Hi all, my mother-in-law is a sewing Jedi and I have convinced her to help make me a summer down quilt. I work in the down bedding industry so I have all of the 850 fill white goose down I would ever want. However, I am not sure what outer and inner fabrics I should use. Any suggestions? And also, where can I buy those fabrics? I am in the Seattle area. Are there any local suppliers?

One more question, I am looking at doing one at about 40 degrees. Any thoughts on how many ounces of fill I should use?

Thanks!

Source for momentum 90 fabric.

http://thru-hiker.com/materials/breathable.php

It's not as light or nice as Momentum, but it's cheaper and available here: 1.1 Ripstop.

As far as ounces of down, it depends on your design but you would be looking for 1.5" of loft. What you do is take the surface area in sqin, multiply by 1.5" for volume, and work backwards since you know 1oz of down is 850 cuin.

Good luck! I'm hoping to make a cuben quilt myself so I'm watching these down quilt threads with a keen eye.

PS read this if you haven't: Down quilt instructions. If you decide to become a member, there's a great article that Roger Caffin wrote on making them as well.

owfinc.com has both 1.1 and .9oz nylons and the mesh needed for the baffles.

Figure out the shape you want to make your quilt and then you can figure out how much down you need. You also have to figure out how warm a summer quilt needs to be for you and where you hike. 1.5" is a good standard but way too hot for me most of the summer at the elevations i get out to. Once you know your shape get the avg width and multiple by the length and by the baffles height to get the amount of down needed.

Also figure out your footbox first because a standard 3d footbox can keep the quilt shorter than a drawcord style footbox, but the drawcord style can be vented if needed. I just slept in a 3d footbox last night and my body was cool but still had to have my feet out to keep them from sweating on and off all night, i hate that!

-Tim

I think Pertex is worth it. The warmth and weather resistance makes a difference.

So, David, where do you get Pertex?

Tim, are you talking the RIPB .9oz breathable stuff? Do you suggest that fabric for the outter and inner fabrics?

yeah, that stuff is very similar, some would say identical but i can't confirm that, to the m90 material from thru-hiker. The reason i would choose it over the 1.1 is the finish is less glossy making it less sticky in hot weather and it blocks wind better.(also true of M90 which is a great fabric choice, just costly)

-Tim