Refluffing quilt cotton keeps warm in winter

As winter arrives, residents in Qingpu District are seeking ways to keep warm, and one method they've found is fluffing cotton to make or renew quilts.

The cotton-fluffing business has picked up since daxue, or Great Snow in Chinese solar term which was on December 7 this year.

"Since the daxue begins, the weather becomes colder. Some quilts have become a little lumpy and not soft enough. Fluffing up the quilts again and adding some cotton to make them thicker means you won't be afraid of cold winter," said a resident surnamed Huang.

Although there are many kinds of quilts with various fillings, Huang always prefers natural and environmentally friendly quilts because they feel more comfortable.

Xu Xueping, a cotton-fluffing store owner, started learning fluffing skills when he was 16. Now, he has been running a store for over 20 years.

Fluffing cotton is a seasonal job. Most of the business comes in autumn and winter, said Xu. Now, during peak season, he can do eight quilts a day.

"Basically, machines do all the work. After putting the cotton into the machine, it will run twice to make the cotton fluffy and soft," Xu said.

Xu used to go to the countryside and asked for business. "Now I have a store, still do business with some old customers," he said.

It is not easy to make a comfortable quilt – the four corners should be slightly thinner, allowing the cover to fit more closely.

The price of fluffing quilt cotton this year is the same as previous years. A quilt of less than 3 kilograms is 60 yuan (US$9.4), and the price of quilts over 3 kilograms is 4 yuan per half kilogram.