? Batik's
 

Hi, All I've Got a Lot of Batik's. Have a Idea of what I will Do with them, BUT now How do I prepare THEM of Quilting? I Know I can't just Cut,sew, quilt!
I have to WASH! So HOW do you All Wash yours? Do you Put the ones that ARE Almost ALIKE together and Wash them in groups that way? And the Ones that Are RED,PURPLE,Do them Separate from every thing, everyone. Thank you All for Any Help!:)

I usually wash all dark colour together and then the lights together

I thoroughly wash and rinse each piece in hot water and detergent in the kitchen sink until they quit fading. Some fade very little, others a whole lot!

I wash my dark's and lights separately with a color catcher.

i toss (like colors) together- lights with lights, dark with darks, reds/purples together- into the washer- wash them with my regular detergent & warm water- sometimes i toss in a color catcher- if i have a bleeder i re-wash until it no longer looses color- then i toss them into the dryer- then i iron them all & lovingly fondle & fold them in preparation of use :)

I wash like colors together in hot water with a color catcher. For reds and purples I'll even add some synthropol. I'll continue to wash until the color catcher comes out white.

I know you are going to get a lot of people saying to wash in HOT water with detergent until it stops bleeding. But JMHO I can't see why someone would wash all fabric in hot water with todays' detergents that are made for cold water use. I don't know of any fabric other than a synthetic that does not fade in hot water. Yes if your worried about bleeding wash in cold water with Retyane or salt to set the dye (like colors together). Also when I gift a quilt, I give washing instructions of wash on gentle cycle, cold water, gentle detergent. Again this is my HO and I know there will be many who do not agree.

This makes the most sense.

Retayne needs 140ºF water temp in order to work according to the instructions, not cold water. Salt will not set excess fiber reactive dyes, which is what is used on cotton fabrics, nor will vinegar.

Great thread! I LOVE batiks but always avoided them because I was afraid that it would be the start of a whole 'nuther stash!! But, I'm now starting to pick some up. How do you handle jelly roll strips?

I have this Idea: PIN Them At the Beginning+Ends,in Bunches, with Large Brass Safety pins, like colors together,Put in a Mesh bag and Wash As the other QB members have Said.:)

I would never wash jelly rolls. Look at any JR book and it will say to not pre-wash.
If I make a JR quilt with batiks I would probably choose a pattern with no white
or light colors. Just think where the culprits will bleed on.

Batiks do not ravel like regular cotton prints...in fact they hardly ravel at all.

My comments exactly!

I wash batiks (and any other quilting fabric) the same as I do my regular laundry....like colors together. I guess I've been very lucky because I've NEVER had an issue with batiks running/bleeding. I wash in the hottest water my machine has, with regular detergent and dry in the dryer. I never use color catchers unless I've found a color that bleeds and I've, unfortunately, only discovered that AFTER the quilt was completed. And it wasn't a batik!

If you don't want to wash you can always cut off a snippet of fabric and test for running, than you know you have to wash but it prevents you from washing tons of fabrics you don't need to wash IMHO

No need to cut it to test it. Simply rub a couple spots with a damp Q-tip and if it picks up any color, it will run. On the other hand, if it doesn't, it's not a for-sure guarantee that it won't run...you may just have missed testing the spots that do. Another reason for pre-washing. :o