ckcowl - interesting story, illustrates very well why quilts should be washed before gifting.

I wash my fabric when it comes in the house. No smoke or animal hairs get on the quilts. But I still wash the finished quilt, as soon as the binding is on. One reason - starch! I use it freely during piecing, and it needs to come out of the quilt. Also I don't want the recipient to feel bad if the quilt looks a bit different after the first wash. And in the (hopefully unlikely) event that I left a seam open somewhere, that gives me a chance to fix it.

Every quilt goes thru the washer and dryer before it goes out my door. The only things I don't wash first are wall hangings!

I agree they look used

Here's why I wash fab BEFORE sewing. Just another side of this coin. Please read the link on page two RE formeldihyde. Over 5000 views on this topic. Interesting, huh?

I always wash mine before gifting. My family has allergies to many products, so I wash the quilts first with the proper detergent (unscented & perfume free) and tell them the quilt is all ready to be loved, washing before use not necessary. I think this is especially important for baby quilts.

This is a very interesting thread and one I'll be thinking about. I've only given away raggy quilts and of course, they're washed when completed. The one traditional quilt I made was for my oldest DGS and I didn't wash. Guess I'll check with my DD and see what happened to it, lol.

I have found that if a gifted quilt has not been washed, many people will just store it in a closet so as not to spoil the new look. I make my quilts to be used! I wash before gifting so the quilt will already look a little used and a lot comfy. I also attach a note stating the quilt has been washed to remove any markings,etc.

I always wash quilts before gifting, except one. It was a memory quilt and I carefully avoided using starch during the making. If there was any special smell to the shirts I didn't want to wash it out. It may be weird, but that's what I did.

I wash baby quilts with Dreft.

In this case I would not wash them. I have quilts I have not washed and some other quilts I use unwashed fabric and then wash and dry on hot for the crinkled look.