Do you prewash your fabric before you quilt?

If you search you will find many, many topics on prewashing. It seems to be about half of people do and half don't prewash fabric before they cut it.

Thus far I have always prewashed. I don't want to put all that work into a quilt and have one of the fabrics get wonky when washed.

Yes, I do.

Sometimes I do and sometimes I don't. I definately do for flannels because they always shrink a little. But I like the 'crinkley' look the woven cottons get when they are washed for the first time after being made.

Only if I think it will bleed. I like the wrinkled look in my quilts.

No, unless it is flannel. I always pre-wash my flannels.

I don't. I do, however, test suspicious fabrics for bleeding. (I cut a small piece off and drop it in water to see if the dye bleeds into the water, then rub the damp fabric against a piece of white fabric to see if any dye transfers.) If I find a bleeder, I wash that piece of fabric in Retayne to permanently set the color. It is very rare that I find a fabric that needs to be treated, but I am extra-cautious with reds.

Unless making a rag quilt, it's a good idea to prewash and machine dry flannel because it shrinks *so* much.

Yes, unless making a rag quilt.

I do have a hand piecing project that I didn't wash - due to it being a block of the month program. Unfortunately, it appears that my hands are sensitive to something on that line of fabric. Crazy itching, though I'm ruling out that it was a side effect of stitching while watching my son play ice hockey.

Cheers, K

ok thanks
I have never prewashed and never checked for bleeding either. I guess I have truely never thought of it bleeding or shrinking. Never had a problem.