Starch shrinks fabric. Well, I'm actually specifically using the Bounce spray. Dangit! Now I know why my pieces seem that I've cut them wrong! I have NOT cut them wrong! What I did was to cut them, then starch and press them. On one dark fabric with little circles on them, I finally saw why it was coming out smaller... the darn stuff actually shriveled right before my eyes!!

SO, lesson learned is to starch and press BEFORE cutting!!!! :o(

Are you not a pre-washer?

I also starch my fabric before cutting. Just make sure you don't store starched fabrics for long periods of time. Bugs love starch and will eat your stored fabric.

Starch doesn't and shouldn't shrink fabric. If you've prewashed it, it's good to go. I'm in the prewashing croud and this is one of MANY reasons you should always prewash yardage. If you're fabric isn't 100% cotton the shrinkage could also be "melting" of the poly material.

it is not the starch that cause it to shrink...it was the wetting and heating...even if you had sprayed it with water, as soon as the iron hit it the shrinking begins.

Best to wash, iron, starch and then cut!

No, I'm not a pre-washer. When I took my first class at my LQS they advised us NOT to, and so I have gotten in the habit of not, and up until now it's never been a problem.
I did once, before that first class, wash all my fabric (in preparation FOR the class)and it was a disaster!!! It all frayed HORRIBLY and also I had SO much waste when squaring it up to get ready to cut! So since then, since I've had good results from not pre-washing, I've stuck with that.

I did just go and spray a piece of the fabric with water and it did shrink. I'll just have to start making sure I starch before I cut.

Oh, and it's most definitely 100% cotton. The shrinking actually happened right in front of my eyes AS I sprayed it, but from what I read above, the heat must have shrunk it more. ugh.

And hopefully you'll never have problems with bleeding, either. :)

The pre-washers will be along shortly to give you what for for not pre-washing. Feel free to ignore them.

Do starch and iron before cutting though.

In the most recent class I took the instructor said if you're not going to pre-wash then iron and starch before cutting and after that only use a dry iron.

I didn't realize this but I always starch before I cut anyways. However this is good to know incase I get lazy someday and decided not to starch before cutting.

Really nice....

I always figured for the bleeding, that the color catchers will keep that from happening??