Unwashed top but washed backing?

[Auntpiggylpn]

I see that by now you have had some good advice and you should just continue finishing the quilt and wash when totally finished. You would be asking for a huge mess and big trouble to wash an unfinished quilt top. You would get unnecessary stress on all of your seams and you could also get fraying of the edges including your seam allowances. Think about when you pre wash fabrics without zigzagging the edges. There is often fraying of those edges. This would spell disaster for your 1/4" seam allowance. This isn't an issue in a finished built because the seam allowances are protected by the batting and the quilting.