Starch/Sizing
 

Is there anyone else on this board that thinks fabrics should be able to 'stand on their own' without the need to use starch or sizing to make them usable?

I am working on a simple baby quilt right now and decided to starch the fabrics. Just for me- I don't find any benefit. There are so many who swear by starch I thought I would give it a try. Maybe for curves or appliqué or bias I will give another try.

I rarely starch fabrics before cutting - applique is one time I will use it more often.

I think it largely depends on if you're a pre-washer or not. If you pre-wash, you'll probably need to starch just to stabilize the fabric comparable to what comes off the bolt. If you don't pre-wash...probably no need to starch. I'm a pre-washer and a starcher. I use the liquid sta-flo at about a 50/50 mix. Not to heavy but certainly better than no starch. If something is really flimsy I can always spray multiple times.

I usually do not prewash fabrics and find it unnecessary to starch them. They seem to come off the bolt with enough sizing/starch to be stable for cutting and piecing.

I heavily starch a fabric, whether it was prewashed or not, if I am planning to cut it on the bias, or if I am going to use it for a quilt backing when I intend to quilt on my domestic machine.

If I prewash fabric, then I always starch to restore stability to the fabric before cutting.

I use a heavy solution of starch on fabric that will be the background for machine applique, whether the fabric has been prewashed or not. Heavy starching eliminates the need for me to use a stabilizer underneath the background.

I spray starch tops during my final press before quilting.

For frame quilting, I use spray starch on the backing as I load the backing onto the rollers (which I learned from a Sharon Schamber video). The top is already spray starched.

My favorite sewing notion is starch! I get the jitters if I am down to one jug of concentrate.

If you are doing embroidery on it and don't want to use the typical stabilizers the yes definitlely use the starch. Lit also helps keep the bias from stretching.

I only use starch or siziing if I am doing an applique.

Yep! I don't starch. Tried it once or twice but really don't feel the need to add that extra step

I only starch if something is prewashed or if I am doing a lot of bias sewing.

I do not pre-wash, and have been making quilts since the mid 70's, The only time I use sizing is for applique

Can you use less stabilizers if you starch? I do a lot of machine embroidery and this would save me a lot of money.

I love well startched fabric for sewing/quilting. I also don't mind the process of doing it. I find it restful as well as "part of my process"

I'm not a pre-washer but I starch anything that I'm going to be working with at least 2 hours before, then I either air dry or put in the drier for a few minutes.

I always pre-wash fabric and never use starch. Tried it once and hated it.

Can't help but wonder if too much starch, is why some quilters need to constantly change their machine needles.

I don't embroider, so don't know if it works for all types of embroidery. My recommendation is to try it. Spray starching is definitely not enough, though. A 1:1 solution of Sta-Flo and water works for my machine applique, and I expect that is where you would start if doing embroidery too.

Keep in mind that I wash my quilts after they are finished. If you don't want to wash your embroidery, then you may not want to use starch.

i prewash all my material, so yes i starch heavy

I was never a starcher and was getting aggravated with my seams not matching or material stretching. After reading many on the board who did and why, I started. Now that I heavy starch my fabric, my seams are better.( some still don't match, but it's getting there) I am now reading that many will starch their backing, which I never have, and I am going to starch the backing on the quilt top I just finished. Hopefully this will eliminate some of the puckering I've been getting when I machine quilt. I guess it's like the age old question " To wash or not wash your fabric" before cutting.

I just started using starch. As a matter of fact I posted a question about using it correctly. I did not get an answer to this question. It was said that you should not store starched fabric because it could draw bugs. Is that true of all starch, including Niagara, or just the homemade starch? If you can't store it what do you do wth scraps, wash them? I'm with Grannyrosie, trying for more accuracy thus less headaches.

Reb, I believe any kind of starch can attract bugs. This is because starch is made from organic materials such as potatoes, rice, corn, etc. Sizing is chemically manufactured and therefore does not attract bugs, but sizing stiffens fabric considerably less than starch does.

A lot depends on where you live. In warm, humid climates where there are a lot of bugs then storage of starched fabric might present a problem. In MN and WI it has been a non-issue for me. Some of my starched fabric has been stored for years without attracting bugs.

I'm in upstate NY so I'm probably good too. Thanks for responding.

I am in the process of making two civil war quilts with very small blocks. Our instructor tell us to use starch on the fabric before cutting and also while piecing. When doing this my blocks are absolutely perfect so I do believe that the starch helps with precision.

I prewash the fabric (as soon as it comes home from the fabric store). For the most part I purchase high quality fabric because I'm putting in a great deal of time and effort into making a quilt and to chinch out on fabric quality isn't an option for me. I do not starch unless I have a fabric that just seems flimsy and I am having trouble with. I will also starch slightly if my seams don't lie down well (as they did not on the bargello quilt).

For me starch is a tool when issues arise, not something I use all the time.

I'm learning to starch every triangle that I use. It really prevents stretching the bias. I made placemats that were all composed of triangles. I was able to perfectly match up point because of using starch. I shudder to think what they would have turned out like had I not used the starch. I am currently making a quilt that is set on point. After the top is together, you cut the edges and end up with triangles. Before I make those cuts, I will be heavily starching those pieces so they stay true to their shape.

I do agree that using starch/sizing as a tool can be useful.

I still think using starch/sizing to try to bulk up flimsy fabric that is floppier than the surroumding fabrics is a waste. What happens when the next person washes the item?