5 Alternatives to Store Bought Quilt Batting

I'm delighted to say I pieced a batting with the help of a video from Brenda, of conquering
mount scrapmore. It is 100" square. Made back from ugly fabrc I loved it- it was liberating.

👍😎👍

I am 61 years old. I still have my baby blanket. It was very heavy. I found out why. A heavy brocade blanket folded into Four layers! I have three adult children. I am splitting the blanket into three pieces. I will be adding their newborn blankets they received while they were in the hospital. I will add fresh silk bifold ribbon for the binding. I will also use part of the brocade as a filler. I should still have enough.

Thank you for helping me quilt a little more guilt free. I use almost any used fabric, sheet, blanket for batting. Old towels is a new suggestion for me!

Cotton mattress cover

I want to add that you are a lovely person, especially how you nipped critics and the purists. Some (most?) of us just want to be helpful, bless others and do it as best we can. I love your heart.

Thin towels and old scarves are great ideas

Oh how wonderful! Thanks so much! There are loads of auctions near me where people clear their homes and their linen closets are often included. I usually donate the stained/ripped things to a local animal shelter. What a great idea for quilting. Thanks so much!!

Just found your site....I like your common sense approach

Good suggestions…thank you!

I’ve been using wool blankets for some time but here in UK they are as rare as hen’s teeth and the thicker acrylic ones if the 70s and 80s don’t drape. The best ones are like those you pictured or even older Utility one! Fabulous warmth and drape!

Thank you for the ideas for quilting!

I have used old or outgrown lightweight knitted sweaters for small quilted projects. It gives a decent structure for a pouch or pencil case when combined with upholstery fabric.

Mattress protectors are good if you want a heavier quilt

I have just made my first quilt top, out of only scraps and flea market clothes. Inspired by Ricky Tims Portal pattern. I have a vast stash of second hand silk (I used to sell silk kimonos, I love silk), and the idea of buying batting is wrong to me. Fortunately I have been planning and saving up old wool scarves, and cheap wool jersey on sale. I searched for alternative batting, and now I am more certain that I should go ahead and use my alternative batting ;) Now for something I did not think of, I have to select whole fabric that is not scraps to make the backing. Stay scrappy!

I agree with you 100% there are so many fabrics not needed anymore that would look fabulous in a new quilt. Thank you. ❤

Cloth diapers can be stitched together and used for batting. Ah...the good old days!!

Can you use old bedsheets as a batting.

Beautiful work my dear.Thank you for the information about quilt backing .Very helpful 😊

I think we should give many lives to the articles that come into our lives. Our planet cannot deal with all the stuff we discard. I grew up reusing everything and still do it today.

I find those holiday thin micro fiber throws that go cheap after holidays make good batting for dark fabric quilts.

If using a wool blanket or other thicker batting it is common practice do a tied quilt instead of quilting it however. With a tied quilt you just tack it with yarn or heavy cotton thread like a thicker crochet cotton about a hands width apart. I have slept under many a heavy tied quilt that was made with old woolen fabrics like suit jackets and pants and such with a woolen blanket for batting and a flannel sheet or other sheet as a backing. Many of these the binding was of a taffeta type and seemed out of place. I guess that was what was sold for binding back when they were made, probably early 1900's. These woolen quilts are heavy and they were made to recycle old woolens and blankets that had been in the wash too many times and were getting threadbare. On some the ties were fairly close and others not so. The squares were random sizes and whatever was to hand. A lighter weight quilt over you and then the heavy woolen one and you stayed snug as a bug in the coldest winter night with no heat. I have sensitive feet and usually poked them out with only the blanket or light quilt over them. Then my husband complained about my cold feet. We lived in our early marriage with his father who was an older man when he was born. We lived in an old farmhouse on the edge of town. He had had the quilts for ages and ages and who knows how old they were. Wish I had one. They burned up with the house after Raymond passed. The rodents took over and chewed the wires before the electric was turned off. I was just surprised it didn't happen while he was still living there. No loss, except for a few precious photos and the antiques. Including the quilts. Another alternative batting is ugly fabric. Kantha quilts are made of layers of used sari fabrics. Kate Jackson of The Last Homely House channel made one and used fabrics she got in a bundle that she did not care for, for the batting. She just layered them on as evenly as she could and quilted the lot together. It makes for a light weight quilt and the result was awesome. For that style the nicer scraps go on the outside both front and back and then the not so nice fabric, either the pattern or stains or holes goes in the center.

I’ve used old blankets and comforters from thrift stores and yard sales as batting.

I use some of the same as you!. I've also used a deceased grandparents bathrobe or flannel night gown for backing without batting or for the batting

Do you use the fleece as backing also?

I went to my thrift store and bought a queen size quilt that still seemed new and wasnt lumpy..i tookvit apart and reused the fiberfil..it cost only 4 dollars for my queen quilt

Wonderful ideas here. About 1950 my grandma made me a quilt of wool scraps like from women’s suits worn at that time. The backing was flannel, tied with wool yarn. It was plenty warm without batting. I rehabbed it recently, replacing the worn out flannel, removing some of the stitching done by her loving hands nearly 75 years ago.

