Jeanette Frantz

Ladies, I am a rank amateur when it comes to quilting, but I had one experience where my cousin who has a quilting shop in Oklahoma literally "saved my bacon" so to speak. I had a white whole-cloth satin-stitch embroidered quilt. My avatar has a picture of this quilt. Yes, it is white, but has a very vibrant red color border, since red and white are the school colors for the Arkansas Razorbacks. This quilt was made for a wedding gift for my nephew, whose bride is a graduate of the University of Arkansas, thus the connection/reason for this particular quilt. However, the red fabric I purchased (thank God I DID test it) was a real bleeder. I tried just about every home remedy my cousin had ever heard of, including 2 gallons of vinegar in the washer, salt, hot water, everything. I searched every store in this town in North Central Florida for a remedy to prevent bleeding of the dye. I found nothing at the retail level, so went online to search. I found, on the Rit Dye web site a Dye Fixative, and it works. Before treating, the water (and white fabric put into that water with a piece of the red) turned a bright pink. After using the treatment, there was ZERO bleeding. I suppose treating every bright color in a quilt could get very expensive. I have a very large quilt in progress in numerous shades or prints of red and various whites with either pale print or tone-on-tone white. Instead of using the Dye Fixative in the washer, and since I was treating three-yard pieces, I treated the fabric in my stainless steel stew pot on my cook top, beginning with the palest shade and progressing from the palest shade to the most vibrant shade in my quilt, I don't remember exactly what I paid for it, except that the product (3 - 8 ounce bottles) and shipping were $20. I have no connection with Rit Dye, other than being a use of that product. I put too much time and work into any quilt I make, no matter what the size or for whom it's made to risk bleeding fabric after the quilt is completed. I for one will treat the fabric to prevent bleeding of the dyes, and wash the rest of the fabric (whites/cream colors, etc.) to avoid shrinkage problems. I've purchased some very expensive fabric that still bleeds, so I'll be safe rather than sorry the first time I wash a quilt. Sorry this is so long.
Jeanette