Originally Posted by
meyert
Will the crinkling return when the recipient washes it again?
Some but not as much at first. It's similar to blocking a sweater. I can get away with a few times in between blocking where it is still pretty good, but eventually it will re-crinkle. It's the nature of cotton & the reason why I generally only block quilts if they are going to be hung. To prolong the time between washings, you can vacuum them with the brush attachment or a piece of hosiery over the hose.
Personally, though, if I know it's going to be used as bedding/play mat, I intentionally leave the crinkles in so the recipient doesn't think she "ruined" the quilt. Even people who otherwise like the crinkly look sometimes panic when it comes out of the dryer like that the first time. Rather than having to explain to them that it's a normal property of cotton during the wetting/un-wetting process, I wash all my quilts twice before I gift/sell them so people can see what it looks like without overly fussy care.