Originally Posted by sparkela
I think it's important to get the sizing out of fabric before washing it. First of all, I can't stand the smell of the sizing, nor the feel of it. You can't be certain that the threads of the fabric have been aligned properly by the manufacturer. Also, it's really important to separate colours-I've avoided real disasters that way.Washing, then stretching the fabric if needed will help your project. When drying the fabric, take it from the dryer before it's bone dry--then you can adjust it as necessary. I press the fabric using a light spray starch. For newbies, there's a difference between pressing and ironing. Pressing is a light, straight up and down motion-not swirling the way you'd press a shirt. This prevents distortion of all your hard work!
I hope this helps.
if you stretch your fabric before you cut and piece with it, you run a very real risk it will revert to its natural shape as soon as it's washed again, thus pulling your block back out of whack - even after it's been quilted. i would discourage that practice and suggest, instead, blocking the damp fabric as you would a sweater. that is, gently smoothing and shaping it, (but not forcing it past its natural limits), then let it dry on its own. to make sure it will stay that way, wet it again with a spray bottle (without moving it) to see what happens to the shape. if it retains the shape, use it as is. if not, either learn to love its whacky warf and weft or save it for a crazy quilt.
i apologize for being so picky and overly obsessive about semantics, but these are important details.
a less important, but equally picky, detail: spray sizing usually doesn't gunk up and get flaky, even if you apply a fairly heavy coat. spray starch sometimes does. (don't ask me how I know that. too much confession may be good for the soul, but it beats the heck out of my ego. LOL)