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My little guy, Miles, is almost four months, and I just finished up his little gauze quilt. I learned a lot using gauze on both sides with wool batting in the middle. This was also my very first attempt at hand quilting! I love having a few projects to do from my rocking chair in the living room (instead of always needing to be near my sewing machine.)
Supplies:
Sarah Jane’s painted gingham mist in gauze
Bambino double gauze in white
Wool batting (very different than cotton batting…also more expensive.)
Gutterman hand quilting thread (but I wish I had used Pearl Thread in size 8.)
Where can you purchase gauze?
Fabric.com has a great varied selection!
Field and Cloth has a BEAUTIFUL selection.
I wanted to experiment with something a bit new. I have sewn a bit with gauze, but I haven’t tried gauze on both sides yet. This combination is a bit dreamy with the wool batting. I’d make this blanket ten times over. I love the result.
I have tried gauze + wool batting + cotton fabric and talked a bit about it in this post. A couple years ago, I also finished up a gauze + cotton batting + cotton fabric and talked about that here.
Is cotton gauze fabric the same as ‘double’ gauze? Yes, they are the same. The double part has to do with the stitching in the fabrics and how the fibers work together.
Here’s how I made my simple gauze + wool + gauze quilt:
1. I laid my backing of simple white double gauze on my kitchen table. This is the first step in the basting process. (It’s so much simpler to baste a baby blanket than a large quilt!)
Be sure to lay it face down.
Smooth it out as best as you can. Then, without stretching the fibers, use masking or painters tape and secure the backing to you table.
2. Lay your wool batting on top of the backing. Smooth it out as best as you can.
3. Lay the gauze for the front of the quilt on top. This should be facing up.
4. It’s always good to have your backing a bit larger than your batting. Your piece of batting should be a bit larger than your quilt top.
Why?
This avoids silly errors. For example, sometimes your quilt top will shift little bits during the quilting process. If that happens, it’s nice to have some excess batting and backing to make up for the shifting.
5. Pin, pin, and pin some more. The wool has some good friction that works in your favor. It will prevent the gauze from slipping a bit, but I recommend pinning lots.
That is, of course, unless you use basting spray. Basting spray is a temporary adhesive made for fabric. It washes out easily. It’s great if you have the extra funds to buy the spray. You spray it between each layer of your quilt and basically glue each layer together.
6. Pick up some hand quilting thread. I used a very thin basic thread for this blanket. This hand quilting thread has a wax coating to ensure it glides well through fabric. The coating also prevents those frustrating tangles. Since sewing this blanket, I’ve used lots of Pearl Thread in size 8, and I like the look of it much better than what I used here.
Since writing this original post, I’ve done a LOT of hand quilting. And I’ve narrowed down my favorite supplies and thread. If you are hand quilting for the first time, maybe glance through a few of these posts:
My Favorite Hand Quilting Supplies
The Blessings, Thoughts, and Supplies of Hand Quilting
What are you Favorite Hand Quilting Resources?
Half Square Triangles, Hand Quilting, and a Big Finish for Me
7. Begin the hand quilting process. I didn’t use a quilting hoop. Since this was a baby quilt, I could easily handle the fabrics well. I could roll up one side and simply hold the fabric. My goal was to try for even stitches. I followed the pattern in the fabrics instead of tracing any fancy design.
I have since read that gauze blankets are much softer with less quilting. Maybe I should have gone every other or every third row instead of quilting every row of gingham. Something to keep in mind for next time.
8. Bind your quilt. I used the same process for binding as I show in this post. I sewed the binding on with a machine and then used a blind stitch to finish the front side of the quilt. You can see in the below picture I was just a few inches short of having enough white gauze for the binding. 🙂 Scrappy look to the rescue!
9. In case you were wondering the difference of the batting and gauze after a wash and a dry, here is an after picture:
The front looked very much the same, but the back Bambino gauze crinkled quite a bit. Both sides took on a softer feel. I understand now why many call these gauze + wool + gauze blankets somewhat dreamy. They are very soft with a very light drape and extremely worthy of a good cuddle.
I’m definitely still learning the best processes for working with gauze. Give me some tips and other great findings you’ve learned! I’d love to hear from you.
Hello! I saw in a comment the finished quilt was 30×36 but what we’re the dimensions of the gauze you used to start? Wanting to make sure I have enough gauze.
Hi Jenny, good question. I don’t think I addressed that in the post. One yard of guaze would be approximately 36 by 44 inches. If I were purchasing fabric for this blanket again, I’d buy a yard for the front and a yard for the back, and then I’d trim the top down to the size I want. Does that make sense?
