Originally Posted by bearisgray
You will still have to end up deciding for yourself whether or not to prewash your fabrics before cutting.
You won't even get a "majority vote" on this one.
I think everything that is prewashable that goes into an item should be washed before it is cut. (I've measured "before and after" - and I think it's worth the effort.)
There are others that say they see absolutely no reason to bother.
(Of course, there are also people that saw no reason to use a seat belt or use birth control -MOST of the time they were fine - -- )
You say this so well. I agree with you. I use detergent, no fabric softener (in washer or dryer sheets) and iron when I'm ready to use it. Just for the record, it is not only reds and blues that will bleed. I've had yellows, greens, orange, black... You get the picture. Any dye is suspect. Color catchers are not a quilting God and fix every problem. They also aren't reusable.
I pink the edges before washing (I'm pretty sure Bearisgray serges hers) to control fraying. Clipping the corners just doesn't work for me.