Go Back  Quiltingboard Forums > Main
Why am I doing this? >

Why am I doing this?

Why am I doing this?

Old 01-19-2013, 08:43 AM
  #11  
Power Poster
 
Join Date: Dec 2010
Location: Michigan
Posts: 11,276
Default

if you do choose to wash your batting, do not let it agitate AT ALL. just soak it in the tub of your top loader machine, laundry tub or bath.
PaperPrincess is offline  
Old 01-19-2013, 09:04 AM
  #12  
Super Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2010
Location: Live Oak, Texas
Posts: 6,133
Default

I remember in my youth buying some of the most beautiful fabric and looked so long for the perfect pattern. I worked so hard on it and loved it when it was finished until I washed it. It shrunk so bad it was awful I was in tears. DM cut it up for quilting and I have always bought extra and washed it as soon as I get it home. Lesson learned the hard way.
crafty pat is offline  
Old 01-19-2013, 09:20 AM
  #13  
Super Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2012
Location: Sonoma County, CA
Posts: 4,299
Default

I don't trust fabric to shrink equally in all directions, so that's part of why I pre-wash fabric. Plus there's a smell to fabric when I first bring it home - it must be the chemicals others have mentioned (though thankfully I don't seem to be sensitive to any of them).

Batting...I like the crinkle and so far I haven't noticed batting shrinking more in one direction than another, so I don't bother to pre-shrink. If it's something I don't want to crinkle I use poly batting. But usually I sort of depend on the crinkle to help distract from quilting boo-boos! ;-)
Sewnoma is offline  
Old 01-19-2013, 12:02 PM
  #14  
Super Member
 
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Southern Indiana
Posts: 5,052
Default

Originally Posted by Annaquilts View Post
I stopped prewashing both fabric and batting. The only time I prewash if I do not trust fabric. I now wash the finnished quilt on warm with color catchers and then dry on medium because I like the crinkled feel.I never prewash batting because I feel it would damage the integrity of the batting since it is not meant to be washed unless quilted.
Me too!!!!
Jackie Spencer is offline  
Old 01-19-2013, 12:22 PM
  #15  
Power Poster
 
Join Date: Feb 2009
Location: Northern Michigan
Posts: 12,861
Default

i never wash my batting- but always my fabrics. it removes sizing, oils, grim, smells (lots of people fondle bolts of fabric before you buy it)
if i have a bleeder i know right away- if i have a (sub-standard) fabric that frays or separates- i know; i just feel better about handling it once it's been laundered & is ready for what ever i want to do with it. I generally purchase bolts of batting- or packaged ones that have not been (fondled) by the general public before i get them- so i wait until the quilt if finished/quilted & bound- then launder the finished product- that's when my batting gets washed.
ckcowl is offline  
Old 01-19-2013, 12:35 PM
  #16  
Super Member
 
Join Date: Mar 2011
Location: Mechanicsville, IA
Posts: 1,497
Default

Quilters Dream battings have only minimal shrink. Only Dream Orient mentions a 3% shrink.
Silver Needle is offline  
Old 01-19-2013, 01:35 PM
  #17  
Super Member
 
Join Date: Jun 2011
Location: Michigan. . .FINALLY!!!!
Posts: 6,726
Default

I wish I had pictures of the condition my hands and legs were in before my dermatologist and I figured out that the chemicals in fabric processing caused a severe flare up. I looked like a burn victim. I have a yet to be named autoimmune disorder that when exposed to those chemicals sent my immune system in overdrive. I have a special cream that I have to apply after fondling fabrics in a quilt or fabric store. I have an injection that I self administer twice a month and I have a large dose of steroids I take weekly. I will have to be on these medications the rest of my life. This is why I pre wash everything.
auntpiggylpn is offline  
Old 01-19-2013, 02:45 PM
  #18  
Super Member
 
ArtsyOne's Avatar
 
Join Date: Sep 2011
Location: Canadian in Minnesota
Posts: 3,078
Default

I prewash all my fabrics and then dry in the dryer without fabric softener because I make mainly baby quilts and don't want to cause any skin reactions. I also want to preshrink and prevent color migration.
ArtsyOne is offline  
Old 01-19-2013, 03:12 PM
  #19  
Power Poster
 
sewbizgirl's Avatar
 
Join Date: Oct 2010
Location: Mississippi
Posts: 25,893
Default

I discovered that prewashing the batting not only shrank it a bit, but also made it thicker. I got a thicker quilt, but less crinkly, when I prewashed my cotton batting. So now I decide if I want a thicker, less crinkly quilt, or a thinner, very crinkly quilt? That determines if I prewash the batt or not. I always pre-wash the fabric, unless it's small pre-cuts, to get rid of the chemicals in it.
sewbizgirl is offline  
Old 01-19-2013, 03:52 PM
  #20  
Super Member
Thread Starter
 
Gail B's Avatar
 
Join Date: Apr 2010
Location: Smoky Lake, Alberta, Canada - Coolidge, AZ
Posts: 1,638
Default

Thank you all for your comments. I will continue to prewash my fabric. I am so happy to be part of this board - so many wonderful people willing to share.
Gail B is offline  
Related Topics
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post
Sisty88
Main
15
06-03-2014 02:11 AM
deedum
Main
127
10-31-2011 06:06 PM
vicki75
Main
16
10-11-2011 08:24 PM
butterflywing
General Chit-Chat (non-quilting talk)
15
01-19-2011 12:13 PM

Posting Rules
You may not post new threads
You may not post replies
You may not post attachments
You may not edit your posts

BB code is On
Smilies are On
[IMG] code is On
HTML code is On
Trackbacks are Off
Pingbacks are Off
Refbacks are Off


FREE Quilting Newsletter