Do you have to use all 100% cotton in a quilt?

Question

Can you mix polyester and cotton etc?

Answer 1

yeah you can but why would you?

Answer 2

I've always been a cotton purist, as far as quilts go.  Now that I'm totally into being green and using recycled, I'm working on a quilt completely from used garments.  I'm making sure they have all been washed and dried the same, and using the same weight, using my hands as scales :-).  My thinking now is that the only problem with using mixed fibers will come in the quilting.  I'm pretty sure I'll have to machine quilt, since polyester blends won't handle the same way.  When I'm done - which may be in a year knowing me - I'll post a picture in the quilt talk group.  But if you love a fabric, there's no reason it can't be in a quilt.  Just use a blend in your thread for equal strength.  (don't get the wrong idea - I'm still occasionally a sucker for buying fabric in a quilt shop!)

Answer 3

to be authentic you need all cotton

Answer 4

I use to mix fabrics but found in some of my older quilts that when I used a cheaper fabric those were the first places to wear and in some quilts the only places to show wear.  Now I use only 100% cotton fabrics and am always checking quilt stores for fabric on sale.

Answer 5

The quilt police will not come and arrest you for using polyester or cotton/poly blends.  But the fabric won't feel as good to your hands as you sew.  Polyester pills with wear, and cotton doesn't, so for an heirloom quality quilt, rely on cotton.  Also, poly will fray like crazy as you work with it.  

Answer 6

It's YOUR quilt - you can do whatever you like. That said, however, you'll want to experiment a bit so you know what to expect. Fabric composition will affect how the quilt shrinks, and if you use two different kinds of fabric (polyester and cotton), they will shrink at different rates and distort your quilt. If you really want to mix those fabrics, prewash them so they shrink before you cut them. Also, the fabrics will wear differently, so if this is going to be an heirloom quilt, you want to use similar fabrics throughout.  

Answer 7

You can mix poly and cotton, but they not only SHRINK at different rates but they FADE at different rates.  Over time the fading will cause a speckled appearance in a cotton/poly blend fabric.  If you already own some blend fabric you want to use up, just be careful about the pre-washing (as indicated by other answers).  There is so much work in piecing a quilt that I only use 100% cotton quilt shop fabrics, even for my charity quilts.  Hope this helps, Jeanie R-P

Answer 8

My wife (the quilting mad lady) says....

"traditionally 100% cottons are used.  It's the preferred and most commonly accepted medium.  However, a quilt is a peice of art, and you can use whatever you'd like. Especially if you are hanging it on the wall, embelish, embelish, embelish."