Quilt Kit help please
 

So, I have a Star Wars quilt kit (the husband is a major fan/geek and yes, we have tickets for tomorrow) which I will need to make for Christmas. Unfortunately, my Fons & Porter order of a better/larger Star Wars quilt seems to be lost in the mail somewhere :(

At any rate, this kit is two large pieces of fabric connected together in one piece that need to be cut apart. Hope that makes sense.

I'm not sure if I should wash the fabric first or not. Might make the cutting worse/harder.

Thoughts.

TIA

Lynda

I am pre washer, but I would leave the panels unwashed. Panels are notoriously printed off grain and I think washing is just going to make it worse. If they don't arrive in time for Christmas, just cut the photo out of the brochure (or print it off from online) and put it in a card under the tree.
May the force be with you.

Thank you. That was my thinking about prewashing the panels.

I bought this kit after I ordered the one from Fons & Porter as a fall back in case the other one didn't get here. Very glad I did.

Prewash Before cutting.

I never prewash panels. They are never straight so you might have to do some sliver trimming. Good Luck. I attended college with Mark Hamill and got to know him being a tech on a few theater shows he was in during 1970.

I never prewash kits you might lose some to shrinkage and not have enough, you just never know if extra is given, and since most shrinkage is due to batting I wouldn't wash unless you have allergies

How neat is that..to have attended college with Mark Hamill!

Dina

I never prewash anything. I've made over 300 quilts, and 150 table runners/toppers. I NEVER prewash, never had a problem.

Thanks Lynnie!

I'll never prewash anything again unless it sat in the closet too long.

I never prewash. I have made many quilts and never had an issue. Good luck with your project, I'm sure he will love it. Merry Christmas.

Yesterday, I starched the heck out of the two panels and went for it. Gotta say that I will never buy a kit like this again. The skewing of the fabric was awful, but it's cut. I start sewing this morning. And no, the Fons & Porter kit still isn't here.

Well, I guess you now understand why some of us don't pre-wash! I don't pre-wash anything as I like the finish. Why wash that finish off, only to have to starch it? And starch may attract bugs! I understand why some pre-wash because of allergies or if the fabric is old and needs to smell better but, if it's new and a printed design, it's gonna stay "as is" for me.

Hope your Fons and Porter shipment arrives. I mailed an important letter to a town within 30 miles of me 2 years ago and it still hasn't arrived! Admittedly, this is a poor time of year to expect prompt delivery but maybe even moreso that people want Christmas packages to arrive in a timely manner. Glad you have a Plan B.

...glad to see there are some no prewashers here...I thought I was the only one...hiding in the bushes....and I don't use starch at all either.....so far so good - 20+yrs.....

...and I have acquired several Amish hand quilted and these were not washed after completion either....nor are they starched.....and they are beautiful.....

Thanks, Linnie. I never pre-wash either, and I have suffered no misfortunes. My best buddy is a pre-washer fanatic, but it just has not rubbed off on me.

FYI, I used Mary Ellen's Best Press which I understand doesn't attract bugs. I have too sensitive skin to not wash all of my fabric before using.

As for the Fons and Porter shipment, I ordered the kit two days before US Thanksgiving and it shipped on November 30. I have NEVER waiting this long for anything I have ever ordered from the US or from Europe for that matter.

At any rate, Darth Vader will have to fill in for now.

Do you have a tracking # for the shipment? I would send an email now & contact by phone(?) on Mon. I know it isn't really their problem after shipping but it doesn't hurt to make them aware of the problem. Maybe they will send another or give you a refund. 3 wks is really too long.

Others have said don't pre wash a panel. They are squiffed already and washing makes them worse. Sorry about your Fons and Porter pattern. It will arrive as soon as you finish the panel.

No, there is no tracking #. In fact, they don't even bother telling you when they ship your order. I had to call them to even find out that.

I sent them an email on Friday expressing my displeasure and suggested that they 1. send emails to customers when orders are shipped and 2. they use tracking so customers can know where their orders are.

I do not prewash...but if you have the Darth Vader quilt kit that I have with all the red, black, and white I would suggest using a Color Catcher the first time you go to wash it. If you don't mind my asking, do you have a link for the Fons and Porter Star Wars quilt? I hope you have received your Fons and Porter order.

I have a couple panels and prewashed before cutting. I used my kitchen table as an ironing surface. I also lightly starched and smoothed them out before ironing. I wanted all the wonkiness and quirks straightened out before I cut. I am a prewasher of everything and I do it in hot water and hot dryer. Mine turned out well and I had no problem squaring up the fabric.

I wash everything I can before I cut it - especially panels -

I want to know what the fabrics will do when "left to their own devices"

Sort of like a plastic surgeon wanting the make-up off the patient's face before starting to work on him/her!

Some good news in that I finished the Darth Vader quilt top. I was going to finish the quilt for Christmas by picking up the backing fabric close to home on Friday, but that didn't work out. I feel like my efforts to make a Star Wars quilt are doomed.

I ended up not watching the panels as they were not straight to begin with and figured that would only make it far worse.

Unfortunately, the quilt kit has not yet arrived, nor have the Fons & Porter website responded to my email from Friday.
Unless they are already on vacation, that is just ignorant.

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Wanted to let everyone know that the kit finally arrived today, 23 days after being put in the post in the U.S.

Therefore, the husband is getting the Darth Vader quilt top along with the Fons & Porter magazine that has the X-Wing kit pattern in it. I typed up and attached a little note to the magazine about how my adventure to sew him a Star Wars quilt has been anything but easy.