Costco Blanket Quilt Backing

Ok, I’ve posted about this a few times on social media and thought it deserved it’s own blogpost because of the reactions I often get.

All quilters know the struggle of picking the perfect backing fabric. Sometimes we want a cotton fabric to match the piecing on the quilt top. Sometimes we want a super soft Cuddle Minky to ensure the quilt gets used. And sometimes we just want the cheapest option available.

But what happens when you can get all three variables?? The perfect storm of quilt backings: The Costco Blanket.

This is the time of year when these blankets go on sale, which makes them an even cheaper option for a quilt backing! As of right now (October 2024) this king size Luxe Loft blanket by Berkshire is on sale for $14.99. That is $5 off the normal price of $19.99 for a blanket that is 92″ x 112″. That is a HUGE blanket! And the price point is amazing as well because I often plan on spending $12 or more per yard of quilting cotton. That means for the same amount of fabric for backing I would need about 7 yards of fabric for a cost of around $85!! So getting enough fabric for a quilt backing for $15 is a steal of a deal!

Costco currently has three different colors to choose from, and they also come in king, queen, and twin size. The blanket is super soft and plush, which will make your quilt that much more snuggly! So it really does cover all three variables I usually consider when buying backing: color, cost, and snuggle factor.

You can see the reverse side of the blanket is also very plush with long fibers. This is the main difference between this Berkshire blanket and a Cuddle Minky fabric. Cuddle Minky has one very soft side while the back side is just woven polyester. This begs the question… Do I need to use batting if I use this blanket for my quilt backing?

To Batting or Not To Batting...

As a longarm quilter, I get asked this question a lot. Do you have to use batting in your quilt?

This is a total personal preference, although many seasoned quilters will tell you that a quilt isn’t a quilt unless it has three layers. And if you’re planning to enter your quilt into a show or fair – most rules require that there are three layers in the quilt to be considered for judging. Make of that what you will.

I will tell you that I have quilted for customers that preferred not to have batting in their quilts. When this is someone’s expectation I suggest that they use a thicker backing material like fleece or these Costco blankets.

I used one of these blankets at the beginning of this year to finally make a quilt for my own bed. I did use Hobbs Washable Wool batting and the quilt turned out divine! This quilt pattern is called Pave the Way by Melissa Corry. She is my favorite pattern designer, so it makes my heart so happy to have one of her quilt patterns on my bed!

How to Prepare a Costco Blanket as a Quilt Backing

There isn’t much prep work involved to get the Costco Blanket ready to be used as a quilt backing. But I would recommend cutting off the finished edge of the blanket. You can still load the blanket/backing with the thicker edge, but it’s harder to pin through the extra thickness when you attach it to the leaders.

Pay attention to the stretchiness of the blanket as you load it. Most fuzzy fabrics like this have one direction that is more stretchy than the other. I personally like to load the fabric so the stretch is parallel to my poles. This means the less-stretchy side is attached to the poles and wont distort as much when I’ve loaded everything and have the quilt sandwich taut between the poles.

Once you have everything attached, just quilt it as normal! I would suggest using a scoop foot like the Glide Foot for Handi Quilter machines. I use my Glide Foot for all of my edge-to-edge quilting, and it would be especially helpful when you have a thicker backing.

If you try using a Costco Blanket as a quilt backing – let me know! It’s my favorite way to get a good quality backing at a great price. I can’t wait to see what you make!

Turkey Trot Table Runner

by ladybugthreads | Nov 24, 2024 | Quilting Tips and Tricks

Check out this cute custom quilted Thanksgiving Table Runner! This is a customer quilt and she wanted super cute custom quilting! Turkey Trot pattern by Riley Blake.