Laundering New Quilts ?
 

I have read so many articles and most comment on the washing after quilt is made. My question is this--do you use low smell detergent and fabric softener ? Febreeze ? A friend received a nice quilt recently but could not use until she laundered it because of laundry smell/odor. She was sad she had to wash it first. Just curious, thanks

I don't wash the fabric or the quilt unless it is for my personal use. I, too, am sensitive to odors in laundry detergent and feel that whoever gets a quilt of mine should have their choice. I do suggest they use several color catchers and wash in cool water.

As soon as I finish a quilt, I take it straight to the washer. Largest load size on the machine and I use Tide free and clear and Bounty fabric soft. both are the ones in the white bottles. No fragrance.

I am the same as Eva - my detergent is fragrance free too. It isn't for others, it is because I don't like the extra fragrance. And I don't use dryer sheets - I have the wool balls.

I use All Free (unscented All detergent) and Downy Free (unscented fabric softener) for all of our laundry, including quilts. My husband has a lot of allergies, and I dislike the smell of cheap perfumes, so this works for us.

I never use Febreze. Why add more chemicals to our environment?
http://www.sustainablebabysteps.com/febreze.html

I just use my regular Tide and no fabric softener. I guess if the recipient doesn't like the smell, they'll have to wash it in their own detergent. I never worry about that.

huh... well I just wash it like anything else. I do use fabric softener and I have even had comments about how much the love the smell. never thought about that.. just figured they can wash it before they use it if they wish

I use fragance free laundry detergent because I have allergy issues to any laundry perfume. I dont' use fabric softener, but if need to will add a little vinegar in that spot. So no fragances smells....and yes, I wash every quilt before it goes out the door (have a dog, markers used, etc)

I wash my quilts when they are done with a Kirkland pod on regular wash cold water. They have a mild scent right out of the dryer but it goes away pretty fast.

If you're wanting to wash quilts and give them as odor-free as possible, then use detergent that is "free and clear" and no fabric softener. My quilts have come out soft w/o softener and w/o static. Definitely wash on cold with a couple of color catchers for peace of mind.

I have given quilts using whatever detergent I was using for my own laundry, and all recipients have said they love the smell. Arm & Hammer, Tide, Purex, Dreft...I've used them all. But if I were aware of a recipient having an issue with detergents, I would probably wash in Dreft and use vinegar the load to rinse out even that smell.

I always wash and use unscented detergent because that's what I always use.

I wash all my quilts before giving them. I use washable markers most times. I use coldwater Tide period.

I wash new quilts with my regular detergent(Era), a color catcher or two and I don't use fabric softener. if there's going to be an issue with the quilt I want to catch it, not have something happen when the recipient washes it.

Cari

I wash quilts, fragrance free to ensure that all seams, etc. hold well. I use color catchers if I have any doubt that some of my fabrics were not prewashed. It is especially important, I think, on baby quilts. Besides the no fragrance, I always give a second rinse to be sure there is no residue of anything, especially in consideration of a newborn's sensitivity and I make sure the new mom knows that. Besides, the washing blends all the stitching, etc. into a cohesive item. So nice. Just fresh.

I always wash the quilt and I tell the new owner it has already been washed once. If I don’t, the owner is likely to never wash it in fear that they’re not supposed to wash it! I wash it just like the new owner will, in warm water with detergent and fabric softener. It also ensures that the colors don’t bleed and the stitching holds up. I was surprised at how many people were scared to wash their new quilts!

I launder my quilts as soon as they are finished, largest load setting, fragrance free detergent, no fabric softener, and a double rinse.
Regular setting on the dryer. Fragrance free dryer sheets.

I always wash new quilts to get out markers and glue (I like to use Elmer's School glue to sandwich). I use a free and clear detergent and dry the quilt flat on a plastic drop cloth that I spread on the floor or sometimes on the bed. Them, as stated by another person above, the recipient knows the quilt can be washed. I usually tell them about the drying method.

I wash fabric (and batting, if washable) before cutting it.

I also wash the finished item in a detergent as "inoffensive" as possible, and dry it without dryer sheets.

Especially if the item is going to someone that is not well.

I wash mine and tell the recipient: prewashed to remove loose threads and excess dies and to check for loose seams.
I make my own detergent with soap flakes, borax and washing soda. I use the very cheap, little smell dryer sheets.

I hope you don't mind as this is not exactly a comment on your question....just an aside.
I sell quilts and I find that most people that buy quilts are not quilters. They don't like the crinkly look of washed quilts because it doesn't have a 'just bought' look. Hasanyone else experienced that ?

