Healthy Fabrics

Hybrid Quilts

Hybrid Quilts, that’s what I call the patchwork blankets I make from new and old fabrics that are both eco-friendly and home healthy: vintage cotton prints for the top and new wide-width organic cotton or hemp/organic cotton blends for the backing. Sandwiched in between is sustainably produced natural fiber batting such as an alpaca blend, wool or cotton. The fun part about making a hybrid quilt is hunting for the vintage fabrics and creating a color scheme that’s uniquely you. I use a simple square or rectangle layout. I can piece it quickly and then hand everything off to a long arm quilting pro to do the rest. A hard core quilter once called that “lazy”. I call it energy efficient!

Non-Toxic Mattress Pads

Making an organic mattress pad isn’t at the top of my project list. In fact, I’d rather just go out and buy one. But when I discovered the hefty price tag on my favorite ready-made versions, making my own is now my new obsession. Here’s a couple cost-saving style and fabric options for making your own healthy home mattress pad:

Hemp Quilt

 
A quilt made from hemp? Yes! And, it’s soft, cozy and warm just as you’d expect any quilt to be. This one is a simple, scrappy patchwork design made mostly from hemp summercloth, hemp canvas, hemp muslin, hemp herringbone; classic weaves of subtle textures and natural hues that showcase the beauty of this amazing bast fiber. Pieces of color grown organic cotton chambray and herringbone, and vintage linen twill are interspersed to add color depth and additional surface interest.

Read on to find out why hemp makes the best healthy home quilt, which batting to use in a hemp quilt and tips for “tinting” hemp fabric with coffee or tea to create a rich palette of naturals for your patchworks.

DIY Natural Fiber Pillows

Have you ever bought a pillow and discovered after only one or two nights it’s not comfortable at all? Or, perhaps you liked the support but realized the fiberfill or fabric was irritating your skin or lungs? I’ve experienced the same frustration many times, which is why I now make my own natural fiber pillows. By using loose fiber, such as organic wool bolus or kapok, I can customize the level of support and not worry about off-gassing irritants. My healthy bed pillows are comfy, adjustable and more affordable than ready-made versions. Check out my easy-sew instructions and material resources for making your own. Sleep well!

How-To Make a Felted Sweater Blanket

 
There’s more than one way to make a sweater blanket that’s for sure. Last fall I posted My Green Sweater Blanket, which included instructions for joining felted sweater squares with the butt and zigzag method. This method makes a smooth, seamless patchwork blanket that looks the same on the front and back. I love the look of this finish, however, over time some of the stitches have pulled away from the join line leaving little gaps. I guess the widest zigzag width on my old machine just isn’t wide enough to keep the squares together permanently.

This time around I joined the felted squares with ¼” seams. The result: a smooth front with exposed seams on the back, which surprisingly doesn’t look bad at all. This seaming method will definitely keep the squares in tack. Also, check out the patchwork binding at the ends --nice touch, right?

OK, I’m leaving you for now with instructions using this ¼” seam technique. Get felting and let me know how your blanket turns out.

Eco-Wool Blankets

A good quality wool blanket, organic or vintage, is one of the best green investments you can make for your home. It will last for years, maybe your lifetime! How many products can you say that about? It will keep you toasty warm at night and perhaps inspire you to turn down your thermostat. Watch out, you might fall in love with it once you see the savings on your energy bill this winter. 

Make Your Own Organic Cotton Duvet Cover

Make your own eco-bedding and save a bundle!

I made a full/queen comforter cover and two standard pillowcases from Harmony Art’s certified organic cotton sateen for $120. That’s $75 less than the ready-made versions found at Coyuchi, a manufacturer of beautiful organic cotton bedding. 

See my step-by-step instructions with photos on next page. Enjoy!

Organic Wool Bedding for Summer

Would you believe me if I told you warm, summer weather and wool bedding is a cozy combo? Take it from me (a menopausal, princess and the pea type of sleeper) wool bedding is divine. I've found wool’s natural properties combined with the health benefits of sustainable production make organic wool-fill comforters and mattress toppers the most comfortable bedding not only for summer but also all year long.   

That’s because wool is a natural insulator. Some refer to it as temperature regulating. It provides warmth during the winter and absorbs the body’s moisture during summer. Wool-fill breathes. It doesn’t hold moisture, which makes it resistant to dust mites, moths and mildew.

 

So, if regular ‘ole wool naturally provides all of these healthy benefits why should we opt for the organic stuff?

Dreamy Organic Cotton Sateen

Wide-width certified organic cotton sateen ....WOW! If you want to make your own organic cotton bedding this is the fabric to use. It's produced by Harmony Art, a textile manufacturer that truly walks the talk when it comes to developing  sustainable fabrics. I backed a quilt with this cloth and fell in love with the smooth (but not slippery) sateen weave, the honest 233 thread count, the cozy-soft hand and the most lovely, sophisticated pale pink color I've ever seen (thank you for Blush Pink Harmony!) --- practical, beautiful and definitely a healthy home fabric.

   

The Best Flannel Pillowcases

 
  
I'm addicted to Natural Heavy Flannel from NearSea Naturals. Make your own pillowcases from this soft, luscious organic cotton and you'll never want to rest your head on ordinary flannel again.

What I love most is the weight. It's 8 ounces per square yard! (Most flannel pillowcases at retail are made from 4 to 6 oz. weight.) The folks at NearSea Naturals refer to this fabric as a "workhorse". I agree. My pillowcases (shown here) are going on 3 years and show no sign of wearing thin.

This eco-flannel rates high on my list of healthy home fabrics. It's made from U.S. or Turkish grown organic cotton and woven in the U.S. with minimal chemical processing. No dyes are used and the sizing is washed out during the final stage of finishing.

Project tips: 1 3/8 yards will make 2 standard pillowcases for just under $12 each when you cut the length on the cross grain of the fabric and use reclaimed contrast fabric or decorative trim to add a bit of length and finish off the opening edge. I like using a mix of textures and natural colors (see photo):  hemp & silk (bottom left), vintage yarn dyed stripe linen (center), vintage crochet (right). Don't forget to preshrink the fabric. The recommended yardage above includes extra for shrinkage.