Quilting: That's Batt-y

I honestly don't know why I keep doing this to myself 😂

I recently decided I should learn how to quilt; small projects at first in preparation for larger ones later, providing I like quilting and can do it well enough.

In my previous post, I listed the tools I would need (those that I knew of.) One item was batting. That's the stuff inside the quilt that gives it body and warmth. As I'm quickly learning, there's more to batting than just picking up a pack of it at the store. Namely, type of material and loft.

I wasn't aware I had choices to make until I posed a question to a friend who quilts. She loves the craft and recently threw together a large quilt made of old felted sweaters in a few days. I'm amazed. After she answered my question, she began talking about batting. She prefers a 100% cotton batting from a particular company, but she also mentioned batting made from wool, polyester, and an 80/20 mix of polyester and cotton. There may have been more, but my brain stopped processing the information at that point. I did catch that the batting one chooses should be based on the type of project, whether it's a potholder or a vintage-style quilt.

Next, she mentioned loft. One definition of loft (the fourth on the list at Merriam Webster) is, "the thickness of insulating matter in an object such as a sleeping bag or a padded coat." The higher the batting loft, the thicker the item. A high loft provides more warmth in a blanket (batting material can provide even more warmth, depending on what kind of material is chosen.)

Since I'm a complete newbie to all this, I decided to start with a simple potholder. Somewhere around 7x7 inches, one piece of fabric on the front and one on the back. No blocks to begin with.

I quickly discovered batting wasn't the only stuffing I needed. When dealing with potholders and hotpads, an insulted lining called Insul-Bright should be used. As several website authors stated, " It reflects both hot and cold temperatures keeping you, your food and more safe."

In other words, if I don't want to burn my hands when I use my newly crafted potholder, I had to use Insul-Bright. I bought a pack online at Amazon, and then found it for half the price at Walmart.

I'm learning....

Now armed with a quilting ruler, rotary cutter, 100% cotton fabric for the front and back of my potholder, low-loft batting (80/20 mix), Insul-Bright, and a pattern, I'm ready to start my first quilting project. Let's see how this goes.

On the Subject of Quilts...

In my last post, I mentioned one of the many endeavors I've thrown myself into this year to keep busy is learning how to quilt. I didn't take Home Economics when I was in school (a decision I regret to this day) and had just a few sewing lessons as an adult. Consequently, I tend to steer away from the craft unless I want to make something. Since quilting involves a lot of sewing, I've avoided it.

Now, I want to learn. I have no plans at the moment to make large quilts. I'll start off small, perhaps something a doll could use. If I enjoy it, then I'll work my way up to making quilts for my grandsons.

Once upon a time, I would have jumped into the craft and taught myself as I went along, but quilting intimates me a bit (and my seat-of-the-pants learning never served me well.) I'm taking my time, watching videos and reading up on the tools I'll need, some of which I never knew existed until now, and which I could have used in the few sewing projects I've done. Here's what I've learned so far.


The blanket itself consist of the following:

Top layer of fabric
Batting (the cushy stuff in the middle)
Bottom later of fabric
Strips of fabric for the edge binding

The top layer can actually be made of a single piece of fabric, but they come in a range of designs from simple blocks to geometrical or print designs. A quilting friend of mine made a quilt for her granddaughter in which she'd incorporated several cat silhouettes. I loved it.

As for me, I'll just use simple blocks. To that end, I purchased a pack of precut "fat quarters", which are often used by quilters.

Other tools I know I'll need:

Rotary cutter
Needles for hand sewing
Needle Threader
Thread conditioner, which I didn't know existed
Quilting ruler, a nifty tool I needed years ago
Thread
Quilting Stencil (the design quilted onto the blanket)
Pounce Pad or Chalk Pencil for stenciling the design onto the blanket

The type of many of these tools seems to greatly matter, from the fabric used (quilt cotton) and the type of thread, to the #9 piercing needle for hand sewing.

I'm researching each element and have more research to go. Slowly, because I want to enjoy this entire process. I'll keep you posted.


Photo credits: Unknown. Marked Creative Commons License

What to Do When You Don't Know What to Do

From an early age, I had two major goals in life. I worked on those goals during the majority of my adult years, investing time, money, and a lot of effort in the hopes of achieving them. Despite all that effort, neither goal came to pass. To say I was--and still am--disappointed is an understatement.

I'm a Type A person who loves to be busy and to produce. At a time I expected to find myself working hard on the other side of my met goals, I instead found myself with very little to do. Getting forced to stay inside a house in a rural region during a pandemic didn't help. So I did what I could do. I started a large crochet project. I learned how to make and can strawberry and peach jam (I tried blueberry, but it kept coming out more like candy than jam.)

Though I don't play the piano, I memorized a couple of songs that could be useful in church, since we lost our high-risk pianist to concerns over COVID. I made a few masks for people at church. I cut out pieces for a purse that I've yet to put together because sewing construction is hard. I started a new crochet project after completing the previous one and read until my wonky vision made both impossible to do (one cataract surgery down, one to go, so please pardon any typos I made.)

I watched TV, started listening to podcasts, took bike rides and walks. My husband bought a big garden box for me and I planted vegetables in it. Now, I've turned my attention to learning how to make small quilts. I do anything I can to produce, because I can't stand feeling useless.

Some may call that being busy. While it is, it's busy work, filler, with some ministerial applications, since I did some of it for others. None of it is what I feel I was meant or called to do.

God places His people on this earth for a purpose--to minister to the Body of Christ around the world, to do good works that will glorify His name, to teach others about Him and more. What my purpose is, I don't know yet. Maybe the busy work is it. Perhaps, like a quilt or that purse I've yet to pin together to sew, I'm gathering all the pieces and tools I'll need for whatever it is I'm supposed to do. In the meantime, I'll keep learning and doing stuff.