Advice on altering down sleeping bag?

I am thinking of altering a sleeping bag to turn it into a type of quilt. I always sleep on my front or side and usually find it is more comfortable to turn the bag upside down.

I have a cheap 300 fill bag that I want to remove the zip, shift most of the down from the top of the bag to the base, sew up the side and then put a half length unzipped opening down the middle of what was the top of the bag.

I have never woked with down before and am a bit worried that the down will all escape. Does anyone have any tips or advice?

thanks

If it is Down it will escape.  Good Down is incredibly light and has a habit of attaching itself to everything.  300 fill is likely to be lower quality and may be easier to handle.

 In principle I would try unpicking small seams hand moving the down around through a small opening.  On the zip front sewing the seams before  cutting the zip opening would limit Down escaping.  Depending on the design of the bag there may be baffles in the way to stop Down moving around.

Expect to have a lot of Down floating around, dampening it might help to keep it under control.

Steve D

I've 'messed' with down a couple of times. I use a lot of sewing pins to keep unstitched openings to a minimum. I work in the bathroom with the door shut. It's easier to catch the escaping down and clean up afterwards. I hand stitch the seams shut -manouvering a down bag on the sewing machine was too much of wrestling match. 

Go slowly and patiently. good luck.

Cathy.

bailout wrote (see)

I have a cheap 300 fill bag that I want to remove the zip, shift most of the down from the top of the bag to the base, sew up the side and then put a half length unzipped opening down the middle of what was the top of the bag.

Sorry bailout, I don't understand the problem.  I think you are saying that you plan to shift some down from the top of the bag to the base so that you can put the new unzipped opening in the top, which will then become the bottom. Why not just leave all the down where it is and put the new opening into the base so that the top remains the top?

Ah.

Thanks for the explanation, but I don't think there will be "a part I will be lying on". Only the part above you and the parts to each side.   Good luck with the conversion.