Prewashing fabric when mixing with precuts...

[lsmithbendor]

When I learned to quilt (which was a long time ago, I've just now taken it up again) - It was impressed upon me to ALWAYS prewash the fabric. Now, life has changed and I don't have a lot of time and I LOVE the new precuts out there! I can tell you already, I don't plan on washing the strips - so does that mean I should be careful not to mix in fabric that has ALREADY been washed to avoid uneven shrinkage? Any suggestions welcome! Lisa in Oregon

[Quilt Vader]

Re: Prewashing fabric when mixing with precuts...

Lisa - welcome back to the art and joy of quilting Many changes over t ime - and pre-wash or not is a big fuss amongst the quilt-elite. In times past, and even recently in some kinds of stores, the fabrics were not being woven as tightly - or as wide - as they are now. The newer fabrics, especially in the Quilt focus shops, are pretty much safe to use without prewashing - my exceptions might be some of the reds and purples .. but they can be checked before using by rinsing a piece in hot water to see if it bleeds Also,if it is tightly woven, not looking like gauze, I'd trust it not to shrink noticabley. Look at the older fabrics - are they thin or more sturdy feeling. Is the weave even. Is the straight of grain pretty straight.. And important - do they look good to you? give it a go - and enjoy it.
I would not mix old and new for something I want to be 'heritage', regardless if any have been pre-washed.
In the many acres of fabrics I have used, I have not had any bleeds in newer fabrics.
Now wait a few minutes, s omeone will have more info from their own experience.
Where in Oregon?

[lsmithbendor]

Re: Prewashing fabric when mixing with precuts...

Whew! Thanks for the input!

I had the quilt store quality with my daughter just yesterday who was horrified when I told her what I paid for the jellyroll I bought. I said here, feel this and gave her a piece of "$3.99 fabric store" fabric and then asked her to compare it to the jellyroll fabric. Her eyes lit up and she said "I get it! The quilt shop fabric is like MAC makeup...and the other stuff is like Wet N Wild!!" LOL - whatever frame of reference works I guess! I certainly use the fabric store fabric....money is sometimes an issue - but when I CAN afford it, I love the Moda precuts - beautiful, fun fabric.

I live in Bend, Oregon - Home of several nice quilt shops

[Quilt Vader]

Re: Prewashing fabric when mixing with precuts...

Hi again - love the reference point! She REALLY got it! You know y ou are going to have to name a quilt that way! I had to chuckle at your daughters response to the price. I had a rather extensive overlapped line up of fabrics on my ironing board - when a friend got busy handling and petting, and then asked, what does fabric run now days - 3, 4 a yard? I just stood there, my mouth wouldn't even drop open, after a moment of silence she looked up and saw what must have been a totally blank face - and said, I take it I'm a bit out of date on that? She has an adult daughter at home, I will share your daughters comment, she will get a laugh out of it.
Which jelly roll did you get? have you tried the other cuts? I have a pile of charm packs - at first hought they were dumb - and then I started using them - did a disappearing 9 patch for my DSIL and it worked out great.. but.. not all brands of charms are the exact same size! I will be more careful next t ime I try to mix n match them.
Do you have a project in mind?
Are you going to Sisters next year? I belong to an online group at HGTV, several (60) of us are meeting for the weekend in Portland and will bus over.. I am from Portland so I will stay on and visit with my family .. 2 birds with one stone thing.

[shell.scraps]

Re: Prewashing fabric when mixing with precuts...

I don't prewash my precuts...heck ... I'm evil...I don't prewash anything!! but I do have to be aware that when I steam press my fabrics they will shrink...so I am generous on my cutting.......I've had many projects where I press my blocks and then I lose 1/4" all the way around....makes for a very frustrating time when you have everything figured out and then you are suddenly short!!

[lsmithbendor]

Re: Prewashing fabric when mixing with precuts...

I wrote a wordy reply, Quilt Vader, which was then eaten by my computer. :cry: So I'll just do a quick relist:

Current project: 9 patch from a gypsy rose jelly roll - wish I had coordinated it more instead of all scrappy, but quilt and learn, eh?

