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Quote:

Originally Posted by Pat M. (Post 8364498)

They know to scoot when I show them the spray bottle.:D

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.

Quote:

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.

A few years ago I made my first all-scrap quilt. The blocks were sashed in black and I used all the scraps of black that I could find. Some even had a shiny texture. After the quilt was hanging, I really couldn't see the 72 different shades of black.
And, yes, I too try to by only Kona black when I need to buy some.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Lee in Richmond (Post 8364424)

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.

I am not a prewasher either except for red fabric. The black from Keepsake Quilting, Amish Black, does not change colors when washed and does not seem to fade or change to a dusty color with brown hints. I am cautious with extensive ironing of all dark colors. I often keep a thin scrap of fabric that I lay over my black to to assure it doesn't go shiny.

Quote:

Originally Posted by feline fanatic (Post 8364385)

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

Wow! I have never heard of the Fur Zapper- looks interesting and reusable...having Great Danes, it looks like a great idea... thanks for the tip!!

if you put it in the dryer (cooler setting) with dryer sheets (suggest you do it after finished) it will pickup the fur
in your filter and the dryer sheets release it from the quilt.

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?

I've never heard of it, but am curious. A quick search reveals it is still in production, available at Target. Let us know how it works for you!

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".