Your tips are very good, another I find helpful is ironing your seems….nice crisp seams …always look good…
You have a lovely site !
CC
Thank you Carol! Thanks for stopping by!
What a precious baby and I’m sure so cozy for him. Beautiful quilt too. God Bless you both and your family.
Hi Kelli! I have really enjoyed your website and blog – it has really helped and encouraged me on my beginning quilting journey! Gave myself a laugh today when I suddenly realized you are the same person who made curwenmusic.com – another resource that has been a tremendous help to me in my piano teaching. Blessings to you – a sister in Christ I have never met – and please know there are people out there who have been immeasurably blessed by all that you do.
– Marilyn
Marilyn, this makes me smile. Aside from family, you’re the first who has ever made note of this. I love quilting, and it’s my favorite hobby. But music is my passion. I love teaching children to play piano. Your words are so kind to me. Thank you for your encouragement! I’m glad you’ve found both sites helpful. 🙂
Kudos to you Kelli !! You make it look so easy, this is a very helpful & informative blog !! Every mom should definitely give a try !!
I would love to try this quilt. I have a question about the quilt being snagged by friends big dogs. Should I do gauge, cotton batting, gauge or cotton fabrics with a wool batting?
Hello! I’m a little late to this party. Just getting into my grandma mode with new grandbabies! I know hand quilting is an art and can be therapeutic (if one has patience 😉 )… but has anyone tried machine quilting this and if so, how did it turn out compared to hand quilting?
Thank you for sharing!
Hi Kristen, I think machine quilting would work just as well! I’d recommend using a walking foot and a larger stitch length.
Or should I prewash the wool before making the quilt so the shrinkage happens before making the quilt?
I wish I could offer more help Johanna, but I don’t want to steer you incorrectly. I don’t know much about machine felted wool versus wool batting. I would assume the gauze dish towels from Walmart would work just fine…maybe?? Depending on quality, they may pill much easier than a higher quality cotton gauze. If I’ve learned anything from fabric, the more I pay, the nicer quality the fabric. But some of that depends on what your end goal is.
Should you prewash the wool? My goal was to NOT prewash the wool because I wanted the shrinkage. I knew the wool would shrink more than the cotton gauze fabric. I wanted the wool to pull the gauze into a crinkly look. If you prewash the wool, then you may not achieve the crinkly look…but maybe that’s not the look you want.
Hopefully that offers a bit of insight. Feel free to ask more questions!
This is so beautiful I’m dying to take a break from knitting and try quilting! Something I’ve never done before. I’m wondering if you have any advice on a brainstorm I had. I was thinking of buying some inexpensive gauze swaddle blankets and cotton batting and making a quilt from those! I think maybe cut them into large squares or rectangles and piece together in a way. Any advice you have from your experience is greatly appreciated!! Again thanks for this post, it’s lovely.
Hi Alison! I believe purchasing the blankets will work BUT just a word of caution. Gauze is harder to piece with than quilting cotton. If you are just giving quilting a try, I may recommend starting with cotton instead of gauze. Otherwise, prepare to use lots of starch with the gauze. It’s a bit of a flimsy fabric with a loose weave. Does that makes sense?
If you need a bit of help finding adorable cottons, start here: https://www.thewillowmarket.com/my-favorite-fabric-shops-and-stores/
You may find some cotton fabric you love that could be a bit less frustrating to start with.
With all that to say, start with gauze if that’s where you want! Enjoy the process and don’t sweat the imperfections! You’ll learn a lot, but that’s where we all have to start. Learning to quilt with gauze may be perfect for you.
Great tutorial! I’m just starting to tackle one for my second son. I bought a dream blanket for the first born but this time around I couldn’t find a pattern I like….so I’m taking it on myself!
I’ve never quilted before. One of my fabrics has vertical lines and I was planning to just quilt vertical lines, and not create any sort of grid with horizontal lines. Will that work with the gauze fabric? All the examples I’ve found of straight line quilting are with plain cotton.
Thanks for any guidance!
Good for you, Laura, for taking it one yourself! If it’s your first blanket, take it slow and be ready to give yourself grace for any mistakes. 🙂 I think quilting just vertical lines works wonderful! The reason for the quilting is to reinforce seams and tack the quilt layers together. You won’t compromise any of that with quilting only vertical lines.
