What about Wadding (Batting)???
So you’ve made a quilt top, table runner etc and you need to
choose some wadding.
There’s cotton, polyester, bamboo, wool or combinations of
them. What do you choose? Keep reading for your beginners guide to wadding …
(Oh and you’ve seen some YouTube channels referring to it as
Batting??? That’s the American term for what us good ole English gals call
Wadding, don’t panic, it’s the same thing)
So, let’s start with the natural ones; Cotton, Bamboo and Wool
Cotton is soft and breathable and is the traditional choice
for hand or machines quilting. This is a great all-rounder can be machine
washed and is the go to choice for high quality quilts. Cotton shrinks approx. 3-5%,
giving that lovely crinkly look to your quilts once washed.
Bamboo is the new kid on the block. Its naturally
sustainable, gives a beautiful drape and has antibacterial properties too – a
great choice for baby quilts as its washable as well. Shrinkage is less than
5%.
Wool brings a warm and luxurious feel to your quilts and
although it can be hand washed in cold water, not a good option if you’re like
me and machine wash your quilts.
Then there is the man-made and blends
Polyester is hardwearing and also good for hand and machine
quilting. This has less shrinkage than the natural fibres, so won’t give you
that crinkly look once it’s been washed, but is very stable. It comes in
different weights (thicknesses) and I personally use this for making bags as
it’s stiffer than cotton so the bags ‘stand up’ better.
Cotton and Polyester blend 80/20 is as the name suggests is
a blend of the two so you’re getting the best of both.
Cotton and Bamboo blend 50/50 is both antibacterial and an eco-friendly
option.
Eco wadding is made from 100% recycled material and is a 70/30
mix of cotton and polyester.
There is also insulating wadding which is thermal lined,
making it suitable for table runners, placemats, oven gloves, cool bags etc. and
can also be used in curtains.
So there you are, lots of options.
Personally I use 100%
cotton for my quilts as I like to keep the whole quilt 100% cotton and the
crinkly affect after washing.
