TeresaA

I definitely prewash all of my fabrics, with 2 washes and one dry. The batiks are not pulled or stretched in any way.

JaneQuilter's description of fraying along quilting lines goes along with my idea that the fraying might be caused when needling breaks the threads of the tightly woven batiks. Over time the broken thread areas fray.

Claire123

I haven't heard about this before and really have no explanation. I haven't done much with batiks until recently. I would probably take it into a LQS and see if they can provide any info.

slbram17

It would be interesting to hear their ideas on this as well.

quiltingbuddy

I'm one who has had an issue with a batik fabric too. Yes, it has been washed. No it is not where a needle has been. But it is on a quilt that has been folded and sewn into a purse. My very first batik project, and the fabric on the binding is fraying after some use but not that much. I'm so disappointed! It will be difficult to take apart and fix it so I'm not sure what to do. These sort of things are so frustrating! And of course I have been collecting batiks for a little while now and just started using them. Does it seem to matter if they are made into a wall hanging and not used I wonder?

Onebyone

Batik fabric wasn't ever meant to be used in quilting. It was made for dress wraps and scarves.

I find it hilarious so many refuse to use the Frixon pens on their fabric because of the chemical left in the quilt and yet they buy expensive batiks that have strong chemicals in every fiber.

feline fanatic

The technique of batik dying was originally used for sarongs, scarves dresses etc. When batiks took hold in the quilting world they started dying the greige goods used for quilting with the same technique (wax resist) as they did for the original batiks. So Batik fabric made for quilting is meant to be used in quilting.

I don't use frixion pens because the ink doesn't always come out all the way and the mark can come back and show. My choice to not using them has nothing to do with the chemical. I know way too many show quilters who have had issues with either the frixion ink re-appearing or causing a "ghost" line to appear where they had marked, even after washing. The manufacturer of the pens has publicly stated the pens were never intended to mark fabric with. So that may be an indication it could also damage cotton fibers over time but no one knows.

Harsh chemical dyes are used in most commercial fabric not just batiks, a big reason the textile industry has moved overseas as dying methods that are economical are not environmentally friendly and strict US EPA standards could not be maintained by the industry in the US without pricing them right out of business. Heck even some of the dyes hand dyers use are pretty harsh.

Even most natural dyes (vegetable and/or mineral based dyes) either fade or disintegrate fabric.

Irishrose2

I love batiks and they are almost all my quilts, as is black fabric. This is not good news for me, though none of my quilts are 15 years old. My batiks are all definitely cotton. Have you seen the video of quilting cotton being produced? It's a wonder any fabric survives the heat and chemicals. I don't feel good about what we're doing to the bodies of the workers or their future generations.

Nesie

This almost sounds like the wash/don't wash debate but I have been hearing this about batiks for a very long time so I limit what I use them for. I'm sure some will not have this issue.

Jane Quilter

This is what happened to mine, rips along seam lines, and rips in middle of brown flower fabric:

Teen

I don't really care for batiks and it has nothing to do with chemicals. I just do not like the feel of it. It's a personal preference. I've made only a couple of quilts with batiks and decided not to use it again for whole quilts. I'll use a bit in scrappy's or binding but that is the extent. Now, reading this and seeing Jane's, I may think twice about using it at all.... I'll have to research, too....