Piecing Batting

Batting scraps needing to be pieced

Goal number nine on my February list was to piece together the batting chunks that have accumulated since I finished Indigo Way. I know that some quilters label their chunks. I piece my chunks together. I'd rather keep track of one or two pieces of batting instead of a bunch of chunks. I also piece like battings together. . .all 80/20 and all wool; but, I don't mix the battings.

Piecing the batting with Bernie

With the larger chunks, I butt the edges together. Using a wide and long zig zag stitch (I use a 9 mm wide by 5mm long stitch setting.) I stitch until I have used all the big chunks of fabric. I generally square the piece so that when I'm ready to use it, it will play nice in my batting sandwich. I ended up with a piece that was around 70 inches square. 

Batting ready for use

There isn't much to see in the photo; but it is of the chunk that is ready to be used in a project. I use these pieces as I would any other piece of batting. 

Slicing the narrow strips into bits

Any skinny or narrow strips of batting, I cut into small pieces with my rotary cutting. I store these in a two gallon plastic ziplock bag. When I need to stuff a pincushion or a pillow, I'll use those stored bits.No batting scraps go in the trash.

Batting scraps ready to use as stuffing

In keeping the bits out of the landfill, I figure I am doing my part to reduce the impact on the environment. I really do use all the leftover pieces. Yes, it takes some time to piece the chunks together. I do save money because I can stretch the batting into more projects. Although, if I were to consider the amount of time it takes, I probably don't save as much as I think! In the end, I have a piece ready to use. I'm not sorting though pieces to find one that is the right size nor am I storing many batting scraps. It is a win for me!