Dolphyngyrl

Nope too time consuming

mengler

Only flannel

mojo11

I also do this. Prewash everything.

Stitchnripper

I think this is one of those personal preference issues like steam vs no steam and starch vs no starch. We have had numerous discussions on there topics and there are lots of different preferences and no one right answer.

Sew Freak

Always!!!!!! Just to clarify...I put the fabric in the laundry tub (usually) filled with only hot water and let sit till it gets cold then I wring it out and put it in the washer on a hot rinse....no detergent. On FQs I let them sit in empty plastic ice cream buckets filled w/hot water...those that bleed I put them in hot water again till it no longer bleeds.

gmcsewer

A sewing group I am in has found that Hobby Lobby fabric shrinks 8 inches in 1 yard. So If that is all I can find that I like at the price I will wash from now on. The store knows about this shrinkage and is trying to find a different supplier so will have to inquire again next time I buy.

cathyvv

Almost always pre-wash. Exception is pre-cuts. Allergic and chemical sensitivities require it.

GingerK

I pre-rinsein water as hot as I can stand. Except for backing--that actually goes into the washer with a very small amount of soap. I pre-rinsed 20 FQ's today and dried in a hot dryer. About half showed some colour in the water---not a lot but maybe enough that could have bled into the adjoining fabric in a quilt. My reasons as stated above--no nasty surprises---and I don't sneeze or wheeze when working with the fabric.

MacThayer

I prewash everything. I do this to check for bleeding colors and shrinkage. I didn’t used to wash precuts until I finished one quilt top that was quite complicated. Of course all of the fabrics had been prewashed EXCEPT for the jelly roll I used for the places where I needed sashing. Mind you, it took me 3 months to piece the quilt top alone (it was king sized, 108” X 108”). I did the backing, quilting, and binding. All total, it took me just over 5 months to finish (could have done it faster but was working full time.). Then I washed it in the super large washer at the laundromat. I used tepid water, small amount of Ivory liquid soap and 3 color catchers. Dried it on low until it was still damp, and tossed it over two laundry lines in the back yard. When I went out to inspect it, I was horrified to find that the darker colors from the jelly roll had bled all over the lighter colored blocks. Plus the fabric from the jelly roll shrank badly, warping the entire quilt. I went into meltdown mode. All that time, effort and materials that went into the quilt were wasted. It took me 6 months before I could even go near my sewing machine. Ever since then, I buy the fabric and cut out my own ‘precuts’ from prewashed fabric, or I use Fat Quarters that can be prewashed. But that’s just me, and I’m certain other people have their own way of doing it.

MacThayer

Jeanette Frantz

The first bed-sized quilt I made was a whole cloth with red borders. I did everything to that fabric (and it was a good quality fabric) and it still bled -- I used vinegar, epsom salts -- it still bled. I was about to consign the fabric to the trash, but before doing that I did some searching on the internet. I had a cousin who lived in Northwest Oklahoma, had her own quilt shop, and was more or less my mentor when it came to making quilts. My cousin had advised me of some of the methods of treating fabric to stop the bleeding -- but I found a Laundry Treatment Dye Fixative, which I ordered. It arrived within a couple of days, so I treated the red fabric that had bled profusely, and after the treatment, washing and drying, I re-tested the same fabric and it bled no more. I've since made a red and white log cabin quilt, but I make it a practice -- that I wash every piece of fabric that comes in this house because I have asthma and I just won't risk having a serious attack over fabric -- it's not worth it. I generally test a strip about 3/4" wide by 6" long by putting the strips in hot water and soak for about 10 minutes. If it bleeds, the fabric gets treated with the dye fixative product, washed, dried and ironed. Reds are particularly bad about bleeding, but I've seen it happen with lots of different colors -- so, I don't risk it, I test the fabric to determine if it bleeds -- if it does, I treat it, then wash, dry and iron. I've never had a failure with the product I use -- that's why I continue to use it. Discretion is the better part of valor -- I use color catchers when I wash a quilt, whether it's small enough that I can wash it at home, or, if it's queen size or larger, I take it to the laundromat which has the giant-size machines and wash it there. JMHO. I don't wash precuts because they're a pain in the neck -- but then I don't buy them either -- that's just my choice.