How do you wash your fat quarters?
 

I have several sets of fat quarters and want to have them ready for quilts, pillowcases, purses etc. I always wash my fabric due to allergies. Do you stitch around the outside to prevent fraying or do you use another method to stop them from fraying? I have tried pinking and this did not work very well. Thanks in advance for all the help! I love this board for information! It's the best!

I serge the cut edges and throw them in the washer and dryer. If they are going to shrink or have color run, I want it to happen before I put it in a quilt. Zig zag will be fine too.

Zigzagging might be faster...and use less thread? do you agree?

I just toss them in the washer, on gentle cycle, separate any that are tangled when they're done, and toss in the dryer. If there are strings, so be it - I just cut them off. I guess I have a higher tolerance for fraying than some people do, but I'd rather deal with that than spend time preparing each piece. (I even use the same method for all scraps, no matter the size.)

My washer has a handwash cycle. Just a gentle swish. No strings at all. I love this feature.

What about throwing them in a lingerie wash bag? Would that help? I haven't used fat quarters yet, but I think I might try that!

You would use less thread but serging is faster.

I wash mine sometimes in mesh laundry bags and sometimes not, depending on whether I remember to do it. Like dunster, if they fray, they fray and I think it's a good thing to know ahead of time, because I can treat that fabric differently when it comes to sewing pieces together.

I toss mine in the sink to rinse through. If they run, I hand-wash until they have run their course.

Then I wring them out and smooth them on a large towel which I roll up and squeeze any excess water into the towel. I either hang-dry or iron-dry the rest. It may sound like a lot of work but it doesn't seem so to me.

Just use a gentle circle on your machine or if your machine is heavy on fabrics throw them in the largest lingerie bag you can find.