Its a personal preference, many do, many do not, really it depends on what type of fabrics and colors you are using, some bleed more than others. Its your choice. If you do decide not to wash it is recommended to use synthrapol or color catchers to catch suspended dye in the wash cycle. the batting shrinks and it is what is causes most of the wrinkly look which many like anyway since that is how traditional quilts looked. To me its more of a hassle, all the washing, all the ironing, extra work, but thats just me, and my quilts look just fine with the shrinkage