i wash fabric in a cold water with free and clear detergent and a color catcher, dry in the dryer on high, and fold as I take it from the dryer. I tie a piece of selvage around the folded fabric, put an address label on the selvage and mark the length of the fabric piece for future reference. Fabric is ironed when I am ready to use it.

I don't use starch because of allergies.

Washing removes allergens, chemicals, an odors from the fabric and that makes a huge difference to me. Unwashed fabric literally makes me sick!

Other than the 'health' preparations, I don't do much to my fabric before using it.

PS: Another reason i wash fabrics - I assume that every piece of fabric has been stored in a place that has bug problems. That does not necessarily mean that the place I bought it from had the problem. It means that somewhere between factory and my home it was in a less than pristine environment.

The to wash or not to wash question is probably the most "controversial" question in the quilting world. Some are vehement washers, stating the colors of the fabric will run, it will shrink too much after being quilted and washed, etc. And the other camp of non-washers say there is little shrinkage or color bleeding in good quality fabric and that post-quilt washing shrinkage gives a quilt a vintage look.
probably the best advice I've heard: I you think the quilt will be used and washed often, pre-wash fabric. If it is a wall or decorative quilt, don't bother.

I have never pre washed, my excuse is that I buy good quality quilting materials so they should be OK and have never been let down. In the past couple of months I have started using starch after seeing it on this forum and do wish I had used it before, to me it's magic and the benefits are many.

My process as well.....seems to serve me OK. I do agree that fabrics are better quality (LQS fabrics anyway) are more dependable than they used to be, but I get burned only once!! That has happened and it won't happen again!

First off - I only buy fabric for specific projects - not a stasher here. Usually only buy yardage. I am also a pre-washer. Probably a hangover from garment days BUT my reasons are as follows:

Yes, bleeding/shrinkage can occur. I'm really not overly concerned with the shrinkage factor. I use 100% cotton batting which I do not prewash, so my quilts are going to shrink when completed anyhow. Bleeding - yes, that's a reason to wash.

I wash my fabrics in the machine, warm water; detergent; no fabric softener. Dry in the dryer until completely dry. I am a firm believer that the way the fabric is folded/wound onto the bolt is nowhere near close to being on-grain. I like to work with my fabric as close to on-grain as possible. I think you get more accurate cuts and then sewing as a result.

I also iron my fabrics with starch. Have migrated to Sta-flo 50/50 with water. Use in a spray bottle and mix a bit at a time. I use starch on either front or back, don't really care. I find that if I let the starch absorb into the fabric for at least a few seconds there is no flaking when ironed. Generally don't get very heavy handed with the starch unless I'm working with really small pieces or bias edges.

When I go to press my fabrics I spend a reasonable amount of time hanging/wiggling my selvage edges together to get the unironed piece of fabric as close to flat as possible. Then I lay it flat on my ironing surface (in my case, my craft table covered with folded towels) and smooth until the fabric is as flat/smooth as possible. I usually start in the center of my yardage, pin if necessary to hold in place if I'm dealing with a large amount of fabric. Work my way out to the ends smoothing and then iron with starch. Thats the point where I square off my end to start cutting the balance of my pieces.

I find that taking the time going through this process yields in much more accurate cutting. When your cuts are more accurate, your sewing becomes more accurate - at least it does for me.

I am one who is anal about my material - it's washed and dried and ironed before it goes onto my shelf for future use. The house smells better and my shelves usually look great. It just feels better to my hands when I can grab a color I need, knowing it's all cleaned and ready for my artistic abilities to thrive.

I do not prewash, nor do I starch. Purchased fabrics usually have plenty of sizing in them. If you are using fabrics from clothing, just be aware of buttonholes, places where buttons were sewn, lines where a hem was folded, etc. and go for it. When I am ready to make a project I find the fabric I want and head for the cutting table and get on with it. I've been quilting for 60 years and never had a problem.

Being known for all the charity quilts I do, I get "gifted" with a lot of fabric scraps and boxes of fabric that people no longer want from their stashes. This being the case, I never know what has been washed and what hasn't. It just makes good sense to stay in the habit of washing EVERYTHING, so that it's all consistent. But, truth to tell, I would pre-wash even if it were just my own fabric. I like knowing there won't be future bleeding or shrinking going on when I've done all that work on a finished product. I use starch if I think it needs it, but just spray water if that's enough. I seldom use steam in my iron... even my very expensive iron tends to leak after a while... and spray bottles are cheap. :) I don't iron my fabric straight out of the dryer.... I fold neatly and put it away, and then iron (yes, iron, not press.. go ahead and shoot me....) when it's time to start cutting it.

Boy, you did open a can of worms with this one. My addition is that I pre-wash everything for all of the pre-listed reasons. I do buy yard sale fabrics, so previous storage can be an issue. Also, because while working on a Log Cabin block, using un-prepped fabric, one strip shrunk so bad it pulled from the seam under the iron. So, pre-wash and dry like I intend it to be used for once finished, starch before cutting (keeps it's shape better, especially on the bias), pre-wash and dry the batting, then wash and dry again, once the project is finished. This gets rid of any residue from starch, glue basting and general handling.

I always wash and dry all my fabric. I fold in half lengthwise and fold with my ruler. If I do it very neatly it only needs to be ironed on the tighter folds. I buy 4 - 6 yard pieces.