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I always wash all of my quilts large and small art quilts in my front load washer with the same detergent that I use on my clothes, on delicate with an extra spin. The dry them completely in the dryer, of course I use a color catcher cloth thru the whole process... I have found that even if the fabric doesn't run sometimes the thread will.
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it depends on the quilt. i make my quilts to be used and when i finish one i toss it in the wash with regular laundry detergent, i add fabric softener, i toss it in the dryer...if it's summer time and i can i hang them outside. they just get better and better with washing. soften and fluff.....ahhhhhhhhhhh i love fresh quilts!
if it is an heirloom or antique you want to get with the experts and take much more care. but even the quilts i have made that the owners value highly or have been appraised fairly highly i have tossed into the wash and dryer...if it's big i go to a laundry may if it fits in my machines i do it at home but i never let a quilt go out the door that has not been washed and dried by me at least once. i want to make sure they are going to hold up, no color issues, no pulled seams. besides there is something special about a freshly laundered quilt. |
I wash in cold water, gentle cycle, hang to partial dry and then into the dryer. Love how the shrinking makes the quilt puff a bit.
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Originally Posted by Prism99
Front-loading washers are easier on quilts than top-loaders. If all you have is a top-loading washing machine, you can use that -- just don't let it agitate. It's the agitation that is hard on a quilt. Fill washer with water, add soap, stop the washer, add quilt, and *hand* agitate the quilt by pushing it up and down. When finished washing, move control to spin and spin out the wash water. Let fill with rinse water and again stop the machine before it has a chance to agitate. Hand agitate, then move control to spin to spin out the water.
If the quilt is large, be careful about drying it in a home dryer. If you have to pack it in tightly, you could end up actually burning the quilt and damaging the dryer. Laundromats can be a good place to take a quilt -- front loading washing machines available and large dryers. A washed quilt can be dried outside if you lay out a large flat sheet first, then the quilt, and then cover with another large sheet and anchor the edges down. Do *not* expose a quilt to sunlight. Light fades fabric quickly. Some quilters like to use Orvus soap to wash their quilts. It is very gentle. Quilt shops have it, but it's much cheaper if you buy it in a place like Fleet Farm (used to wash horses). Any gentle soap is fine for an everyday quilt. |
Originally Posted by quilterella
Originally Posted by EasyPeezy
I wash mine with small amount of Woolite Zero Extra Delicates (it's a
very mild soap with no phosphates) then in the dryer on low/medium heat. with Synthrapol on HOT. After this it will be cold wash only. |
If the quilt is not dirty and really just needs "freshening up" I have tossed mine in the dryer with a damp bathtowel and a dryer sheet.
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