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I have used the "sausage" concept for padding out
heavy textiles (e.g., quilts) v.s. rolled tissue as the "sausages" do not
compress under the weight of the textiles. These "sausages are made of 1"
or 2" polyester stockinette filled with polyester batting and they can be made
to whatever length you need. The filling process can be a bit tricky,
especially if you are making long sausages. I provided a hand-out on the
technique several years ago at a North American Textile Conservation
Meeting.
Without the diagrams, I will try and describe this
method. (And if you made braided ropes in Girl Souts using an empty spool
of thread, you will recognize the process.)
1. Cut the stockinette the length you
need.
2. Place ALL the stockinette on the outside
of a 6"-long tube which has the interior diameter you want for the
finished sausage.
Note: The stockinette will probably be
bunched up on the outside of the tube as the stockinette will be
longer than the 6" tube.
3. Stitch the top end of the stockinette
closed and push this end down into the interior of the
tube.
4. Begin filling the stockinette inside the
tube with polyester batting.
5. When the tube is filled, pull the
stockinette out from the bottom end of the tube (this will be
the stitched end). Pull out ONLY the portion of stockinettte that
is stuffed.
6. Fill the next section of stockinette
inside the tube. Repeat as often as necessary until you have
used up the entire length of stockinette.
7. When you have filled the entire length of
stockinette, stitch closed the second/other end and pull this last section out
fo the tube. .
NOTE: You can vary the density of
the fill and hence the flexibility of the sausage by controlling the ratio of
stockinette width to tube diameter. E.g., 1" stockineette on a 2"- ID
tube, packed tightly with polyester batting, will give you a more rigid
sausage. Conversely, a 1" stockinette on a 1"-ID tube loosely
packed will give you a more flexible sausage.
If you have questions, let me know.
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