Am I the only person in the world that has fabric that shrinks?
11-05-2010, 06:46 AM
#61
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Join Date: Jul 2009
Location: Southwest Kansas
Posts: 4,820
Originally Posted by bearisgray
Originally Posted by Scissor Queen
Originally Posted by bearisgray
Just wondering -
Do any of you non-washers measure your finished item before and after washing it a couple of times?
If you haven't, how can you KNOW for sure whether it changed shape or not?
Do any of you non-washers measure your finished item before and after washing it a couple of times?
If you haven't, how can you KNOW for sure whether it changed shape or not?
I'm sorry you don't seem to like the answer, but it's my answer.
Go read Harriet Hargraves books. She doesn't prewash and advocates tearing fabric. If it's good enough for her, it's good enough for me.
11-05-2010, 07:12 AM
#62
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Join Date: Mar 2010
Location: So. Fla now, Va orig
Posts: 1,565
Originally Posted by JeanieG
Originally Posted by May in Jersey
Wonder if I wash my body in very hot water and then dry it in a dryer will I shrink a few inches? If I could find a stand up dryer I'd try it, LOL! May in Jersey
11-05-2010, 07:26 AM
#63
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Join Date: May 2010
Location: Ontario, Canada
Posts: 1,779
Originally Posted by patdesign
Originally Posted by JeanieG
Originally Posted by May in Jersey
Wonder if I wash my body in very hot water and then dry it in a dryer will I shrink a few inches? If I could find a stand up dryer I'd try it, LOL! May in Jersey
:P :P :P :P
11-05-2010, 08:17 AM
#64
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Location: Camarillo, CA
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Does anyone wash the batting before putting the quilt together? In the 70's and 80's we used the Mountain Mist Polyester Batting, which was considered the "best" at the time, and never had to worry about the batting shrinking. We were always told to pre-shrink the fabric. I always pre-shrink if I'm giving the item away, but sometimes don't if I'm keeping it.
11-05-2010, 08:29 AM
#65
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Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Western Wisconsin
Posts: 12,930
Polyester batting doesn't shrink. Cotton battings shrink within a certain range depending on the brand, whether it is mixed with other fibers (Hobbs 80/20 is an example of a mixed fiber batting) and how the batting was made (needlepunched or not, needlepunched through scrim).
I use cotton batting (max shrinkage about 6%) along with fabric that is not prewashed. They shrink together to give the traditional crinkled look.
Results could be considerably different using fabric that is not prewashed with a polyester batting that does not shrink. I've never done that, so can't speak from experience, but I could see how that could be a bad combination.
I use cotton batting (max shrinkage about 6%) along with fabric that is not prewashed. They shrink together to give the traditional crinkled look.
Results could be considerably different using fabric that is not prewashed with a polyester batting that does not shrink. I've never done that, so can't speak from experience, but I could see how that could be a bad combination.
11-05-2010, 10:13 AM
#67
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11-05-2010, 12:59 PM
#68
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Join Date: Jul 2010
Location: Central Willamette Valley, Oregon, USA
Posts: 7,695
Originally Posted by bearisgray
Just wondering -
Do any of you non-washers measure your finished item before and after washing it a couple of times?
If you haven't, how can you KNOW for sure whether it changed shape or not?
Do any of you non-washers measure your finished item before and after washing it a couple of times?
If you haven't, how can you KNOW for sure whether it changed shape or not?
11-05-2010, 11:02 PM
#69
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Join Date: May 2010
Location: Ontario, Canada
Posts: 1,779
Originally Posted by Prism99
11-15-2010, 03:28 PM
#70
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Join Date: Oct 2009
Location: Snohomish WA
Posts: 884
I had a 108" wide backing shrink SIXTEEN INCHES in width after I washed it!! Sure glad I prewashed/preshrunk it.
No kidding -- it started out 108" wide and came out 92" wide! Good thing I'd bought extra length as I had to cut the extra length off, cut that in half, and sew the pieces onto the sides of the backing to get my width. Painful experience.
I don't like all the endless ironing after having washed & dried but ... just imagine how horrible it'd have been to have put in eons of work on my quilt (Tumbling Blocks) only to have it shrink like that!
You cannot depend on who may eventually end up with the quilt to not wash & dry in hot water so I make sure of the shrinkage and fading FIRST.
No kidding -- it started out 108" wide and came out 92" wide! Good thing I'd bought extra length as I had to cut the extra length off, cut that in half, and sew the pieces onto the sides of the backing to get my width. Painful experience.
I don't like all the endless ironing after having washed & dried but ... just imagine how horrible it'd have been to have put in eons of work on my quilt (Tumbling Blocks) only to have it shrink like that!
You cannot depend on who may eventually end up with the quilt to not wash & dry in hot water so I make sure of the shrinkage and fading FIRST.
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