Flannel sheets are my favourite, easy to find in charity shops. I also like duvet covers taken apart for backing fabric. Never any worry that they'll shrink or fade more than they already have! I also use a lot of batting tape to join random pieces of batting together, since it gives a flatter finish than stitching it together.

I learned how to make quilts 10 years ago. I don’t sew all that much, but I’ve never used batting for any of my quilt backs. I’ve always used fleece. That’s how I learned.

Mattress pad that’s elastic has lost it’s stretch.

that is what the old quilts were made from,,, there was no such thing as batting just a hundred years ago or there was but it was too expensive so layers of old blankets and materials were sewn, ,,,, this is an ancient method of quilting

One of the alternatives to batting, depending on the type of quilt I'm making is cloth Diaper fabric. You can usually get it pretty cheap and I love the way it feels when the quilt is completed. Also because a lot of it is as much as 74 inches wide, it makes it pretty cheap when buying by the yard. In some cases you can use it for backing. Also 'bath blankets' used in hospitals are quite inexpensive. I do most of my ordering online so choosing the right batting can be difficult. If it's too thin you have to double up on it and that's bringing up your cost and I love bath blankets. They are so warm and using them as filling make the quilt awesome in winter. I have used the terry cloth but only for small projects like pot holders and placemats. Terry cloth BTY is pretty cheap sometimes. I always find good sales on it BTY. If something is spilled it's more absorbent. But...I'm glad you are talking about this. I do use a lot of cotton and poly batting too though. Poly batting is my least favorite to work with. Sometimes I'll splurge on certain battings if I'm making something scrappy. I figure the scraps are free so I at least will spend on a good batting. Thanks for posting this. I find flannel too hot for a quilt. It doesn't breath well.

Thank you for this! I want to be more sustainable in my quilting (I'm new to this), so i used cotton batting from Hobby Lobby. I didnt even KNOW about bamboo batting, so i may try that as well or hit up a thrift store for some towels to try! How do you reccommend piecing those together? Almost like a pieced quilt backing?

Exactly.... as an oldster i appreciate the fact that the younger generation is bringing tradition back! (and learning to SAVE)

Brilliant show. Loved all your ideas

I'm lucky enough to have found a local lady who sews curtains. Instead of throwing all the interlining cut-offs in the bin, she's happy to save it for me, as and when I would like more :)

Obviously, the curtain interlining isn't fusible so I do 'quilt' it before sewing the items, ie zipped pouches etc Makes the item look more interesting LOL :)

Thankyou I've never thought of using anything else as a batting. This was very informative. 😊

I used towels to back your denim placemat idea....they work brilliantly. Thank you for all your great content & thrift ideas....❤

Great video. I reuse when I can. Fabric is one of the items I just cannot part with, be it old sheets and towels, dresses, pants, jeans. I also remove zippers, buttons and trims. I have my own stash and reuse these treasures often. I've only made one quilt bedspread but want to make another one. thank you for sharing these valuable tips.

I'm still new to quilting and have started with small projects while learning; mainly doll size and one baby quilt. I've been saving my dad's worn-out work sweatshirts for batting. He's a mechanic and goes through them relatively quickly. They're a similar thickness to a thinner batting from the store and have the added bonus of being sentimental. I'm sure they could be pieced for larger projects too.

I use sheets (usually old soft cotton ones) as my backing. No seams, easy to work with and big enough. I have been collecting them for years. They are perfect. I also use sheets as table cloths, curtains, shower curtains (with a vinyl liner), Duvet covers and pillow cases. I've recovered pillows and cushions with them.

Quilts have three layers, traditionally many things have been used. If it doesn’t have batting it’s a coverlet. I have pieced coverlets for summer and quilts for winter. If I’m hand quilting I like wool batting but if I’m machine quilting I use a thin flat batting, I love an old polar fleece blanket or old flannel sheet, I hadn’t thought about towels. Update, if quilting for children you might avoid polyester (like polar fleece) it’s a fire hazard, and never use it in a baby quilt or an elderly quilt. If it catches fire and they can’t get up and run away, it could be tragic

I'm not going to read through over 300 comments to see if someone already mentioned this, so I'm sorry if it's a repeat...but I've thought of piecing together cloth from sweatpants/sweatshirts/hoodies. It's nice weight. 😊

If you can get the itchy old wool Army blankets, they make great quilt batting. Solves the problem of the wool against skin being terribly itchy very nicely.

Thank you for these ideas. I just finished a baby quilt. I found alternative batting at the second-hand store. It was a bit thick, but it served my needs for batting.

I use a woven cotton blanket. Lasts forever!

I buy flannelette fabric by the metre as my batting. Because I'm in Australia, the cotton quilt top, the cotton quilt backing and the flannelette in the middle is enough to make a quilt that isn't too bulky. And it does great with either really dense machine quilting or light - and also with hand quilting. And it lasts - endless machine washes and I whack them in the dryer (unless its like 40c outside and then they can line dry).

I appreciate this video. Thank you. I’ve been working on and only picking up my hexi quilt when watching movies with the family and have pondered how I will finish this without going broke.

I also use old blankets from the thrift store-- fleece or polyester.

What alternatives to store bought batting have you tried? How did it work out?