judyyoungs

I am going to make a fall colored quilt that will be pieced using 12" strips that will be long enough to go from one side of the bed to the other. The strips will be different colors and will also have felted wool appliques of pumpkins, acorns and leaves on them in appropriate colors. Between each strip will be a row of fall colored triangle with a matching border. In order to get the colors I wanted for the strips, I had to buy woven cotton and homespun. Has anyone here ever mixed these fabric, and if so, were you happy with the results? This quilt is going to be very time consuming and expensive, and I really don't want to ruin it. I will appreciate all your opinions.

Tippy

I think that before I embarked on the whole quilt I would do a little testing. (it's something I've wondered also). I'd cut two equal sized pieces one of homespun and one of cotton.. then wash, dry, press and re-measure to see if they shrink at the same rate.. this has been my biggest question. Also I'd test them all for colorfastness.
If the tests come out OK.. I say go for it. Many art quilts use multiple types of fabrics.

quilticing

Loose woven fabrics will most likely shrink much more than quilting cottons grade.

redvette54

I'd make sure everything was pre-washed first. Get the shinking out of the way.

ckcowl

as long as you pre-wash the homespuns it will be fine- i use homespuns and flannels in lots of quilts with other cottons- including corduroy's and denim....and i love working with wool!
as long as the finished product can be taken care of all together it can go together in my book...and all of those fabrics work well together.

grdmachris

As the others have said prewash. I know that homespuns can shrink about 3-4 inches per yard. I have this thing about mixing fabrics. I think about the use of it. Wallhanging I would use anthying because the washing part is minimal. The bed or lap quilt will get laundered more and It will change the types of fabrics I use. Wools will wash different and flannels will do up different. If you feel adventurous go for it. Good Luck.

PaperPrincess

I would measure, wash , dry, remeasure the homespun repeating the steps until it stops shrinking. The cotton should also be pre washed. The weave of the homespun may tighten up a bit if it shrinks a lot, but you may want to consider using a bit shorter stitch length when you do your piecing. Sounds intriguing. Post a pic when it's done.

simplyme

I have used them both together with good results. The overall quilt will have a more country look. Is that what you are going for?

judyyoungs

Thank you everyone for your advice. Now for another question...This quilt is large enough and with all the wool, I know it can be washed, but I would only have it dry cleaned. Using this method, do I still need to do all the prewashing? Thanks