I use the "free" detergents because I can't stand when things smell perfumey. Sometimes odors like that give me headaches, which may be why I don't like them, I'm not sure. "New car smell" gives me headaches and makes me feel sick, so you can imagine what fun I am at parties.

I wash all my quilts before I give them out as gifts cause I use starch on all my fabrics as well as Elmer's Glue during my assembling so want all that out of it before they get it. Plus this way if its going to bleed, I can hopefully fix it with a color catcher so it doesn't scare them half to death when they go to wash it.

Can one iron/press/block a washed quilt to look "store-bought-new"?

You can but once washed, my quilts have a crinkly look which I love. Some people who but don't want that look.

[QUOTE=meyert;8006446]huh... well I just wash it like anything else. I do use fabric softener and I have even had comments about how much the love the smell. never thought about that.. just figured they can wash it before they use it if they wish[/QUOTE
I do the same. i figure if it's for a baby the parents will rewash it in dreft anyway.

I think this comes from people used to seeing commercial comforters and "uncrinkled" quilts in stores. Chances are these buyers are not only not quilters themselves, but also come from non-quilting families. They have probably never seen a "real" handmade quilt made by family members.

When I was in Lancaster, PA and visited some of the Amish quilt stores, I noticed that their quilts for sale all had the "unwashed" look.

To keep an "unwashed" look (even if you wash), I think it helps enormously to use polyester batting. It provides the lofty look of comforters that so many people equate with quilts, but does not shrink at all in the wash (unlike cotton). An alternative would be to pre-wash cotton batting so it does not shrink in the wash. The batting typically controls how much crinkling you get, assuming your quilting lines are reasonably close together -- 4" or less. Batting is stronger than fabrics, so a batting that does not shrink will stop fabrics from shrinking in a quilt, even though the same fabrics would shrink if washed by themselves.

If people don't want that look, maybe they'd be happier with another type of bedcover.

Yes, that is true. Some of my earlier quilts had polyester batting and after washing, they still had a 'new' look.

Because I use water-soluble thread for basting, and usually a water-soluble embroidery stabilizer with my quilting pattern traced on to it, I have to wash the quilt to get rid of them. My detergent is blue Dawn dishwashing detergent - mild, no scent, and a color-catcher in and of itself.

Scent free detergent and no fabric softener. I am 'sensitive' to fragrance chemicals. It's not allergy according to my allergist, but it feels the same and is treated the same as allergies. Go figure.

I always wash my quilts when finished. I use Woolite, cool water, and, depending on the size and colors of the quilt, one or two color catchers.

I make my own laundry detergent and don't use fabric softener. At the risk of ranting I don't like anything that's sold on the market. Way too many chemicals. I don't have allergies but I don't like what companies are making these days.

IceLeopard I love your signature quote. Going to remember this for sure and put it into practice.

This is what I do also, especially with baby quilts.

I sometimes use spray baste and school glue and feel that requires immediate washing when a quilt is done. Also, I like the rippled look that is natural when cotton batting and fabric are washed. The only quilt I wouldn't wash immediately might be an art quilt for the wall, but I rarely make anything like that. I use an unscented laundry detergent and no fabric softener, but do use dryer balls.

FYI I bought Persil liquid detergent upon recommendation. I actually like a scented laundry detergent, but this is way overpowering with what smells like cheap perfume. It lingers forever in clothes it seems. I have even tried using half and half of non-scented detergent, and it still overpowers. If you are washing work clothes that smell of kerosene or some such thing, this might be the perfect detergent, but not for quilts for sure.

I am a 'washer before gifting' quilter. I like to give a info sheet on care, a couple of Color Catchers in a baggie (still surprised at how many people have No clue what they are!) and am thinking of putting a care a label On the quilt - esp for kids quilts.

I always wash baby quilts with Dreft. Other quilts it depends.

Since I don't prewash my fabric before using, I wash all my quilts right after I make them except the ones going to a show or a hanging. I use cool water and regular detergent along with color catchers, then dry on low.

No fabric softener in my house, no dryer sheets either. I use unscented Kirkland powdered detergent for all my laundry.

A neighbour uses a highly scented laundry product, and when I smell it when their dryer is running, I get a migraine.

I once refused to take delivery of a car when they put a car 'freshener' in it. The dealer had to have it completely cleaned, at their expense, to remove the smell. It was in my contract that no air fresheners be in the vehicle.