Who Else Has Stood in Front of a Wall of Batting and Wondered Which One is Right for Your Quilt?From: Penny Halgren Dear Friend, Isn't it interesting to see things come full circle? I'll admit, there are changes I thought were so permanent that we would never go back to the way things were. Yet, here we are - back - while at the same time moving forward. More than 27 years ago, when I began quilting, most everyone was using polyester batting in their quilts. Those brave soles who were using cotton did so at the risk of seeing cottonseed oil bleed through and make stains on their beautiful quilts. Plus, 100% cotton batting was full of tiny twigs and seeds of cotton plants, making it difficult to quilt. Thus it was that polyester became the preferred batting. It was much easier to use, and it was warmer. Not only that, but we didn't think twice about using polyester fabric in our quilts - at least I didn't know the difference. I was just buying fabric in the colors I liked. That was until I realized that working with polyester fabric made my quilt making much more difficult. Then came the days of "natural fiber" . . . and quilters "in the know" started using only 100% cotton fabric, 100% cotton thread, and cotton batting - without the seeds. And, using only 100% cotton fabric made sewing patches together much easier. Polyester became a bad word. "Do you really want to wrap your baby in that plastic quilt?" "You realize that you are support the oil industry using all of that polyester?" And there were stories surfacing that over time polyester thread (including cotton covered polyester) would tear the cotton fabric in your quilts. Threadmakers today deny that is true, but I have a quilt that I believe is a prime example of that phenomenon - perfect slices in the fabric along the seamlines. Not tears, not loose fibers. It's like someone took a knife or pair of scissors and cut along the seam. And, as of yet, no way to fix it. In any case, many quilters used only natural fibers, and the batting manufacturing companies obliged. Their processing of cotton batting improved, and the seeds and sticks were removed from cotton batting, scrims, needlepunching and small amounts of polyester were added to cotton, and then quilts could be 100% cotton. And so for many years it was, that quilters expounded the virtues of natural fibers - mostly cotton, but including wool and silk. Along Came Machine Quilters, and Polyester Batting Came Back Maybe it was that polyester batting holds together better under the tension of a quilting machine. Maybe it is the consistency and predictability of the polyester that makes it a better choice for machine quilting. Some machine quilter knows, but whatever the reason, polyester batting made a comeback. And, once again, batting manufacturing companies obliged. Now polyester batting comes in a myriad of thicknesses and sizes. There are enough choices that many batting companies have created charts to help quilters figure out which batting is right of the type of quilt you are making. Still, in the 27 years I have been quilting, our batting choices have been: cotton, polyester, wool and silk. And Now - - - Enter Fairfield and bamboo batting! For several years, Fairfield Processing has been conducting research to produce some radical new natural fibers. Through their research efforts, they have found the next-generation of improved craft materials. Bamboo is an interesting source of fiberfill material. I remember the bamboo around my grandmother's fish pond. She was always complaining that it had to be constantly cut back because it grew like a "weed." Hmmm, what a great plant to use to produce something that there is a huge demand for! And maybe that is why it grows so well. The benefit to us is that bamboo doesn't require any chemical sprays to stay healthy and grow. Often the sprays and chemicals that some manufacturers add to kill naturally occurring bacteria may cause allergies and skin conditions in humans. Bamboo eliminates the need for these chemicals entirely. Not only is bamboo great for our environment, but quilters have found that it feels great, and is wonderful for both hand quilting and machine quilting. Last November, Fairfield introduced their bamboo batting at the Houston Quilt Market, and this week we are honored to host Judy Novella from Fairfield to talk about their bamboo batting as well as their cotton and polyester battings. This is a great opportunity for us to hear about how all of this came about and how we can choose among so many battings to get the right batting for our quilt. It all happens Thursday, June 5, beginning at 5pm Pacific Time. By the time you hang up the phone, you will know:
If you missed the call, now is the time to order a CD recording of this telephone call while you can still get it at the Early Bird investment of $24.97. This was a great call, with some excellent information that all quilters should know in order to make sure that the batting you put inside your quilt will enhance the life and value of your quilt. How disappointing would it be to discover while you are quilting your quilt that you chose the wrong batting. "And, what is the difference?" you ask. Just for example, some battings are now made specifically for machine quilting. Put one of those in your quilt and try to hand quilt it, and you might give up hand quilting when really it is just the batting. Similarly, there are battings that will tear apart when you use them in a quilting machine. One of those will probably lead you away from a particular brand of batting, when really it is just the type of batting. By listening to the call with Judy Novella from Fairfield, you will certainly learn some new and valuable information. But, you might miss some, too. Like when the dog barked (and maybe it was someone else's dog interrupting the call), or someone in your family wanted to know where the dessert was. Regardless of the cause of the interruption, you will probably want to hear this call more than one time, and having a CD recording of the call, will enable you to listen on your time - in the car, at the gym, taking a walk, wherever, whenever. Order now at the Early Bird Price:
or... Become an Official Eavesdropping Quilter by Joining the Club!
Because of the success of the Eavesdrop on a Telephone Conversation series, now it's even easier for you to be sure to hear all of the valuable information our guests have to share. By Joining the Official Eavesdropping Quilters Club, you will be the first to receive a copy of the Eavesdrop on a Telephone Conversation CD each month after the call. It's all automatic. You won't need to watch your email for any announcements for ordering, you won't need to get out your credit card each month and fill in all of that annoying information. Yours will be first out the door as soon as the CDs are ready, and your card will be charged automatically - and less than the price for non-members. That's right, non-members pay $24.97 (Early Bird Price) or $27.97 plus a small fee for shipping and handling for each CD they invest in individually. The Official Eavesdropping Quilters Club member investment is only $22.00 each month plus a tiny charge for shipping and handling. That's a whopping 12.93% savings - every month! Plus, this month we have 2 calls, and members of the Official Eavesdropping Quilters Club will pay only once, saving you even more! Plus as a member of the Official Eavesdropping Quilters Club, you will get the secret link to download the transcript of the call. This link will be given only to Members for their exclusive use. Each month you get the full Conversation - word for word - in a convenient Adobe pdf format. You can download it, read it at your convenience, mark it up, save it to your computer and print it out for your own use whenever you want it. "Why should I join?" you ask. In addition to saving money, here are a few more reasons:
"Why am I doing this?" you ask. Now that we know this series is so popular, and I have guests lined up through the end of the year, I need to let Tony, the guy who copies my CDs, know about how many we will need each month. By joining the Official Eavesdropping Quilters Club Tony will be able to reserve time for our project and get the CDs copied and out the door faster. "What's the downside?" you ask. Nothing from what I can tell. There is no fee to join - just a lower price for the CD. And you can cancel at any time. Just let us know, and we will stop billing you and stop delivering the CDs - no hassles, no whining, no problem - no minimum time of membership. "So, why not?" you ask. Good question, join the Official Eavesdropping Quilters Club today, enjoy the convenience of having these pop into your mailbox automatically every month, and begin saving money right away. And, you get this great looking CD case to put them in -
I understand that my card will automatically be charged each month for $22.00 plus $2.00 shipping and handling until I tell you to stop. Plus I will get the secret, exclusive link to download the transcription of the call each month. I also understand that I will get some "freebies" every once in a while when there is more than one Eavesdrop on a Telephone Conversation during a month (which may be as soon as next month!) And get the CD case for FREE as a member of the Club.
Happy Quilting!
www.How-to-Quilt.com
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As it turns out, bamboo is naturally antibacterial. 
Wow! I'm excited. Please 
