Thanks to TeeDee and animalcontrol for posting their topquilts. Those were enough incentive to give this style a try.
I had a thin, summer topquilt I made from thru-hiker materials a few years ago using Momentum .90 and Climashield Combat. I decided I had enough other summer topquilt options, but I didn't have a good winter covering. What I did was unstitch one end and remove the Climashield. In it's place I sewed in 20 short baffles, 3" cut size, 2-1/2" sewn thickness, arranged in the Karo Step orientation.
After adding 12+ ounces of 800 fill down I sewed the end shut and sewed in the footbox circle. The circle is filled with a 1-1/2" thickness of Climashield. The stiffness of the Climashield gives the footbox some structure and a nice roomy shape. I also added a little elastic to the head end so it curls around my shoulder area. I ended up with a minimum thickness of 3", this thing is a puff monster! After some testing I may add some draft stoppers to the sides if needed.
Edit - Forgot to add, the finished weight is 20 ounces.
I would definitely recommend this style to anyone considering making a quilt. It's much easier than sewing the long baffles and adding the down is super easy. No need to weigh all the individual chambers. The short baffles really keep the down in place and it's easy to redistribute the down if needed, just pat it around. I can see this coming in handy because my feet are usually cold.
Jerry
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