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I prewash all my fabric as soon as it comes in the door and I still have dirty fingertips on my Machingers! And washing does not seem to take much of the stains out. Anyone have any answers to that problem?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Onebyone (Post 6830127)

Are they dirty looking on the inside too?

No, only the outside. I always wash my hands before working on a project to be sure I didn't touch something that will transfer. I have never pre-washed, but after reading the many responses I may have to rethink that practice.

Quote:

Originally Posted by salederer (Post 6831275)

I scrub the dickens out of mine when I wash them, but the grey stain is there to stay. I know they are clean and that is what is very important to me.

Quote:

Originally Posted by charlottequilts (Post 6830211)

Sizing? Starch can look grayish if it piles up, so maybe the sizing in the fabric can as well.

Once I went to KQ, and a woman, well-intentioned but reeking of the McD's up the road, grabbed the fabric squares I was using to match and started commenting on them. I retrieved them Very Quickly. Once at home, I ran my iron over the samples out of curiosity, and sure enough, there was grease on them. :(

Hugs,
Charlotte

Oh, super yuck! That is why I always wash my hands before I return to my machine because I could have, without being aware of it, touched something that will transfer to the fabric. Fortunately our guest bath is right across the hall from my sewing room so washing up is super easy.

Excess dye will rub off.

Wash your fabrics. This will also eliminate reactions or allergies to protective(?) stiffeners, sizings, and such in new fabrics. I can't walk through a clothing store without beginning to 'sniffle' from all the "fresh, new" clothing.

Thank you for all of your responses. The mystery remains, but there are many more factors to consider than I had before. I will continue my hand washing, will definitely consider washing my fabric before using because I never thought of what it could have been through before I got it. For some reason I have always thought of a folded three yard pack of fabric was neat and clean. It may look that way, but for some reason I now will wonder what adventures it had before I got it. I scrub the dickens out of produce, keep chicken as clean as a baby, and use Oxy for our laundry. There are just somethings that I have always considered clean, but still scrub as I'm sure all of you do as well.

The Machingers are still the best I've found so I'll just keep on washing them as part of my routine.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Kwiltr (Post 6830064)

I use machingers too and they also get grubby looking. I pre-wash all my fabric. However, like blue jeans for one, I don't think pre-washing gets all the loose dye out of all of the fabrics so gets transferred to the gloves while working with them. Additionally, depending on the size of the project, you could be several months from start to finish and as a result the quilt is going to pick up dust. Then there are the marking tools you use, pens, chalk etc. Again, I'm sure a certain amount of that gets picked up by the gloves. They are rubberized, so there is friction when you handle the fabric. If there is anything to rub off, they are going to get it. I don't worry about it. The only thing I touch with my gloves are quilts, so I'm pretty confident they aren't transferring anything to the quilts I work on. I wash my quilt when it's done. Check this out.... http://rhondabracey.com/?s=Machingers

Kwiltr, that's exactly the case for me too.

I hear ya on wash those paws before we cook this food! :eek:

not familiar , what are they?

I don't use machingers but the more I read, the more I'm convinced to prewash my fabrics.