ckcowl - interesting story, illustrates very well why quilts should be washed before gifting.
I wash my fabric when it comes in the house. No smoke or animal hairs get on the quilts. But I still wash the finished quilt, as soon as the binding is on. One reason - starch! I use it freely during piecing, and it needs to come out of the quilt. Also I don't want the recipient to feel bad if the quilt looks a bit different after the first wash. And in the (hopefully unlikely) event that I left a seam open somewhere, that gives me a chance to fix it.