I love this blanket and I have started one as well! I was unable to find muslin with a plaid pattern though so I wonder if you have done one that isn’t plaid and if so if you have recommendations on how to stitch straight lines? I currently and using masking tape and stitching next to it but wonder if there is a better way? Also, any suggestions for getting even stitches? This is my first attempt at hand stitching but I am enjoying it! I am excited to have a project I can work on while driving or sitting on the couch!! Did you use a hoop?
Thanks so much for this post!
Hi Kari! Have you tried a hera marker? https://amzn.to/2VgfYbC
These are little tools almost like a butter knife. You can run the edge of the hera marker down the side of your ruler, and it leaves faint lines / creases in your fabric to help you sew a straight line. I’ve never used one on gauze, but I would assume it would work on gauze like it would on cotton fabric.
For some projects I use a hoop and for some I don’t. At times I enjoy the hoop because it handles the fabric for me. It keeps the fabric pulled taught and can me sewing straight lines easier. Other times the hoop feels bulky and inconvenient on my lap…plus I have to get up and go to a flat surface to move it all the time. I think the greatest advantage I’ve found for me with a hoop is it helps makes the stitches consistent on the BACK of my project too.
You asked about even stitches? Just keep going. You’ll eventually find your rhythm. It’s like writing. It will soon look like your own signature as you quilt along and you’ll see how perfect yet how different it will look than another person’s hand quilting. 🙂
Hi,
I’m wondering… You washed and dried it with the wool inside?… the wool didn’t shrink a lot? I want to do the same but it says to not machine dry the wool batting on the pakage. Thanks!
Hi Gabrielle, you are correct that wool has a high shrinkage rate. With this particular quilt, I wanted the gauze on the outside to crinkle up. Since the wool will shrink MORE than the gauze, it’s going to make the gauze look all wrinkled and wavy after it’s been dried. But, since this is the look I wanted, I dried the entire blanket (wool batting and all) in the dryer.
Okay I understand! And is the wool still a bit puffy or it all shrinked tight?
Thanks!
Gabrielle.
It is still quite puffy. Much more so than cotton batting.
Could I use a machine felted piece of wool i have as the batting? And I’m wondering if those big gauze dish towels that come 10 to a pack from Wal-Mart could be used instead of buying more gauze?
Thanks for sharing Kelli. Love your quilt!
I’m still gathering information before I tackle something like this😊
🙂 Thank you, Becky! Good luck on your project! Come back and ask questions if you need help or insight.
Hi there! Working on a gauze quilt right now, and having trouble figuring out how to hide the knot without having it pull back through, since the space between threads in the gauze is so large. I am stitching circles around flowers on the front side, so I am not stitching from end to end, but starting and ending in the middle. Any help?
Oh Becca, I wish I could help! Since my blanket was so small, I never had to hide the knots. I always used thread long enough to go from one side to the next. I understand, though, embroidering around the flowers would be different. I don’t have a good answer for you. There’s another quilter on Instagram called @fieldandcloth. Her website is http://www.fieldandcloth.com. Nathalie sells a lot of gauze and sews a lot of quilts with gauze. She’s always been pretty responsive to me on Instagram. She may be able to help!
I have bought a hundred gauze towels very big could this be used?
Hi Debbie, I have never sewn with gauze towels before so I have no idea! But if you try it, be sure to take a picture and let us know how they work out. I’m curious to know.
Hi! This is going to be my first venture into the world of quilting. I’m really excited, but a tad overwhelmed, I won’t lie! Your step by step process and photos have been the most clear and detailed of all the sites I’ve been reading from. That’s been immensely helpful! I’ve noticed it seems like there are quite a few “tools” involved in this project however. I’m wondering if you could give me a list of the essentials I would need to purchase to get started? I would appreciate it so much!
Hi Jess, that’s a great question! Having the right tools really makes sewing much more enjoyable!
A cutting mat is a must: https://amzn.to/2PAU4jH
A rotary cutter is a must: https://amzn.to/2OSKfs0
A ruler is a must: https://amzn.to/2RZoKYw
Small scissors are so handy for snipping threads: https://amzn.to/2Tquz2T
Large scissors are great for cutting: https://amzn.to/2DN73sj
Those are the necessities on top of the basic sewing machine and thread. 🙂 Maybe you can put some of them on your Christmas list this year!
Did you wash the gauze before quilting? Also, would 1 inch hand stitching be a good length? I am using gauze on top and bottom, as well as wool batting. I am making a baby quilt for my great nephew due in February.
