Black Fabric Magnet
#11
Senior Member
Join Date: Jul 2017
Posts: 809
I had a Boxer dog named Bert, and I trained him with a spray bottle when he was a puppy. Years later I was washing the livingroom window and he was sitting in the middle of the room, admiring the show. Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed him doing something strange, so I tried to watch him without looking at him. Every so often he would sort of cringe, and it took me a few minutes to realize it was the sound of the sprayer squeeking that was doing it to him! Poor Bert! I gave him some love, but he stayed away from spray bottles for the rest of his life. Well, it sure worked to train him- it never wore off. I shoulda sprayed him when he jumped on people, lol. *That* lasted all his life, too. Sure do miss that ole boy, and hes been gone for almost 30 years.
#12
Super Member
Join Date: May 2012
Location: Central Wisconsin
Posts: 4,391
from Iceblossom] I would only buy Kona Black so that all my black scraps are consistent. Hate having some blacks not as black as others, especially when you have a lot of black background it can really show.
And, yes, I too try to by only Kona black when I need to buy some.
Last edited by QuiltnNan; 02-29-2020 at 06:19 PM. Reason: fix quote formatting
#13
A little off-topic, but I wonder if you who use black fabric frequently pre-wash it. I am not a pre-washer and have never had a problem with running color -- so far. One problem I do have with black, however, is that it turns shiny when I iron more than one layer (such as a 1/4" seam). And it never seems to go away, the shininess.
#14
I use a lot of black and it is the nature of the beast. All black fabric attracts hair, lint, stray fibers like crazy. And it all shows a lot more than on lighter colors. Irishrose2 brings up an interesting point and I never knew that but it explains a lot. I don't know if they use sulphur dyes in navy but navy shows a lot too. In fact any dark solid seems to show a lot, deep forest greens, dark browns, etc. But black definitely seems to be the worst. But I don't care, I love the look of black background quilts, especially paired with bright batiks.
When I make a show quilt that has black in it I am constantly dehairing it as I go and when it is done, I go over it with contact paper (the peel and stick stuff you line cabinet shelves with) I find it is stickier than masking tape and much larger so I can cover a lot of surface area at once. I also do my final wash with hairzappers which seem to help ball up all the loose hair so it is easier to pick off. https://www.amazon.com/FURZAPPER-Gen...ct_top?ie=UTF8
When I make a show quilt that has black in it I am constantly dehairing it as I go and when it is done, I go over it with contact paper (the peel and stick stuff you line cabinet shelves with) I find it is stickier than masking tape and much larger so I can cover a lot of surface area at once. I also do my final wash with hairzappers which seem to help ball up all the loose hair so it is easier to pick off. https://www.amazon.com/FURZAPPER-Gen...ct_top?ie=UTF8
#16
Senior Member
Thread Starter
Join Date: Oct 2017
Location: Vancouver Island / Arizona
Posts: 458
Thanks for your input everyone. I just this morning came across an advertisement for "Flatter" by SoakWash -" a starch-free smoothing spray leaves fabric soft and static free". The magazine is from 2014 but assuming it is still available, has anyone tried this? Did it make a difference if you did?
#18
Senior Member
Join Date: Apr 2019
Posts: 847
I find this thread amusing because I'm quilting something black right now and watching it become more annd more covered with lint. I think.most of it is from the batting (Warm and Natural). As I continue to handle and manipulate I think its "sharing".