All new fabrics have odors to them and after they are washed and dried they feel & smell much better......
flannel definitely needs to be laundered before using for quilts or any sewing project because it shrinks alot......

Yes that would seem obvious but it's not just heaters. Think of all the people you know that have candles burning though out their house, firepits in the backyard etc. even the candles in your jack o'lantern.
little kids like to spin and dance around and can easily fall in or on a flame. it's the "looseness" of a nightgown that will feed a flame.
It's not always a matter of people being careless, kids move fast and as careful as you try to be, things happen.

Any cotton I've ever seen burns rather fast. A cotton ball almost explodes.

The law came about when they started using a lot of synthetics in children's wear and believe me those went up in seconds when held near a flame. Always the best to use is 100 percent cotton. So if you haven't checked it beware of polar fleece boy does it melt and flame fast. Every where you look they use it in baby and children's blankets and clothing. I no longer use it for grand kids things when I saw what happened to hubby's shirt at work. He leaned against his hot roller and was on fire! fortunately he was not hurt just singed but that would have been a different matter for a child.

Sorry to play devil's advocate here........I just looked at a website for the Consumer Products Safety Division and they listed 100% cotton as the LEAST safe. The burn temp is hotter and there's very little smoke for you to notice. The flame resistant coatings were implemented to extend the chance of rescue, I think. I hear you about the allergy thing. There are always pros and cons. I guess people with allergies shouldn't have fires.

back in the days before the "YEPPY GENERATION" decided they were smarter then all our parents, we wore what ever we had to bed and that was it. NO CHEMICALS were added to our clothing to make them "BURN RETARDANT" or what ever else they now try adding to the fabrics to make them "SAFER".

I was in a house fire along with 10 of my brothers and sisters, I was only in 1st grade at the time. We had to fight our way out of the house on our own and we did not get burned or hurt from the clothing that we wore. Most of us came out with barely a scratch physically, mentally is another subject. I think all the "safety" crap they come up with now a days is just a gimmick to sell stuff and I refuse to except their so-called reasoning behind it. How many 100's of years did people do just fine without all the extra chemicals in their cloths and if you look at things now, how many more people have allergies to so many things that weren't a problem back then.

My only real question would be, "Do you really want your new born baby, small infant or even yourself to be sleeping with all the added chemicals in those fabrics?"
I think NOT!!!

I use 100% cotton and don't worry at all. It's been used for over 100 years. We live in a world that is too fast to sue for any little thing, I think it's just precaution on the manufacturer.

Exactly what I think, also!

Wow I am in awe of the number of blankets you are making for chartiy, do you buy the fabric yourself or do you get donations.

I feel the same as most. Use the cotton and don't make nightgowns too big and loose, not tight but, not to billowy.