Hi Deborah, I didn’t wash the gauze before quilting. I could see one inch stitching being very pretty…maybe with the thick size 8 or 12 Valdani pearl cotton thread…don’t you think those stitches would be beautiful! Congratulations on your great nephew! What a privilege to have a great aunt like you to make some handmade gifts. If you haven’t see this post about the wool batting, you may want to see the comparisons I made between the three gauze blankets I’ve made: https://www.thewillowmarket.com/cotton-gauze-wool-batting-or-cotton-batting-whats-the-difference-do-gauze-quilts-hold-up-well/
Do you send the quilt through the dryer with wool batting or do you have to air dry it?
I dried it, Janine. I wanted the crinkly look so I didn’t hesitate! You may want to check out this post for what the difference was for me when I used the wool batting: https://www.thewillowmarket.com/cotton-gauze-wool-batting-or-cotton-batting-whats-the-difference-do-gauze-quilts-hold-up-well/
I did a bit of a comparison between the cotton and wool batting. Hopefully that’s helpful!
Mary, Thanks so much you have given me the information to do a gauze baby quilt.
Yours is quite lovely and looks so soft.
I’ve used little balls of Pearl cotton to baste almost all of my baby (& bigger) quilts. I cut lengths about nose-to-fingertip length & baste in a Z pattern. Then when I pull them out I drop them in a hanging scrap pocket. I have then been able to reuse the loose Pearl cotton over & over because I can pull them out intact without having to to cut them.
Hi Mary, thanks so much for your tip and insight! I have never tried basting a quilt with thread but this sounds like a great idea to try…especially because you can reuse the supplies. I have basted with pins and spray, but I should give thread basting a try too.
I know this will shrink some, but about how much can I expect? And would the type of batting used make a difference in how much it would shrink? I’m thinking wool batting. I just want to make sure I allow a big enough piece to finish to the size I’d like. Thank you for the tutorial. It’s so simple and so pretty!
Hi Rita, the new post I just added today may be of help to you: https://www.thewillowmarket.com/cotton-gauze-wool-batting-or-cotton-batting-whats-the-difference-do-gauze-quilts-hold-up-well/
In my experience, the wool batting shrinks so much more than the cotton batting. I would def allow a couple of inches for shrinkage. If I knew the exact dimensions when I started the quilt, I’d give you exact dimensions about how far it shrunk, but unfortunately, I wasn’t that precise. With the wool batting, though, expect a few inches off each side maybe…of a baby sized quilt.
That little quilt is dreamy, but nothing compared to that sweet baby! Good job on both 🙂
Thanks Heidi! It was such a learning process for me. I still love this blanket to this day! It’s so very cuddly. 🙂
What a precious baby,I think I would prefer the cotton backing , more durability
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Hi Carol, thank you! I agree that cotton would def provide more durability. I find that the gauze can snag easily if dragged over rough surfaces! 🙂
Your quilt looks so beautiful and cozy I would love to make the same for my new grandson. An easy project for evenings when I just want to sit and relax. Could you please tell me the size of your quilt? Thank you!
Hi Claudia, mine finished at approximately 30 inches by 36 inches. The size has been really great too. Not too big but big enough to use for warmth if needed. Congratulations on your new grandson!!
Thank you Kelli – I will get started as soon as the fabric arrives! Greetings from Germany
Helloooooooo from across the ocean! 🙂
Adorable baby!!! The quilt is beautiful.
I’m quite partial to the baby. I like him a lot. 🙂
What a beautiful baby you have and the quilt is pretty too! How well will this hold up to multiple washings, as I think this will definitely be on my list for my newest grandbaby. Thanks in advance and thanks for sharing.
Debbie…(0;
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Hi Debbie, this is the second quilt I’ve made using gauze. The first one was gauze on one side and cotton on the other. That one has held up great. I made it two years ago and it’s been through many washings. This new one has been through two or three wash cycles, and I don’t notice any pulling or fraying. It continues to get softer with each wash. I do believe, though, a gauze blanket would be more prone to holes if, for example, something got hooked onto the fibers. I think it would snag pretty easily.
I finished this blanket two months ago, and I like it more now than the day I finished it. The drape is soft, and the blanket is a really great cuddly texture.
Hopefully that is helpful! Thanks for stopping by!
This is gorgeous! I love the texture from your hand quilting. The color is perfect too! Love it!
Thank you Erin! It’s the first time I’ve ever hand quilted, and I so much enjoy the character it added to this quilt. 🙂