2009 BOM--prewash or not?

[fiona j.]

Depends - if I'm using fabric from all one shop or range that I've bought for 1 project then I tend not to wash as I like the crisp fabric and I also like the slight shrink-factor when made up. But if it's bright red, etc then I wash it after zizagging the edges to prevent fraying. Then I just fold it and only press when ready to use. I don't like using spray starch unless i absolutely have to and have found freezer paper can be a good way to stabilise fabric that won't otherwise behave - and I can reuse the shapes!

[fiona j.]

For this one I am pre-washing my fabrics. My good friend Sherry and I are going to try and keep each other going this year to finish our BOM

[Sandy L.]

I also, wash all of my fabrics before putting them into my stash. I do not like to work with the chemicals in the fabrics. I wash with either Orvus or Syntrapol in the kitchen sink. Once I am sure they have no more loose color I put them in the washer to rinse and then to the dryer. I try to iron before putting away and then they are all ready to be put into a quilt. I have found that the fabrics have not changed much in their handling after washing with either of these products and I don't have to worry about color bleeding.

Sandy in Phoenix

[Sandy L.]

For me it depends on what the quilt is for. I am prewashing for this quilt because I know the one will be used for a bed quilt for sure. I am making 2 - one for my mother and one for myself. Mom's I am not sure if she will hang on the wall in her log home or if she will put in on the bed. I honestly hope that she hangs it - she has 2 cats and 3 dogs and they tend to destroy things sometimes. Hers is coming from my stash though, and all my stash fabrics are prewashed before I put them there. The other will be for my own use and I am definately putting it on the bed in my new bedroom, so that one all gets washed too. If the quilt is for a wall hanging though - like an art quilt, then I do not worry about prewashing the fabric as I figure the quilt will never be washed.

[Kathy C.]

I do not prewash and so far....knock on wood....I haven't had any problems. I am not going to prewash for this project. I will wash the quilt when it is finished.

[Kathy C.]

I prewash all my fabric when it comes in the door. I have bought 3 entire bolts in the last month or so and I washed them all as well, then ironed them and rolled them back onto the bolt. I do us mostly batiks so there can be a dye issue, but I really want all the excess chemicals off the fabric. The only time I don't wash the fabric is when I know that I will be using it for a Buggy Barn pattern, not sure why I decided I did not want to pre-wash for those. Oh and I don't pre-wash wash jelly rolls/ bali pop or charm squares.

[Kathy C.]

i washed all my fabric for this one to get rid of the sizing because i hope to hand quilt it next year

[Kathy C.]

I am thinking of washing my fabrics, when I say wash I mean that I lay the pieces out as flat as I can in my bath and with the plug in then pour over 1-2 kettles of boiling water, top up with hot tap water and using a wooden spoon or similar rub through the fabric to expel air bubbles. Go and do something interesting while it cools, drain out water then hang up to drip dry. The fabric does not get screwed up and requires far less ironing. When dealing with calico(muslin) I usually repeat until the water is clear.

[Kathy C.]

As a rule of thumb, I do not prewash. If I am using dark purple batcks or reds, I MIGHT pre-wash. If I am concerned, I cut a small swatch and place in a cup of water and microwave it. Then I sitr it around and remove it from the water and lay it on a paper towel. If the water in the cup changes color or the paper towel changes color, then I will pre-wash that fabric.

[Georgianne M.]

I don't usually prewash my fabrics. I dont' think that today's quilt shop quality fabric should shrink or run, especially for the price we pay for it. I've tested many of these new fabrics and have had no problems. I will test reds and other dark colors for color fasteness. The big problem with shrinkage occurs in the dryer. I hand wash my quilts, spin in the washer to get the excess water out and lay it flat to air dry. Never will they go in the dryer. So that would be how I would prewash fabric.
With all the said and done, I still worry about the red dyes running and to some extent shrinkage. I think that when we pay ten dollars a yard for fabric, the manufacturer should ensure colorfastness and shrink resistance. Remember years ago when jeans used to shrink a couple of sizes after washing. Jeans don't shrink like that any more. Quilt fabric should not shrink either.
However, after reading Sue's instructions, I have to admit to pause and rethink my no prewash habits. Most posters are prewashers, I'm definately in the minority. I like the crispness of new fabric that washing takes away. Some washers have told me they spray starch the fabric, but doesn't that encourage bugs that eat the fabric? Or is that an old wive's tale?
In the end after all this rambling, I am hand washing the fabric, no dryer, just to be sure. I measured before and after, and nothing shrunk.
Marie

[Georgianne M.]

