Originally Posted by Prism99

I don't understand why machine washing would destroy silk thread any faster than other threads. Silk thread is stronger than cotton, so it can be a finer weight than cotton and still survive stress.

With *any* hand appliqued quilt (or any quilt other than a purely utility quilt), I would not agitate the quilt in a top-loading washer. If a top-loader is all that is available, stop the machine when it gets to the wash cycle and just push it up and down by hand to swish soapy water through it. Advance to spin and spin out the water. Same with the rinse cycle. Spinning is pretty easy on a quilt, but top-loader agitators are very hard on a quilt.

Also, with any hand applique, it's a good idea to knot the thread underneath the background every once in awhile. I used to do that when hemming a skirt so that, if a stitch was broken, the entire hem would not unravel.