Wadding

Dream Puff Wadding from Quilters Dream

1 1/2 times warmer than down and nearly twice as warm as high loft polyester wadding with a loft of 3/8". A warm, white wadding, very light and breathable with a uniform thickness of fine, silky fibres. Will not shrink, resists creases and folds and can be layered. Suitable for short and long arm machine quilting, hand quilting and tying. Stitch up to 10 inches apart. Ideal wadding for quillow and trapunto work. Click here for Dream Puff Wadding.

Hobbs Heirloom Premium Wadding

Unbleached cotton (80%) combined with long staple polyester (20%). Lightly needle-punched and resinated wadding to make it easier to quilt by hand or machine. Quilt from 1/4" up to 3 1/2". Click here for Hobbs Heirloom Premium Wadding

Warm and Natural Wadding

100% cotton wadding needled onto a polymer base. Will not separate or beard. No need to pre-soak. Quilt up to 10" apart. Shrinkage is about 3% with the first washing. Click here for Warm and Natural Wadding.

Hobbs Polydown Wadding

Bonded wadding utilising slick/hollow fibres which make it a washable wadding, soft to the hand, easy to quilt and the fibre migration is low. Click here for Hobbs Polydown Wadding.

Quilters Dream Cotton Wadding

This 100% cotton wadding is available in three weights, Request (hand), Select (hand or machine) or Deluxe (machine). Some sizes are available in whate as well as natural. Stitch up to 8" apart and thre is no need to prewash. Click here for Quilters Dream Cotton Wadding.

Quilters Dream Poly Wadding

A special blend of microfibres which resists beadin and is brathable. No need to pre-wash. The wadding has low shrinkage and is quick to dry. No resins, glues or scrim. Stitch up to 8" apart. Click here for Quilters Dream Poly Wadding.

Hobbs Thermore Wadding

Hobbs Thermore is a thin, drapable wadding suitable for clothing or quilts. It is easy to quilt and does not beard. Click here for Hobbs Thermore Wadding.

Quilters Dream Green Wadding

Made from recycled plastic bottles in an eco-friendly process that reduces landfill. This green polyester fibre wadding is excellent for machine quilting and very good for hand quilting. Wrinkle resistant with minimal shrinkage. Click here for Quilters Dream Green Wadding.

Quilters Dream Blend Wadding

This wadding is made from 70% cotton and 30% polyester blended and needlepunched onto a light scrim base. There is minimal shrinkage with no need to pre-wash. Stitch up to 12" apart yet remains soft when closely quilter. Excellent for long and short arm quilting machines. Click here for Quilters Dream Blend Wadding.

Hobbs Heirloom Wool

Wool gives warmth and insulation without weight and yet disperses excess heat. This wool wadding has excellent loft retention. Washable and beautiful to hand quilt. Click here for Hobbs Heirloom Wool Wadding.

Quilters Dream Orient

This wadding is a luxurious blend of velvety bamboo, luscious silk, strong silky Tencel® and soft stable cotton. Dream Orient's natural environmentally friendly fibers are carded, crosslapped and finely needlepunched to bring you the most desirable qualities of softness, strength, warmth and breathability. The elegant silky soft drape makes Dream Orient a batting beyond compare! Machine wash and dry with cool water/cool dryer - shrinkage approximately 3%. You can stitch up to 8" apart. Click here for Quilters Dream Orient Wadding.

When talking about wadding or batting as it is known in America) there are a few terms that need some explanation.

Wadding Loft

The weight or thickness of wadding. This is a slightly vague term as it doesn't take into account the density of the material, but in general a high loft means it's thick, a low loft means it's thin.

Wadding Drape

The flexibility within a wadding. A good quality wadding should have natural drape, but the thickness will impact on this. Poor quality wadding can be too stiff to drape well.

Bearding

The wadding fibres separate and push through the quilt top. This can happen wehn using a combination of cheaper wadding, fabric and/or thread.

Construction

Whatever material is used for wadding if it is not processed in some way it will form clumps or become uneven. To avoid this manufacturers use a number of different methods.

Bonded

The fibres are bonded together using heat or resin. Thermal bonding uses a low melt fibre to hold it together. This can allow bearding but doesn't break down with washing as fast as resin bonded wadding. Resin bonded batting is made from a variety of fibres including polyester, cotton and wool. Resin is applied to both sides then dried and cured. This makes it resistant to bearding.

Needle-punched

The wadding fibres are mechanically felted together by punching them with thousands of tiny needles. This causes it to be stronger and denser and lowers the loft (not so good for hand quilting).

Scrim:

A lightweight binder that is needle punched into the wadding to add strength, loft and to prevent stretching and distorting. Quiling lines can be further apart when using a wadding with scrim.