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Know Your Batting

Batting has come a long way from the leftover clothing and blankets women once used. There are so many options. Choose from cotton, cotton blends, polyester, wool, silk, and bamboo. There are various lofts, colors, and sizes to complement your quilt or craft project. Cotton, cotton blends, and polyester are the most popular.

Choose your batting according to the thickness and weight you want. Consider directions for care, cleaning, and shrinkage. Is this batting better for hand or machine quilting? How do you want your stitches to appear and how far apart can the quilting be? How thick or warm do you want the quilt to be? These are all questions easily answered with this handy booklet.

This little pocket guide is intended to give a general overview of the most common batting varieties available and the best uses for those listed. It is always a good idea to read the label on the batting you chose for that brand’s specific use and care information.

BATTING TERMINOLOGY

Bearding – Batting fibers separate and may “bleed” or leak through the surface of a quilt between the fabric weave. This can be a problem with darker quilts as a lighter batting will beard through and leave a lint layer across the quilt. It’s the most common with wool or silk batting.

Bleaching – Some manufacturers make a bleached version of their battings for use in white or light quilts.

Bonded – Batting treated with resins, glues, or heat fusing the fibers together. This process is often used to retard bearding or prevent fibers from bunching or shifting.

Drape – Pliability of the finished project; soft, flexible, and form fitting.

Fusible – Batting, stabilizer, or interfacing coated on one or both sides with dried glue or resin, which becomes an adhesive when heated.

Loft – Thickness of the batting is called “loft.” Generally, the higher the loft the more open the fiber structure. Low-loft batting is thin and flat, high-loft batting is thicker and fluffy.

Needle-punched – The batting fibers are layered up and then thousands of tiny needles are punched through the layers to fuse the fibers together. Sometimes the fibers are needle-punched to a scrim and sometimes they are just needle-punched together with no scrim.

Scrim – A thin layer of woven fibers or mesh applied to the batting to keep the fibers from separating, moving, or lumping together. Often this scrim is made out of polyester.

FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

Does Brand Matter?

Generally, batting makers who manufacture similar products are fairly interchangeable. Some, however, set themselves apart by sourcing better-quality goods or by using little or no chemicals in their processing. You can read more about each brand’s qualities on their websites.

How is Batting Rated?

Batting doesn’t have a rating, per se. Of most common interest is how far apart the quilting can be, how thick the batting is, and how much each batting will shrink.

Which is the Perfect Batting for My Project?

This is dependent on the style of your project and the desired look. Here are some things to consider when looking for the best fit for each project.

■ Use of quilt – Will this be a bed quilt, wall quilt, table setting, bag, or garment?

■ Laundering – Will this be laundered frequently?

■ Warm or cool – Will this be a winter or summer quilt project?

■ Appearance – Do you want a thin or puffy look?

■ Fiber content – Do you want natural fiber or synthetic?

■ Quilting – Will this be hand- or machine-quilted, and how far apart do you plan your quilting stitches to be?

Does Batting Have a Right or Wrong Side?

Officially the answer is no, there is no right or wrong side to batting. That being said, batting does often look different from one side to the other; this is especially the case with needle-punched batting.

The needle-punching process dimples the “top” and punches out the “back.” Most quilters want their needle (whether hand or machine quilting) to go in the same direction as the batting was needle punched. This makes the dimpled side the side you put toward the quilt top. The back side (often needle-punched through scrim) is the side that goes against the backing. Having the scrim side against the backing will also help alleviate any bearding, or batting fibers, that might otherwise come through onto the backing.

How Do I Prewash Batting, and Is It Necessary?

Prewashing batting is not typically recommended, but certain battings can be prewashed safely if you want to mitigate as much post-quilting shrinkage as possible. This is especially the case with 100% cotton or cotton blend battings.

To safely prewash/preshrink, soak the batting in a clean bathtub with cool water and little or no detergent. Squeeze out excess moisture by rolling it in a dry towel and then lay it out flat to fully dry. Cotton batting with scrim can be soaked in the washing machine tub without using the agitator, then spun out to remove excess moisture. It can be air-fluffed for 5–10 minutes in the dryer, then laid out flat to dry completely. It is highly discouraged to prewash batting made with silk or wool.

CHOOSING THE BATTING

If the quilt top is 100% cotton, you probably want 100% cotton or another natural fiber batting. Cotton-blend batting, such as an 80/ 20 mix, is popular for bed quilts. Unless you plan to prewash the batting, you will want to ensure that the fibers shrink at the same rate as the top and backing fabrics.

TYPICAL BATTING MATERIALS

100% Cotton

Made from natural fibers, this type is soft and comfy. It’s one of the most commonly chosen batting for all types of quilting and craft projects. 100% cotton batting tends to be very dense and flat.

Cotton Blends

Made from cotton mixed with another fiber, most often polyester. It’s typically 80% cotton and 20% polyester. Other fibers such as wool and bamboo are also blended with cotton for a nice effect. Cotton blend batting has the characteristic of cotton batting with a little more loft for a fluffier look. This makes it perfect for bed quilts or anything needing a softer look.

Silk

Typically made with imported silk filaments with the addition of 10% polyester carded or “combed” together and bonded. This makes the perfect light summer-weight quilt while being soft and very easily draped.

Bamboo

Bamboo batting is typically a blend of 50% bamboo and 50% cotton, although there are 100% bamboo varieties available. It is breathable with a slight loft, still warm but lightweight, and ideal for machine quilting. Bamboo is also said to have natural anti-bacterial properties. This makes a great summer-weight quilt or a good bed quilt in warmer climates.

Wool

This type is very lightweight yet warm, and is a natural fiber. Wool batting tends to be higher loft, about ¼"–½" (0.6–1.3cm), making it one of the fluffiest battings in the natural fiber category. Excellent for hand or machine quilting and tying. This batting is perfect for bed quilts or layered with another batting (100% cotton or a cotton/wool blend) to add definition in the quilting texture for show quilts.

Polyester

This is a synthetic fiber that holds its shape and makes some of the highest loft batting available, up to ½"–⅝" (1.3–1.6cm) thick. It comes in a wide range of weights and lofts, from flat and dense to light, airy, and very thick or lofty. It does not compress; it’s thicker but lighter. It has warmth without weight, resists mold and mildew, and does not shrink when washed. It is good for bed quilts, comforters, and any project where shrinkage would cause problems.

Fusible

With one or both sides treated with a fusible layer, fusible batting replaces pin or spray basting. The glue is activated by a heated iron so it bonds with your project’s fabric. It’s best to use this type of batting on smaller projects, such as bags or table runners.