dusty222

I just purchased a panel to make a quilt for Linus. I prewashed the panel and the bias is so far out of kilter it's not funny. I was able to wet and block it back in shape. What I need your advice on is what do you think will happen with this quilt after it is made and washed again. Will the quilt torque all out of shape because the bias is so off or will my quilting hold the fabic in the proper shape. The panel is so perfect for a little girl that I hate to give it up. However, I also hate to waste my time on a losing battle. Looking forward to hearing your opinions before I start working on it.

bearisgray

There are those that might say it can be held in shape by the quilting.

I'm not one of them!

Could you trim it enough to straighten it and still have enough of the panel to be usable? If so, that's what I would do. Then add borders to bring it to the size you want.

I

Tartan

I try to buy panels that don't have borders because they are never printed straight. I have cut off borders and used other fabric to add different borders. Will your panel morph back to it's original shape after quilting and washing? I don't know.

DogHouseMom

This has happened to me too (panel going very wonky after pre-washing), but I was cutting mine into strips to fracture so once I got it back into shape I didn't have to worry that it would "revert" again.

I think a lot depends on the size of the panel in relationship to the size of the borders that you put around it. The smaller the panel, and the larger the borders I think will help. And you should be sure to cut the borders on LOG if possible (at least the longer ends of the border.

The type of batting and backing will make a difference as well. A pieced backing, a minky backing, a flannel backing or anything else with more "give" will not help to hold the shape of the panel together as much as a solid piece of good solid on-grain fabric.

And of course the type of quilting will make a difference as well. Heavier quilting in a free-form motion (circles, swirls, feathers etc) will help hold more than straight line quilting (especially ie diagonal cross hatching).

Now ... if you still don't want to risk it ... you can inquire with your LQS about exchanging the fabric, but I wouldn't hold my breath. If you are successful, forego pre-washing on all of the fabric intended for this quilt.

Good luck!!

Prism99

If you do close meandering all over, it should be okay. It would probably help to use a very stable batting such as Quilter's Dream cotton (needlepunched) or Warm and Natural (needlepunched through scrim).

mighty

I do agree, this would probably be your best bet.

IAmCatOwned

If you meander heavily, not a problem. Won't work for a tied quilt, however.

dusty222

Thanks everyone for your advice and suggestions. I think I am going to make it and quilt it heavily. If nothing else, I will get some good machine quilting practice. I'll post a picture when I finally get around to doing this project. It goes in a line with all the other "ideas."

Prism99

When quilting heavily, it's a good idea to use a fine thread. On my domestic machine, I really like Aurifil 50wt 2-ply for both piecing and quilting. Regular thread (50wt 3-ply), when used for heavy quilting, tends to stiffen the quilt.