To do:
THe Caroler Charm pack: Table runner for christmas.
Sweet Charm pack: Undecided.
Swanky honeybun: strip quilt with 15 yo daughter (beginner - but hooked).

To Finish: Let's not go there....

YOU? Love to hear!

Sisters: Missed it this year and felt very sorry for myself indeed. Totally plan on being there next year!

Other poster (lost your name already, sorry!) So glad to hear i'm not the only (evil one) non-washer, LOL, and good to hear about the steam shrinkage, that never occured to me!

[sewhot]

Re: Prewashing fabric when mixing with precuts...

Hahahaah, I love the comparison too!! Fits perfect! You really do get what you pay for! *only exception however, is the Daily Deal, of course!
You Girls are so awesome with all the questions and answers.....this is the best place for advice, no?!

[Quilt Vader]

Re: Prewashing fabric when mixing with precuts...

Best place for.... YES !!

[toggpine]

Re: Prewashing fabric when mixing with precuts...

I can't figure out how to pre-wash the pre-cut stuff without a lot of extra work, so I'll let it go. I do pre-wash all of my other yardage though. I want to know how much fabric I am going to loose to shrinkage. It also seems to help straighten the grain lines before I square those up too. I run a narrow 3 thread serge down the edges before I wash too. Then if I have to run all the way to the edge, I can pick out the threads. It also stores better and I don't have those huge string tangles in the washer or dryer either. I once made a quilt with a flannel backing and I ended up being short nearly half of a yard after it shrank up in the washer and dryer. It shrank both length and width-wise, not something you want to have happen after you have already applied it to the quilt.
I figure the fabric should show it's true nature when I run it through the laundry the first time. Sometimes I get a nice surprise. When the sizing comes out, some of the less expensive fabrics have a pretty nice hand to them. I expect most of my quilts and projects to go into the wash and come out with little to no problems. I probably don't have to do all of this stuff, but I haven't had any problems either.

[Quilt Vader]

Re: Prewashing fabric when mixing with precuts...

Just a suggetion, you really don't want to wash those pre-cuts; things like flannel MUST be laundered before use.. I always runit through at least once, and then use it with new fabric..
Muslin is another one, if it's good quality,with a good hand, it is likely ok, but if it is not the good stuff... wash it before using it.
My BIG mistake was not realizint the stuff that will take a color stain off from a run will also pull the color out of the fabric.. very quickly - ruined my 2nd quilt, for my grandduaghters hope chest, tryhing to remove a color transfer that happend just being folded. I learned a lot that day about checking for colorfastness. I still don't pre-wash,just check some colors for colorfastness.. red. purple.

[debinmalaga]

Re: Prewashing fabric when mixing with precuts...

What do you mean when you say fabric has a "nice hand"?

Deb

[toggpine]

Re: Prewashing fabric when mixing with precuts...

The softness, the weave, the way it drapes and handles when you work with it. Basically the way it feels is what I understand "hand" to mean.
The true nature of a fabric can be hidden by the addition of starches, sizing, and inks. Sometimes those silky, expensive cottons don't feel any better than the cheaper ones once they go through the washer and dryer. Again, you need to pay attention to the thread count and the weave. If the weave looks like gauze you probably aren't going to be getting a very high quality product.

[debinmalaga]

Re: Prewashing fabric when mixing with precuts...

Ah, makes sense, thanks toggpine.

Is the thread count listed on the bolt of fabric?

Deb

[toggpine]

Re: Prewashing fabric when mixing with precuts...

No. I haven't seen the count actually printed on the bolt. You can usually tell that it has a higher thread count because the fabric is finer and more smooth. Next time you are in a discount store like Target or Walmart check out the difference between the 180, 200, and 200+ count linens. You can see the difference better when they are all side by side.

[Quilt Vader]

Re: Prewashing fabric when mixing with precuts...

Just an aside.. I know no one suggested using them, just feeling them, but those bed linens really aren't usually the best for quilt backs, they are tight woven and the threads get cut when needling, and the sturdy faric is not the most comfortable .. I have used a few anyway, and they are not the best feeling quilts..