to me making a quilt is a 2 step/2 senses process--the piecing and design are all about color and the quilting is all about texture. I love to play with strong colors and I love to quilt--so for some people, I probaly quilt too densely--that is always a question I ask customers so that they are happy with the level of quilting done. if your LA doesn't ask you about that, then you need to let them know.
Even with dense quilting, I think the 2 most important reasons the quilt may be stiffer (before washing) is the type of bat used and the type of thread--a cotton thread like King Tut is going to feel a lot stiffer and "heavier" than a #50 poly like SoFine with the same density of quilting. Same for color--thread that blends with the fabric doesn't appear as dense while a high contrast thread will always seem more visible and denser.