i press my quilt top when it is all put together- before quilting-
i ALWAYS wash every quilt when the binding is done- that way if anything at all happens (a loose seam, a color run, a snag, a pucker, a hole---anything---i am the one to find it and fix it. i would never want to give someone a quilt and have them wash it first- if anything happened they would be devestated- stressed out- hurt- any number of things.