Simply put .... your answer is in the previous posts.

Agree, that's pretty much the usual shrinkage with 100% cottons ... I don't see the problem ???

That's too bad that happened, puts a damper on your plan for the backing.

Actually I DID read many of the previous posts ... I guess we can all "agree to disagree" !

I've been quilting for 25 years and all I can add is, when you prewash fabrics and wash your quilts in HOT water and DRY on HOT, they WILL shrink, they WILL wear, and most fabrics WILL lose color prematurely. Drying a quilt in the dryer WILL shorten its life considerably ...
There's NO other result for 100% cottons ... so why would quilters who do this expect anything different ???

The reasons have been stated. Good ones at that.
And they totally are in line with what you have stated.
What some see as positives ... no doubt you see as negatives!! :D

The excessive rate of shrinkage that the OP got with this particular fabric is not usual, not at all, even using hot water and a hot drying temp. Since you obviously have no experience using those conditions, there is no reason for you to be so adamant about the results obtained.

Sorry to ruffle anyone's feathers ... (I think I remember now WHY I don't post as much here anymore ... !!)
I thought the intent of this board was to share observations, tips and opinions ... guess I'm wrong !

While I've never washed & dried my fabrics or quilts on HOT settings ... over the years, I HAVE SEEN the unhappy results of quite a few who DID ...

We can expect different results because of the advance in the chemical dyes over the last 25 years. Some like blue jeans are made to fade; others can be washed in hot, dried on hot twice a week and still look brand new. That's why companies spend so much money on research and graduating chemists can still find jobs that aren't in cosmetics and fertilizer fields, for just 2 examples. We've come a long way, baby! They still need to conquor red and black. LOL!

Oh no!! So sorry that happened to you with such expensive fabric!

Ouch! that hurts. I don't always wash my fabric. It depends on what it will be used for. . . Wall hanging. . No. Quilt that will be washed. . Yes! and in the way I think it may be washed and dried. You were fortunate to discover this flaw BEFORE you put hours of your time into the quilt. I think I would have to have a serious chat with Henry regarding his product.
By the way, for what it's worth, I seem to live my life in plan B.

Please tell me what blue jeans don't fade? I always wash mine in cold water and still they fade. Of course, I am outside a lot, in good weather.

Read prior messages. The reason some people wash in hot water is explained.

I have tried to contact Henry, but maybe he's not checking his email?! If I do hear from him or his minions I will update y'all. AndI am sure you have found that sometimes Plan B turns out better than Plan A...though in this case it is proving to be considerably less convenient!

I read TanyaL's comment to mean that blue jeans are designed to fade, as that look is valued by so many people, and that if the manufacturers wanted jeans to be totally colorfast they could do that with the new dyes.

Alison

My post wasn't explicit. I meant some fabric like blue jeans are meant to fade, other (fabrics) aren't meant to fade.

I give all my quilts away to friends and family and make a lot of kids quilts. I always wash and dry my fabrics on hot temperatures so the recipient can wash them how ever they want without fear of shrinkage or bleeding.

Alison,

Thank you for starting this thread and I will keep following hoping that you will share any response you get from Henry with us.

Also, I love the diversity of this board! When I go to quilt shows, I really enjoy the artistic talents that you have on display and I get ideas everywhere. BUT, as your quilting sister, you'll probably never see a quilt of mine there not that I wouldn't love to be able to create something that lovely. I am content to create mostly simple quilts that little kids sometimes call their "cover" or "covers" that will be privy to all the chaos that can exist in a child's life. So, they'll see the washer/dryer often especially after they have already been in "hot water" and need a laundry trip!

If I made or even owned one of those beautiful quilts some of my fellow QB members make, I'd hesitate to wash at all. They are true works of art! I am celebrating the diversity we share and appreciating the inspiration that other quilters bring and so willingly share!

Sorry for your experience and hope that "plan B" works out for you.
Here is another possible reason someone would Wash in hot water and Dry on hot.
If you have children and I know some of you do, some children have been known to bring home stowaways. Yes ladies I am talking about lice. No matter how clean you are, you can get them. Now if you have ever had to rid bedding of them short of dry cleaning you know that washing and drying on the "hot" setting is the only way to kill them.
If I had a quilt that I put my time and effort into I think I would have done the same thing.

Thanks for this post. I do wash my yardages, but in warm or cool water. Thanks again!

Perhaps we should make a point of complaining since most fabrics are done in China. Companies are starting to come back to the USA as they are finding out they are not really saving money going there. Quality is so poor. So I say we need to get those companies back to our soil.

I would return it.

Henry Glass is a well known and very good company too... thats very odd...

I may be off base here but I believe that all cotton will shrink that is 100% cotton. I am 66 yrs. old and grew up wearing a LOT of cotton feed-sack dresses, etc...and remember that we always knew that anything made of cotton was going to shrink. I think that's why they started added the polyester to the fabric-mix...to cut down on the shrinkage. . . and some of that might shrink to some degree.

.......... and to save us from the need to iron!

i, too, wash in hot water and dry in high heat. if something gets on the quilt, especially things like vomit or hairballs, i'd wash that quilt in the hottest water i could get! and so would most moms! so, if it's going to shrink i want it to do it before i give it away, not after. so far i haven't made any "for display only" quilts, other than dq's, so real life is what my quilts face.

Mhollifiel, How eloquently said! I bet you were a very good school librarian, too.

Some fabrics are made in China ... but most higher quality fabrics such as Moda, Hoffman, RJR, Northcott etc come from S. Korea or Japan ...

sadly, don't think textile manuf. are EVER coming back to the US ... that ship has sailed !

Do you know the reasons why textile companies went overseas in the first place? Those reasons would have to be reversed for them to bring their textile businesses back to the US. I believe that the cost of producing their product including wages, benefits, taxes, other overhead, got so high they could not compete with foreign textiles and people were not buying their fabric in enough quantity to make a profit. Now the cost of production would be even higher with the average cost of Obama Care going to be about $15,000 per worker in a factory, diesel for transportation just over $4/gal and present day utilities higher, plus there has been no cut in taxes for manufacturing. We would probably be looking at fabric costing $25-30/yd at the break even point and no one can run a business without profit. Maybe you have other figures.

I did complain to Henry Glass, but I got no response. Since I didn't purchase the fabric (my quilt customer did, washed it at my direction and then gave it to me) I haven't contacted the store she got it from. If it had been my order I might have been more aggressive about following up...

You are not off base at all! I expect shrinkage with 100% cotton too, I was just startled at the amount. Most quilting sites say that cotton can shrink up to 10% - but I have never encountered that before, and certainly not from a manufacturer as respected as Henry Glass.

Alison

Like many of you, I continue to follow this thread hoping to hear a response from Henry Glass. To that end (and because I'd like to see if there's a reason for this, especially one that would be useful to us consumers), I contacted HG via their web site, http://www.henryglassfabrics.com/contact/ Here's what I said:

Many of us are following a thread regarding your fabrics on Quilting Board http://www.quiltingboard.com/main-f1...e-t213149.html
We're hoping for a response/ explaination as this discussion continues.

Many thanks!

Don't know if this will expedite any response but it can't hurt!
Have a great "low shrinkage" day!