark green and the batting is coming thru. I have used Quilters Dream but to soft and it comes apart to easily. You can order directly from Hobbs if you have a resale number and I get it in the bags because I can mix my order to get a variety of batts and much cheaper than retail. It averages out to about $8-$9 per queen roll (with shipping factored in and cheaper yet if you buy by the roll) and I resale for $20, still cheaper than the customerwould pay at a shop.:cool:

Hester

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I like hobbs 80/20 and love the wool (it does seem a bit inconsistant in texture, though). I usually keep some On-Hand just in case, like last week when a client brought "fusible batting". YUK. I finished one, but there were loopies on the backside, a problem I never have with the 80/20 hobbs. If you carry batting, you can charge for batting. Here, though if I charge for batting/backing or thread, I have to collect tax.

Cynthia

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Hey everybody! thanks for all the input on the batting. The reason I am late getting back to everyone is because I recently switched from dial up to dsl and I made the mistake of being absent too long and I forgot my log in and after trying everything under the sun I just had to re register. I hope I don't get kicked off for that!! Thank you for the infor on the batting. I am going to go with the rolled. the folds never do really come out of the bagged. I am throwing stuff out left and right to make room for the roll:)I got a Feng Shui book on clearing clutter and I have had my dh running back and forth to the dumpster since early morn:D I love this site it is so informative. Thanks to all again, Janey

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Guest Linda S

Annetteiniowa - yes, I do charge for the batting my customers use from my inventory. Lots of them bring their own batting, but I have one gal who ends up giving me a quilt top and just some yardage for her backing! So, I have to make the backing (and I charge her by the number of seams I have to sew) and add the batting. I'm free to choose which batt I will use based on what she will use the quilt for -- right now I have a wall hanging to do for her so I will use Warm and Natural. I haven't had the pokie problem with it (watch - today will be the day!).

Janey - I really think I need to have my trash collection service bring me a dumpster! I could have that thing full in a flash. I did get rid of a lot of stuff this summer when I remodeled the attic into my quilting studio, but I've got more to go.

Linda

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Heidi,

Yes that is true and accurate for any type of polyester fabric, including batting. It is the nature of the synethic fibers. Many people recommend to not use poly batting for a child's quilt for this reason. Exception may be if there is a "flame retardant" poly batting. Natural fibers burn slower and need a higher temp to get a flame started. Poly goes almost immediate to the "melt" stage. A good example, is the temp setting on an iron: poly/synethic is the lowest temp and cotton/linen highest temp which indicates the heat tolerance of the fabrics.

Hope I didn't confuse you more!

Nancy

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My customers seem to bring Hobbs polydown so I ordered a roll of that. Rolls are so much easier to work with. I also have a roll of Hobbs 80/20. I sugest if you get the 80/20 pay the little bit more and get the bleached. It will be more versitile as it will work on white or off white.

I reciently got some Hobbs wool but haven't talked anyone into using it yet but I wanted it for me. Oh well...

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Hello --

I absolutely love the Hobbs wool. I got it for myself but as a few customers have asked about it (I have some samples quilted with it), some have switched and they love it, too. It's great if you're quilting a lot on one top -- the quilt top doesn't get as stiff as it sometimes does if you stipple and quilt a lot on the 80/20.

My customers and I have used a gob of 80/20, but lately some have complained in various lists online about problems with quality (stinky rolls, grease spots), so I'm considering trying Quilter's Dream 70/30 instead on my next order.

Ordering from Hobbs directly you have to get 4 big rolls at a time -- too expensive for me and I don't have enough space for four on top of what I already have in stock -- so I get just what I want by the big roll from other online vendors instead.

I haven't ordered QD yet but you can order just one roll or one batt or whatever from them. They have a $25 sample pack available with a craft-size batt of all of their kinds (different thicknesses of poly and 80/20, their new 70/30, black, flame-retardant for kids) if you want to make up samples for customers to see or just check them out yourself -- seems like a nice deal if you're deciding what to carry.

Some customers bring their own but most use mine - they pick what they want - I do charge but less than their buying a package that size.

For packaged OR off the roll (because that is folded in half before rolled), I toss the piece cut to size in my dryer with a wet washcloth and let bounce around on med-high heat for 15 minutes or so to get out the creases -- works great.

Mary Smart

Vermillion SD

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I'm lucky I guess because there is a large Quilting Shop about 12 miles from me that sales supplies and I buy all my thread and batting (Hobbs 80/20) from there. They get in the batting on the rolls, by truck load, so it's keeps the price down. One customer brought me Quilter's Dream and I hated working with it, so now I just tell them I have batting on hand.

Happy Quilting, Debbi:):

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Before LA I loved Hobbs Heirloom 80/20 for machine quilting. Still like it but my customers *love* Quilters Dream, all types. I teach quilting with Adult Ed and give out the QD batting samples. I sold lots of batting alone this winter, no discounts either. It helps that Walmart is 40 miles away;) I've also hand quilted with Hobbs wool and have a king batt waiting for me to finish a quilt for our bed.

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  • 4 years later...

I love the wool, especially after it has been washed a time or two. I am going to try some silk soon - more expensive but being a natural product with many of the qualities of wool, I hope to like it. I also like QD but find their blend a little thin when using dual thread colors (top & bottom) - hobbs 80/20 is better in this area. I do like the QD Puff and even though it is Poly, my friends love it for their grandchildren (not the babies). Often combine it with flannel backings for the kids and they really love it! Many of my friends are in the northwest where it gets colder than here in CA and the extra warmth for the kids to drag around is a big hit!! Plus - it washes beautifully - a plus to the moms. I have mixed the QD flame retardant batting with a very thin cotton and that works well if dual thread colors are being used. Don't over quilt and will stay nice and soft - especially after washing. Otherwise - use just a single batting for the little ones. Because I am limited on space - a condo - I buy by the package and run through a very low dryer with a damp washcloth - really gets the wrinkles out.

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  • 5 months later...

For those of you interested in wool batting, I recently did some research on battings for a presentation for our quilt clubs. Here is what if found.

Wool decreases your resting heart rate. In a study done at the Polytechnic Insistute of Wales, researchers discovered individuals using wool comforters had a decreased heart rate--meaning their sleep was in a deep, relaxed state.

I thought this was very interesting, so I have bought my first wool batt from QD. I have not quilted with it yet, but am eagar to do so to see if it actually works.

Carol

Amarillo, TX

Millie with CompuQuilter;)

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Carol .......I read this also. I just bought myself a new Duvet, that is made from 100% wool, it has a lovely feel to it . Not as heavy as a feather duvet, but just as warm.

I also love the wool wadding.

Which wadding do you all prefer, for baby quilts, I have one ready to quilt which has a lot of white in it, and I am not sure which to use.

Thanks for any advice

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