One of my reasons for pre-washing.
 

Ok I borrowed some Retayne from a friend. Used it and color catchers. Put it through a double rinse. Not sure if I can say the brand of fabric so I won't but I just got done wiping my washing machine with bleach and wiping out my dryer. I threw in some doggy towels into the washer with a bleach wash and then after wiping my dryer threw the wet towels into the dryer. This was the worst I have ever had with prewashing. The color is a Hunter green. I will not be using this with light colors at all. This will not be used near any light colors. This fabric bled like a stuck hog!!

That's a cautionary tale for me! I'm not sure that I'd use that fabric at all.

How disappointed you must be. Here you were doing everything right, and had to clean out the washer and dryer. Not fair at all. Reward yourself, or whatever the right term might be. A brownie and Dr. Pepper are my favorite rewards....having such right now since I just made myself clean bathrooms.

Dina

I want to know the brand of fabric and where you got it. That sounds incredible, I have never had that happen.

I had this happen with a very dark blue batik. I used on a quilt for border...and after prewashing (many times), it still ran. I had occasion to use it again, but washed it till the color catchers stopped showing blue. If it had kept running, I would have THROWN IT OUT!

I've never prewashed and never had a problem. Washed a quilt earlier this week made from Timeless Treasures Monkeying Around (brown, red and white), using two color catchers in my front loading washer on warm water. Color catchers came out pinkish, no staining on the white.

Sorry to hear of your bad experience.


For clarification ...
What temperature of water did you use?

Were you using a top loading or front loading washer?

Thanks!

Why can't you tell us the name of the company who produced this untrustworthy fabric? Think of the travails you'll spare others?

You've reported the truth as you've experienced it. You're not spreading a groundless rumor.

Prewashing is a must for me, too. It's sad that you had such a dire experience. Fabric I've bought lately seems to shed a lot of dye unless it is a light print. If it has any strong color, it will bleed. I like sewing with batiks, but they bleed and bleed and some end up a totally different color...and yes, I paid the earth for them at a very nice quilt shop. So prewashing happens here.

I'm a prewasher as well. Once purchased a dark green fabric for a quilt backing. Washed as normal. Did not see any residue in the machine so went on my merry way and used it in the quilt. Hand quilted that queen size puppy. Washed the whole thing afterwards only to have that blanking green bleed all over the cream background of the top. I rewashed that quilt I don't know how many times again with color catchers. The background fabric came clean after the first re-wash but since the color catchers were still coming out dark, I kept going. I finally gifted it with color catchers and told them to always use those when they washed the quilt.