Originally Posted by
SueSew
I'm a trial-and-error person too. That's why I call my room 'the quilting lab'!
I also think it depends on who's the responder to the question I'm asking. Bearisgrey, I generally heed well your expert advice on this Board, but one place we diverge is pre-washing. Did it once, horrified by the result, killed myself getting the fabric ready to cut, just can't face doing it again!
What happened that was horrifying? I really am interested in the answer!
I have - once in a while - come across a piece that did look like (what is an acceptable word to use on this board for "totally unsuitable for any type of quilting use"?) after it was washed. I now try to avoid things that I think might turn out like that.
After measuring hundreds (really!) of fabrics before and after washing - I did find that:
Rarely did a fabric stretch - but once in a very occasional while, it would.
Most fabrics did shrink "some" - about an inch per yard or an inch per width (42-45" wide off the bolt)
Some fabrics shrank "a lot" - over two inches in width (42-45" off the bolt) or per yard
Sometimes a fabric that looks like it is off-grain off the bolt will straighten out by itself. If it's still off after washing - now I just leave it and don't even bother trying to straighten it.
I also like to know how the fabric is "au naturel" - is it limp, stiff, scratchy, rumpled, wrinkled - or does it still have a nice hand all by itself?
There seem to be many people that have not had problems with skipping this step. I just don't want to deal with any possible problems later. Been there. Done that. Did not enjoy the process.
Besides, I truly enjoy handling the fabric - especially if I don't have any immediate plans for the piece.
I will confess, though - I inherited some fabric from my Mom - and it is still in the unwashed pile!