Digitally Printed Fabrics
 

How do you care for digitally printed fabrics? Are they washer/dryer safe?
Do these prints last as long as regular (?) fabric?

I have read the color pattern will eventually wear away. ? I don't know if any quilts made from it are old enough to find out yet. Time will tell. It does make beautiful fabric.

I would treat them like regular quilting fabric as far as washing/drying. I'm hoping that the color pattern will hold from repeated use/washings. If not, we'll going to get to the point where quilts are no longer going to make it through time as family heirlooms.

Funny you should ask this. While I can’t respond on fading, my friend Peggi (Peckish on this board) and I had a long conversation about this fabric, albeit mostly from a longarm quilting perspective, but also from a piecing perspective. These fabrics are notorious for white “runs” when sewing because the fabric is not printed with color all the way through. When sewing or quilting, the needle turns the thread, showing the white back of the fabric. So each stitch can produce a run, ruining the fabric. This can be worse on certain sections of the fabric, depending on color and tightness of the weave, The tighter the weave, the more likely it will run.

Bethanne Nemish did an entire series of posts on FB about this problem from a longarm perspective, as it is becoming more and more common. She has found the best way to avoid this while longarming is with a #16 light ballpoint needle with Sewers Aid applied to the needle along with a longer stitch length and “silkier” threads such as Glide, silk and Isacord. I suspect the same will need to be done for piecing, too. Prewashing digital fabrics is also essential to minimize runs, and different colors from the same line will behave differently. Not all will run, but it will more than likely happen at some time when piecing or quilting with digital fabric.

However, in our conversation we determined that because of these run problems it will probably result in LA quilters adding a clause in their contracts that they cannot be responsible for runs resulting from digital fabrics and many may stop taking quilts made with digital fabrics altogether.

With these fabrics becoming more and more popular, fabric companies need to assess this and come up with some type of solution to the “run” problem. Right now there is no way to 100% avoid these runs. It’s a “buyer beware” situation that the fabric companies seem unconcerned about.

The hot pads that I made from Spoonflower, which is digitally printed, are washed a lot with no fading! I backed my last quilt with digital fabric with no problems "running". I love it! And am awaiting 2 pieces for backing!

With these fabrics becoming more and more popular, fabric companies need to assess this and come up with some type of solution to the “run” problem. Right now there is no way to 100% avoid these runs. It’s a “buyer beware” situation that the fabric companies seem unconcerned about.[/QUOTE]


Wow, what food for thought! I appreciate the information. Thank you

Cindi, thak you so much for the explanation fo the run issue with digital printed fabric. Not all new inventions are the best thing. I hope that quilters here share their experiences. pat

That’s great news!

Gosh, Cindi, I have had those white "runs" when piecing and hadn't even thought about the long arming! This would be more obvious on darker areas.

You've shared some important information. Thanks for helping us.

It’s also much more noticeable along seam lines, where the fabric is tighter and has less stretch.

Knock on wood. So far, I haven't had any white runs. I haven't had any issues at all with the digital printed fabric. But, I will say, thus far, I've only made larger projects and none of them have been washed more than once or twice. It is nice (thanks, aashley333) to know that you haven't had any issues with repeated washings.

Most of my newer fabric is the digital printed. It used to be that the quilting sites would label it as being a digital print. But I'm noticing it less and less. The last few times I gotten fabric, it was digital printed, but it was listed on the sites I purchased the yardage from as just 100% cotton. So, I never know what is coming, the regular cotton or the digital printed anymore. I have a feeling that eventually it is all going to be digitally printed fabric. I really have no issue with it, as long as it handles and lasts like regular quilting cotton.

There have been a couple of purchases that when digital printed fabric came out, that they had a different feel to them, but they were off brands. But since, what I have purchased from named brand lines, it feels 'normal'.

I used to print my own fabric, but we always used poly-blends. The polyester opens up the its pores when heated and allows the special ink to soak in. When the fabric cools the "pores" close and entrap the ink. This won't work on other fibers. That was about 25 years ago, so they may have come up with some new technologies by now. The poly fabrics could be washed, but it was instructed that they air dry.

Digital Prints
 

I will also add a vote of confidence for the Spoonflower company I had a family photo printed on fabric by them and I made a wall hanging with it. When I finished it I machine washed it and it came out great.

I think that Spoonflower is awesome! It allows individual, surface artists a platform and outlet for their works. I've bought a few things from their store.

I dislike digital fabric, for these reasons. It's too problematic.

I don’t like the white streaks. It drives me nuts.