Whether you wash yardage (fat quarters and larger) is really personal preference. I do because fabric comes treated with chemicals to keep them fresh from manufacturer to your quilt room. These chemicals build up in your quilt room air and can cause headaches, and allergy like symptoms. Even if you are not sensitive to them, others in your house, including pets, might well be. So for me, washing is the answer and an easy one.
Having said that, I would never wash precuts. Almost without exception, those who have tried have met with disaster with too much shrinkage, warping and fraying. I keep my precuts in the plastic they are wrapped in until I am ready to use them in a project to again keep the chemicals out of my quilt room.
Hope all this helps some and welcome to the wonderful world of quilting!!!
