I'm a pre-washer, so my opinion may be biased, but I always wash batiks. I've had more bleeding problems with them than just about anything else - in fact, a batik in a block I received from someone else in a swap almost ruined the entire quilt when I washed it after I had quilted it. I went through a couple of days of agony trying to resolve the issue, and I've been leery of batiks ever since - but I still love them!