Preshrink Wrap N Zap?
 

I am planning to make some bowl cozies for a friend of mine. I will use 100% cotton material and thread and wrap n zap for the batting. Directions say to preshrink the batting as it will likely shrink. What about the cotton I use to make the cozies. If they are washed should both be preshrunk or does it matter? I am wondering what others have done. I have only one cozy and it was a gift to me so I have no idea about the material or batting that was used. Comments would be appreciated.

While I have not done any of these, if you are going to pre shrink the wrap n zap, I would do the fabric as well .just saying ...

I strongly recommend washing/ shrinking all washable components before cutting them.
fabrics do not shrink the same - so when an item made of unwashed materials is washed, it may get puckery.

I made several bowl holders with wrap n zap before I was told to preshrink the batting. Of course when they were washed they really shrunk up to be too small to use. So then I shrunk some and it came out so thick I was unable to use most of it because it made the holders too thick. I was then told to do more quilting on the holder before I put them together that seemed to work some better. Unfortunately I purchased a roll of wrap and zap. Been trying to use it in pot holders. I believe there is 100% cotton batting that would work. Anyone have any ideas.

I went ahead and preshrunk the wrap n zap as instructed. After soaking as they directed I had a heavy wet mess but I squeezed as much water out as I could and was careful not to actually wring the material. I spread it out on my dining table and stretched and smoothed it as best I could being especially careful in the areas that seemed thick. I was very disappointed at that point. I left the material overnight to dry and it did look much better in the morning. There were no longer any thick places although the material did seem a bit more thick and fluffy. I decided to go ahead and make the cozies and cut my pieces. I did not shrink the cotton that I used. I don't have a reason for not doing it. i guess at that point I didn't want something else to contend with. I just finished my first two cozies and they look very nice. They are bit thicker than the one i was given but i have no idea what was used for batting in that one. I carefully trimmed the wrap n zap as close to the seams as I could to eliminate whatever bulk I could. I found it hard to press the seam before topstitching but did the best I could and then basted before I did the actual topstitching. The cozies look very nice now but I don't know what to expect once they are washed. I wanted to use these as a gift so may make another and wash just to see what happens. I have read they are never to be machine washed but should be washed by hand and not placed in the dryer. I did not use hot water when i washed by hand and squeezed out as much water as I could before placing my bowl upside down on the counter and shaping the cozie over it to dry. It came out fine. As I mentioned, I do not know what materials were used in the one that was gifted to me so i can only relay my experience. I think the suggestion of more quilting would be good to do. I don't like the long pointy corners so i used a cup as a guide to round the corners of mine and I was happy with the results. All comments appreciated.

I have used regular cotton batting with cotton thread without any problems.

They look great!

My friend has made hundreds of bowl cozies in different sizes that she sells at craft shows and to friends. She does not pre-wash the batting or the material and they come out very nice. I have several of them in different sizes, have washed them in the machine and let dry on top of the dryer. They are still very nice. By the way, she buys the Wrap n"Zap in rolls from Wal-Mart on line at a good price.