Piecing Batting Together
Well, it finally happened. I ran out of batting at an inconvenient time. Running to the quilt shop wasn’t an option, but I remembered hearing about piecing batting together. So, I decided to give it a try.
First, I overlapped the two batting pieces and cut them both with a curvy line. My hope was that the curve would help me line up the two pieces, and it did work well. (Although now I’m wondering why it matters. A straight-lined join, even if it was a little mismatched, would still work wouldn’t it?)
Click any image for a larger view
I joined the pieces together with a rather messy ladder stitch.
The ladder stitch looks just like a whip stitch from the front. The difference is the way the needle travels on the back side. Click on photo above to see. It’s better than a whip stitch because it doesn’t draw the fabrics together so much.
Here’s how to do it.
– Take a stitch left to right, across the fabric seam, connecting the two pieces of fabric.
– Travel under the fabric, parallel to the seam and moving away from you.
– Take a stitch right to left, across the fabric seam and continue.
This stitch is often used to close up the seam of a stuffed toy or other small item. This tutorial from “NannyNotes” shows an example.
BTW, this was very quick. (Faster than going to the store. Hah!) I’ll definitely do it again.
Ellen Lindner
P.S. Have you ever pieced batting together? Do you have any related tips?
I wonder if the curve was to distribute the “weak point” so that it would not want to naturally fold along that line? Altho with the amount of top stitching you do that probably would not be a proble, however on a regular quilt that weak line would want to fold over. Just a thought. Thanks for the ladder stitch instructions and the why.
Hi Cindy,
You might be right about the curve.
The ladder stitch comes in handy for a variety of things.
I have sewn batting together in the past and still do on occasions; however, I like using the iron-on tape that is out for joining batting. Works great!
There’s a tape for this? I’ll have to investigate. Thanks, Terri!
Yes, I have often pieced batting, mainly for children’s quilts our guild makes. I do like to cut the two pieces at the same time with a little bit of a wavy line but can also use straight cuts, being careful not to have any overlap (that will make thick places). Like Terri, I prefer to fuse the pieces together rather than stitching. I keep some fusible interfacing for this purpose. I cut a strip about an inch or two wide to generously cover the cut, iron it on, and voila! it’s fast and efficient.
Great idea, Martha!
They sell a tape used to tape batting together and it works really well. Its something you don’t use often, but its nice when you have it on hand!
I have never heard of the ladder stitch–it makes perfect sense. Thanks for the instructions!
I have sew batting together and used the tape. I found the tape awkward to work with. But still maybe faster than sewing?
Thanks for the feedback, Debby. It seems that there are many ways to do any one task!
I’ve sewn batting together too. I cut it like you did, but then I sew it by machine with a zig zag stitch. I make a couple of marks with a removable marker across both pieces so it doesn’t get too wonky.
Thanks for another good suggestion, Cheryl. (Clearly, I’m not the only one who runs out of batting late at night!)