Virginialbrown, Thank you so much for ans. my question. I will call the Quilt Shops to find out if they carry Retagne, before I go searching. Thanks again. Happy Quilting. :-)
Gramsielu

Amen to the quote from the Bible.
gramsielu

Batiks are great. I use them in a picture quilt where they are used in trees and mountains and water... I used it for backing just once and my machine quilting looked great on the front side but the back looked real funny (like it had big holes where the stitches went in and like the thread layed on the back) But it was pretty but I won't use it for backing again. I know it is because the cotton fabric is mercantized (which means it is spun several times to make it receptive to dyes so that why it sometimes feels like silk and almost shiny....)I have used this type of fabric when dying my own.. the color comes out very rich and pure.. but it is some times a bear to sew....

My son is getting married in September, and my best friend, so incredibly loving and generous, has offered to give them a gorgeous queen sized quilt she made from batiks. Unfortunately, she has told me she never bothers to prewash her fabrics. Looks like I will be presenting the happy couple with some Retayne or color catcher sheets and the advice to use them once it needs laundering. My question is: previous posts have advised 1 tsp Retayne per yard of fabric for pretreating. How much would be used for a queen sized quilt made with a thin all cotton batting?

I would assue 10 yaards just to be safe

Retayne is used prior to construction, Use sythropol once the project is completed. The instructions for Retayne and Sythropol are different so make sure to read.
Sythropol will keep any dye that is shed in the wash from bonding to the fabrics.

Thank you so much for your advice. I'm leaving on vacation now for a few days, so thanks also in advance to anyone else who has suggestions. I will find and read them when I return.

Have a safe trip

The only "con" I know, is be careful where you buy your batiks.
Hoffman and Hoffman make very good batiks and have fair labor laws and do not promote child labor or endangerment. Believe it or not, if you buy cheap batiks you are supporting children and /or women that sometimes are even caged for their labor. Our department of labor is working on this, in the 15 or so countries that make batiks. But as they told me, in response to a letter I wrote to the Secretary of Labor...the power only lies in the people who buy the product in the end. As for me, I only buy from the companies that I know. Just a thought.

FYI - Seawatch is great! I have ordered a couple of times and they are very quick, quality is fantastic and the prices are lower every day, not just for a sale, but they do have sales too. Shipping is free for orders over $30. They also have Asian prints. Maybe they got your email from a shop hop or somewhere else you subscribe to.