I love to work on Batiks but... Just a few notes:
1. Do pretreat/wash fabrics with Retayne, batiks RUN/Bleed. it so worth the time to get to the problem prior to constuction. Prewashing will reduce some of the running/bleeding but unless pretreated they will continue to keep running ( smaller amounts at each washing) .
2. It can be tough to buy Batiks over the internet . Not all the colors will show in the small swatch, or the evenness of the color placement. Batiks like the Hoffman watercolor collection are really one color tone/tone so it is not so much of an issue with that collection.
I once purchased a batik on line , the swatch showed very good colors that I wanted but when arrived there was another color ( purple) that in the yardage.
3. Do not use Heat and Bond light or heavy , it leaves a residue stain.
4. Because they are so thightly woven , removing stitches can leave a permanent needle hole.
5. hand applique is painful .... really its hard to get the needle through.
6. If you run out of a specific batik it is next to impossible to get more . There is no identifier in the selvage , the fabric is completley dyed. So tracking one down ... is really hard. If purchasing from the internet do keep a note as to the manufacture and site used. There are a few batik lines ( Hoffman has one that is tonal , and produced for years , but there are lots and lots of shades in the collection and tough to see on a computer exactly which blue you have) .
7. Repeat number 1 .... can not stress the pretreat enough.

All that said .. I LOVE batiks and can not get enough of them. They can create some of the most dramatic quilts.

I love the batiks. Great quality fabric, wide variety of colors.
The only negative I have come across is when making a quilt you need all batiks. I have tried incorporating batiks and other cotton fabrics and they just don't seem to work together.
The lapquilt I made with batiks I machine quilted, using a walking foot on my Bernina 180 doing outline
quilting and had no problem.

I've mixed them without any problems. What kind of issue did you have?

Hmmm, that's weird. I have incorporated batiks with other cotton fabrics as well and never had a problem. I think batiks make wonderful accent fabrics. I have never done a quilt that was 100% batiks.

My main issue with batiks, is I never feel I have enough of them. I love working with them!

I agree that the look of them is stunning, however I also think that since they do run and bleed alot, it can be a pain to work with them. I had a quilt that was washed before cutting and quilting, and it still ran and pretty much ruined the look of the quilt.

Maybe its just a personal thing. (?) I make scrappy quilts mostly, and when I tried to incorporate some batik scraps they just didn't seem to blend in.

LOVE Batiks!!!!
I have never had a problem with them bleeding.
and I quilt them with the longarm no problem, I just slow down a tad bit.
I have made all batik quilts,backing and binding included and they are some of my most stunning!
they are very tightly woven so no hard stitching, but no
shrinking either.
I use them with other cottons but I try to match weight.
kona cotton is of a similar weight and works well.
I just got the Benartex Fossil ferns and love them!

Bernatex Fossil Ferns are not batiks. Granted, they have a batik look about them but they are a normal screen printed 100% cotton and not batiks. But I am with you I love them too. So many colors too choose from, great blenders and lovely look to them.

I've never had a running batik either. They go thru som many harsh processes I just don't see how they can run, maybe it's the brand.