Ditto to everything Amethyst said. With GOOD quality fabric there is no reason to pre-wash, also starch does NOT attract bugs, guess it must be an old wives tale. I did a lot of research on that.

[Keith D.]

One of my favorite quotes from Elly Sienkiewicz's show and book seems to apply here. This is something about which wise women can disagree.

But I'm going to vote to help even it out. I don't prewash. A few reasons: 1) I like the body of unwashed fabric. I even starch my unwashed fabric. 2) Like Harriet Hargrave and Margo and others, I like the patina and shrunk-up look that new quilts get immediately after their first washing when they shrink as a complete project (especially with a 3-5% shrinking batt). And 3) I don't know that prewashing solves a color transfer problem. I don't think that color bleeding into the washwater is big a problem. Nearby fabrics retaining the color would be a problem for me and there are products that might help block color transfer better than prewashing does.

And I generally buy good quality fabrics from reputable quilt stores.

And I'm knocking on wood a little here too because I haven't had any big problems yet...

I prefer straight grain binding for most projects, I sometimes press seams open, I like turned-edge applique stitched by machine, I fussy cut pieces off grain if the design suits me, I use monofilament thread, I don't pin a lot, I dry my quilts part way in the dryer, I shouldn't type too much before I go to bed, and I love reading what everyone has to say in the forum...

[Judy M.]

I usually prewash, but I think you all are right about today's fabrics not bleeding as much as they did years ago. (exception: batiks--I washed mine by hand for the 2008 BOM, and boy, did some of them bleed!) I'm just worried about the chemicals in the unwashed fabrics because I like to hand quilt most of my quilts. What do you all know about the chemicals? Am I being too paranoid? :lol: Judy in Torrance

[Margo C.]

I'll post again to say that you really need to know what "look" you are going for in your finished quilt. I love the "puckery" look I get using unwashed fabrics, unwashed cotton batting (usually 80/20) and putting the finished quilt through a wash AND DRY :shock: cycle like regular laundry.

I just posted the second pieced BOM that I made for my niece. The pieced top measured 84" square. After the wash/dry treatment it now measures 77" square! That's a lot of shrinkage if you aren't expecting it, but I love the look!

Someone also mentioned bleeding fabrics. I guess I've been really lucky, because in almost 20 years of quilting, I've never had a problem with bleeding. Because I usually starch my fabrics, I can catch bleeders before they are stitched into the top and either prewash them with Synthrapol until they don't bleed any longer, or treat them with Retayne.

In a few days, I'll post my March BOM tutorials where I show what I had to do with a couple of bleeders!

[Keith D.]

Opps! ops: I forgot this was about BOM and prewashing so I just read the BOM materials again. Susan gave good advice. Prewashing removes excess dye and helps even out or eliminate shrinkage for flatter quilts.

And Margo gives good advice. I'd prewash if I wanted my quilts to have a smooth surface. But I don't. And I'd prewash if I hand quilted, but I don't.

I'm making my BOM in Holiday red and greens using only my stash, focusing especially on my tubs of scraps - 95% is unwashed. This worries me a little bit, but not enough to do much about it. I'm just doing it and I'm going to have fun. With maybe some careful steps that Margo will show us in March...

I don't know much about chemicals in fabric. I read Harriet's From Fiber to Fabric but I've lost it. And a lot's probably changed in 10 years. I thought it was very interesting. My family thought it was dry as a bone so I don't think my sisters stole it...