I'm with Dawn...I love wool, but others will also work. I do a lot of art quilts and wash most of them. I don't want mine to shrink pucker either. So I preshrink my fabric (if I haven't prewashed it, I can sometimes shrink before quilting by very lightly spritzing with water or starch and pressing dry without losing the crisp quilting), before I make it and steam my batting (holding the iron very slightly above the batting and giving it a lot of steam). Actually all the battings I've used stay nice and flat like this, even the 80/20 cotton/poly. I actually wash the quilt in cold water without drying it before I bind it and block it at that stage. Best wishes on this project.

Nice Modern Quilt! I'm thinking that an 80/20 low loft would work great. If you would like your quilting to show more, double layers of 80/20 would be even better, I would think. Your quilting thread density would matter also. So choosing a quilting pattern and deciding on a small, medium or large gauge for quilting density defines the scrunchiness also. Post a pic when you are finished, I bet it will be stunning!

Of course wool batting great idea Dawn!
Becky - please post a picture of your progress.

Barb

Becky, I suggest you lay your quilt top over your batting, cut off some of the excess (what you won't be needing) and measure out (cut) an exact square of it, then wash that small square. Maybe like 12" square. Just be sure to measure it. Soak it good in cool water, put it into a very low temp dryer, or whatever temp you will be drying your quilt in the future, and see how it does, by measuring it again. (Sometimes a batting will shrink more one way than the other.) I hope to never have to wash my art quilt with the wool batting, but with cold water, a good squish between towels, and a tumble air dry, I have faith mine will not shrink a bit.

Dawn.

I have wool batting to use on this quilt maybe I'll think twice about washing it before I quilt!

I just used wool batting for the first time. My background was white, like yours, and I found the yellow, off white of the batting tended to yellow my quilt just a tad. So, when I researched this phenomenon, I also learned that wool batting is not supposed to shrink as much as others do, because of all of the washing processes it had gone through, to get it to the batting stage. Wool batting is expensive, but a dream to quilt, and really shows off your quilting! Also, it doesn't wrinkle as much as others do. Great if you are shipping it off to a friend, or a show!

Dawn

Hi Becky,
I wouldn't wash a quilt top either before quilting for your same reasons. I do wash quilt fabric before assembling if the quilt will be used on a bed, I don't wash quilt fabric if the quilt will be a wall hanging. I have washed batting in the washing machine and in a laundry tub. I dried the "Striped City" batting outside on a table in sun. The batting label has directions on washing.
Barb

I have never washed a top before quilting it. Won't it distort the pattern or the lines ?

I agree with Wendy and Marilyn, wash the batting first. I pre-washed cotton batting for my quilt "Stripped City". I've washed and dried once it still looks the same.

thequiltshow.com/community/BarbCA/photos/photo?albumid=10741822&photoid=125092

Barb

I'd do like Wendy....and I might just use a poly batting. I would shrink quilt before quilting in any case.
I must add,of course...I'd never worry about it ...just sayin'.......

Wouldn't your normal batting work if you wash it first so it's preshrunk and wash the top as well of course. It's a lovely quilt, show it again when done

I have recently finished a modern pattern quilt top. I'm not sure what batting to use so when washed it doesn't looked crinkled. I love the crinkled look on traditional patterns but on a modern pattern I would prefer it to stay flat after washing. I, also, still want it to drap. Does anyone know what batting would give me this result?