[5thAttempt]

I am planning to sew a comforter for crib out of 100% cotton fabric. The direction I found online suggests using a blend since cotton requires ironing and ironing destroys batting. Is it true? Any advise what kind of batting I should use that will survive frequent washing and possible ironing? Since it is for a baby I presume it will get dirty a lot.

Any advise on what is the easiest way to sew the comforter/quilt for a crib? Any free pattern suggestion? I want to use only 1 fabric, so I am not planning to use scraps that the real quilt would use.

 

[twilight girl]

I've never ironed a quilt once it is made, EVER. I have one on my bed that I made, dd has one on her bed made by her grandma, and we have several more. You do not have to iron a quilt, and I always make mine with 100% cotton fabric.

HTH,
Judi

 

[Harry's Mom]

I quilt and there's a difference between a "quilt" and a "comforter", so that might be why your directions are confusing. A quilt is generally 100% cotton for the top and backing but can have batting that is cotton, polyester, or some kind of blend. Quilts are generally pretty flat, not poofy. A comtorter is poofy and has lots of "loft", which you can't get from a 100% cotton batting. Comforters are probably (?) always filled with 100% polyester, which you can't really iron with a hot iron 'cause it will melt. Polyester doesn't breathe well, I would not use it for a baby quilt 'cause it also doesn't wash as well either and is much harder to sew through.

So, here's what I'd do. Go to a local fabric store / quilt shop and buy 100% cotton for the top and bottom layers of the quilt in whatever cute print you like. (Flannel can be extra comfy and works fine!) Buy either 100% cotton batting or a blend that is mostly cotton, so that you can iron it. The batting should come with instructions about how densely/closely you need to quilt/sew it. Generally you need stitching every 2" to 4" across the whole quilt so that it doesn't come apart with lots of washing.

Um...lets see, this post maybe needs to be longer than I have time for right now, 'cause I'm thinking about explaining how to baste the layers together and do the sewing, etc. You can actually get simple books for beginners that have patterns for baby quilts and explain all the little steps involved from start to finish, so I'd recomend you get an easy book. I guarantee Joanne's will have one. A book will also give size suggestions. You don't need to "piece" a quilt from lots of little squares, you can just use one fabric for the top, but you'll still need to stitch or tie it, and a book will explain that. The Quilt in a Day series is good to read too.

See if this is enough to get you started and feel free to pm me with questions as you go. Look out though, quilting can be totally addictive and an expensive hobby if you do a lot of it!

Good luck! I absolutely believe babies and children should have hand made quilts and toys around them. Enjoy the process of making something special and don't try to make the first one perfect!

Betzi

www.SylvanQuilts.com (shamless plug for my website)

 

[5thAttempt]

Thank you,

OK, I guess I am not using polyester.
I found "Warm & Natural Cotton Batting" from online fabric store. Is it a good one?

Is there any other brands for barring you can recommend?

 

[Kari_mom]

I don't think you need to worry about ironing your comforter. I've made small crib size comforters for all of my kids and I don't iron, trust me.

Machine quilted, hand quilted, and tied, I've tried them all.

Chose nice cotton fabrics for the front and back, and I think either cotton or polyester batting will be fine. Warm and Natural is a nice choice, I bought some this weekend myself. If you want to actually use it, look for a low loft style so that it will be safer for your baby. Warm & Natural fits this criteria well, I think.

I would like a link to where you read that you might need to iron a comforter for a baby? That is insane!

 

[Harry's Mom]

Warm and natural is great, but I've read that it has some natural dark spots / discoloration that can show through if you use really pale colors for the top or back. I've never had a problem with it though.

I actually do iron my quilts periodically if I think they need it. Most of the ironing happens during the construction though. I tend to make wall hangings more than bed quilts, so I'm more concerned with wrinkles if it's gonna hang on a wall. With some construction methods, I also need to iron batting - like if I add borders after quilting the main part of the top. And I iron quilts before giving them as gifts.

