There is a lot of very important information given in response to this thread.
We all do well to be aware of the chemical content of the fabrics we use and employ methods (washing) to cut back on the problems we encounter. Obviously, some are more sensitive than others. However, I would like to make the same point about harmful chemicals in other aspects of our lives such as our food chain. We need to be very careful of the content of the food we eat.

Glad I read this thread! I thought it was just me. The last few years have been getting worse...every time I let new fabric(quilts and clothing) touch my skin, I get a nasty, itchy rash where it has touched me. I have to be very cautious even carrying fabric to the laundry room, so it doesn't touch me. I never used to be this way, I could grab a bundle of cloth and be fine..so it must be something they're adding to the fabrics.
I thought of fire retardant, but it's not in quilt fabric. Dyes..I doubt everyone uses the same formulas. Sizing? Do all fabrics have it in there? I doubt it. Whatever it is, I hate it!

dust from the mfg plant, dust from shipping and who knows what the foreign mfg use in the fabric. It's a crap shoot.

Some years ago a friend & I bought one of those Cheapo Quilts made in China, just to tear it apart and see (other than slave labor) what made it so cheap. Well, the fabric was crap to start with, but the inside batting was and still is a mystery to us. We found short coarse hair, like either rats or dogs and there was A LOT OF IT. I would never want to sleep under anything made in that country.

Same with me on the irritating of the fabric. I had to start washing all of it about 5 yrs ago. I often even wash the scraps I get from others IF they haven't been washed. They must be using something different overseas now.