Working With the Wool Batting

Things are blooming in Sewtopia. This time of year, early Summer, is so special. The air is scented with early blooming roses and lilacs. The sunlight is almost sparkling, particularly when it finally stops raining!

I am hoping that the deer don't move on these. They have eaten all the blooms of the Hosta, they have destroyed two rose bushes, the foxglove is decimated. Breaks my heart, I wait all year to see my foxglove. Moving on.....

The subject is wool batting. I have about 9 hours quilting time invested in this quilt. I have to say one thing. I love wool batting. There, it's out. I am wool sensitive but this batt, from  Hobbs bothers me very little. Of course, it is covered by quilt top and back but even the exposed edges have not been a problem.

Smooth stitching too. My needle absolutely glides through this stuff. In addition, the effect is almost Trapunto-like. 

See what I mean. There is nothing special in the process but this well basted quilt ( I used a pin about every 4-5 inches ) has been a great project to test the wool batting.

Fluffy like this Hydrangea, the batting did not really compress with tight stitching.

Small, medium and large tear drop swirls all have their own personality clearly visible on the white fabric.

• I heavily basted this quilt, a bit nervous using this unfamiliar product. I probably could do less basting. 
• There is very little shifting as I quilt. With cotton or 80/20 I will sometimes have a shift in the top with dense quilting toward the edge. Not so with this wool. Maybe I am just more aware and stop it before it starts but I don't think so. I have been working here and there on this one, not center out, not edge to edge or serpentine rows. If there were a shift, I would have known it. This was a test, it's working well.
• I used my favorite off-white Isocord thread.
• About 2 more hours should do it, I have one long edge, about 8 inches wide to finish. 
• Still having some issues with stitch size. I discovered that I had abandoned my stitch regulator! I had it set to charge and left it on the side. The machine sounded different. One thing I have learned the hard way, on every machine. If you know how it should sound, and that sound changes, something is amiss. It is usually thread shredding at the tension disc, the bobbin is choking on a bit of thread......or.......you have disconnected the stitch regulator, left the setting on regulated and wondered WHY is this happening? Don't have to hit me in the head with a brick!

 Sandra Leichner is also a fan of wool batting, this post discusses her applique method when using a wool batting.