Hmm... makes me want to go work on a project!

Betzi

 

[5thAttempt]

If I use 100% corron fabric and 'warm and natural' batting to make a quilt, do I have to pre-wash batting and fabric before making a quilt? The online store I got the fabric from www.fabric.com said that I always have to pre-wash the fabric. It is a nessesary step for quilt making?

Thanks again for all you help. This is by far a largest project in my life.

 

[judybean]

I've never prewashed batting, but pre-washing fabric (especially 100% cotton!) is a super idea since cotton tends to shrink, by pre-washing you get out the shrinkage ahead of time instead of ending up with a wonky looking quilt (which is SO NOT what you want after diving into the biggest project of your life

)!

 

[Harry's Mom]

I don't pre-wash anything 'cause I'm just too lazy to bother.

I figure that if I use 100% cotton for the top, back, and batting that it will all shrink at about the same rate. So far, so good! If you do prewash fabric, look out for tangled threads on your cut edges. To avoid that, I've basted along the raw edges before washing. (Only did this once, since I don't generally pre-wash, but it helped lots!!!) Pre-washing is good if you have dark fabric that might lose color. Otherwise it can bleed onto lighter colors. Oh, and if you do pre-wash, get it out of the dryer while it's still just damp and iron it. I have some prewashed fabric that has permanent wrinkles in it 'cause I forgot and let it sit in the dryer.

Betzi

 

[Kari_mom]

The batting does not need to be prewashed. I always prewash my fabrics unless they are dry clean only (and I want to keep them that way) or PUL for diapers (it becomes a mess IME). Shrinkage concerns are just one reason. I don't like to smell the fabic finishes offgassing when I press as I sew, fabrics can be dusty from the manufacturing process or the store shelves (or my stash storage, hehe), and as a mama famously noted on another sewing board, you never know who might have wiped their boogies on it.

And to respond back to the pressing debate, I do press meticulously while I sew, and thus seldom have to press at the end. If I were to press an item with polyester batting, I would use a lower heat setting and avoid direct contact with the iron, and I am sure it would be fine. I do not, however, ever recall feeling the need to press a crib quilt after it is completed and in use by a baby. But that is just my point of view.

 

[rubelin]

I love warm & natural (use it in the training pants I make). It does have "bits" in it that will sometimes show through very light fabrics, but it's not really a big issue. I do recommend pre-washing it, since it shrinks a bit and it's nicer to work with when it's gotten fluffed up a bit. It's very easy to prewash; I do it in my washer on hot and only once have I gotten a spot that snagged a bit (in about 100 yards).

 

[Kari_mom]

Quote:

Originally Posted by rubelin I love warm & natural (use it in the training pants I make). It does have "bits" in it that will sometimes show through very light fabrics, but it's not really a big issue. I do recommend pre-washing it, since it shrinks a bit and it's nicer to work with when it's gotten fluffed up a bit. It's very easy to prewash; I do it in my washer on hot and only once have I gotten a spot that snagged a bit (in about 100 yards).

Cool, that is good to know. I researched Warm and Natural quite a bit two weeks ago, I chose it to finish a quilt my mother started years ago. I didn't see the advice to prewash anywhere.

 

[5thAttempt]

I just got my warm and natural batting! It feels so good! Do you think 2 layers of batting is enought for the baby blanket/quilt? Or should I just do 1 layer? I decided to follow someone's advise and create backside of the quilt out of flannel, it is so much softer than cotton print fabric I selected for the top. So I am thinking 4 total layers: cotton, 2 batting, flannel. Any advise?

 

[rubelin]

1 layer would be plenty, 2 layers would make it a little more comforter-like (though 2 layers might be a pain to work with).

I thought about the pre-washing thing more. If you don't prewash the batting, but do pre-wash your fabrics, the batting will shrink when you wash the finished product, making the parts in between the stitching a little bit poofy, which might be nice