Originally Posted by Stummel
Thanks for all the replies!
As I live in the UK I have never heard of colour catcher and am not sure we have it here. I will take a look in the detergent aisle next time I shop though.
I wouldn't dry them in the dryer, but I washed them in the sink and drip dried them on a rack and ironed them all. For my first quilt I used metres of batik from a LQS back then and prewashed and dried them all, and when I finished my quilt had a tiny stain on one square, and when I tried to wash it out it did bleed horribly still and nearly ruined the quilt. Since then I am a bit paranoid.
I also soak everything in white vinegar for a while, and then handwash, but just yesterday I did that and the fabric kept bleeding a bit. :?
Maybe you could have someone in the States mail you a box? You might also look for Retayne and Synthropol at your quilt store.
Vinegar doesn't do anything for modern dyes.