ckcowl

the person who mentioned the Synthropol.....it is a product used in the wash to keep dye that may come out of fabric from getting on other fabrics in the wash- it does not stop the fabric from bleeding in the first place- just keeps the dye suspended in the water- protecting the fabrics around it- it is necessary to use it as the directions state (washing in HOT water- which many people do not really want to do) often used after a quilt is finished & you may be afraid one of the fabrics in the quilt might run & ruin surrounding fabrics- then the synthropol is put in the wash to help keep that from happening. if you are pre-washing yardage just wash- with regular detergent- check the rinse water- if there is dye in the water- rewash & rewash until there is no more bleeding. good quality *like the Michael Miller and Kona blacks don't tend to bleed- but there is always a chance with a deeply saturated color for some excess dye to come out in the wash so always a good idea to either pre=wash or at least test before cutting the fabric.

bearisgray

In my experience, it sometimes takes more than a five - second dip in water to see if a swatch of fsbric has excess dye or is a bleeder.

Prism99

I leave the fabric swatch in the glass of water for several hours. Dye bleeds show up as wisps of color in the water. The idea is to weed out fabrics that either (1) did not have dye set properly by the manufacturer or (2) have a lot of excess dye that the manufacturer did not rinse out adequately. These are the fabrics that need to be prewashed or, if the dye bleeding cannot be stopped, discarded.

Most fabrics these days are colorfast. It seems to me to be unnecessary to wash all fabrics just to make sure a "bleeder" fabric doesn't make it into a quilt. It's easier to test for bleeder fabrics and treat just those fabrics differently.

Regarding Synthrapol, it does require hot water to be effective. All of the quilts I make are for use in the home, so I have no problem washing them in hot water in the largest front-loader I can find at the laundromat (for their first washing only). Knock on wood, I've never had a quilt suffer damage from this treatment.

I would probably change my routine if I were making a show quilt that was not going to get heavy use in a home. In that case, I might prewash all the fabrics and skip the first washing so that the quilt looks pristine in the show. Considering my age, I have serious doubts *that* is ever going to happen!

lclang

I've never had blacks run.. however I did find out that all blacks are not equal so be sure you have enough before you start of ONE shade. They may look the same until you stand back and look again and they will surprise you at how different they can be and still be black!

jnnmn7

I use Kona black a lot. I never prewash or add color catchers and have never had a bleeding issue.

illinois

I love the look of black but some blacks tend to fade just with time.

But I want to share with all of you that recently I purchased a piece of "craft" fabric that I was reasonably certain was going to bleed. It was only a yard so was easy to handle. Not only did it bleed, it "hemorrhaged". I washed it by hand several times and the bleeding continued. I knew I couldn't use it for anything that way so explored the internet. There was suggestion of using white vinegar--that didn't work. But I resorted to table salt. I use a Folgers "can" for various chores around the house so that was the size that the yard of fabric would fit into. Added a handful of plain table salt to the water and let it soak. It worked!! The color seems to be set and the piece of fabric is beautiful. Give it a try to see if it will work for you, too!

Scissor Queen

The problem fabric isn't necessarily the one that bleeds. The problem fabric is the one that picks that dye up.

Iraxy

I love using black because it creates such a contrast. However, i have found that black is not just black. Some black is bluish and some reddish. If you are using black, make sure you have enough black for the whole project because it is hard to match. Who would have thought it??

soccertxi

I stopped using black and other dark solids and have turned to tone on tones. I used a solid black in quilt, and while it had a lovely hand, it picked up every fuzzy known to man! I find the tone on tones a better fit. They still 'read' solid, but the fuzzies are not as noticable.

I just read an article about fabrics bleeding and it is the best I have seen to date. She did some testing on her own and posted her findings.

http://vickiwelsh.typepad.com/field_...read-this.html

and an FAQ post as well:

http://vickiwelsh.typepad.com/field_...d-results.html

note that this is what has worked for her, but its always helpful to see how others solve a problem. I am bookmarking this for later use! I know I will need it someday!

gramma nancy

I am aligned with the tribe that advises using color catchers. I always prewash before a fabric is allowed to join its fellows in my stash and I always use color catchers for bright/dark colors. It may take several washings (I almost went through a whole box with an extra-wide backing fabric in a dark blue print from FabricDepot.com.)