I always wash a new quilt before I gift it. I've already taken off any horribly offensive thread hangovers (using a curved small pair of scissors similar to fingernail scissors but sharper) but I go over it again after washing. There are always many more lose ends because I don't interupt what I am doing at the moment to take care of the threads. I'm a pretty practical person, but I find myself loving going over a quilt when I am done, checking it out, loving it. just plain feeling it. I may never see it again!