MadQuilter

Wash - usually. Starch - generally not.

I have a "Why you should prewas fabrics" story. I made curtains for my sewing room - just basic rectangles and I lined them with muslin. All the fabric came from my stash. I was so proud of myself that the pattern lined up and everything, and then I washed them...... Well, the lining shrank at a different rate than the main fabric and suddenly my curtain looked like it wore a slip that was too long.

Stitchnripper

99% of the time I don't wash or starch. I do wash and dry flannel though. If you put this topic into the search function you will see many different opinions on the topic.

Flying_V_Goddess

I do for several reasons.

*Shrinkage. Even if its listed as pre-washed or its a batik that's been through so many dye baths and rinses (some quilters think that all the rinsing equals no shrinkage or bleeding and that definatly was not the case with a lot of my batiks and hand dyes).

*Excess dye. Lately a lot of the fabrics I've been using have had to have a Retayne bath to set in the dye. I put them in the wash with a Shout color catcher after rinsing and air drying just in case I didn't rinse it out enough after the Retayne bath (some of those fabrics shed a bit of extra dye during the bath).

*Its got this "new fabric feel" to it, but that's not how its going to be once the quilt is washed. So why not just start off with fabric that's already washed BEFORE you put it into the quilt? It gonna be washed anyways!

*You never really truely know where your fabric has been and fabric gets dirty. Think of all the people who handle the fabric before it reaches the store and then how many quilters feel it up before you buy it. On the more extreme side, there have been horror stories where someone bought fabric from a garage sale or something and later found th fabric had bugs in it. I buy a lot of things off eBay and definatly pre-wash just for the reason that I'm not entirely sure where its coming from or where its been. Particularly if I'm buying used band t-shirts for my quilt...it might be gently used, but for all I know it could of been previously worn by some sweaty guy at a concert. That thought makes me want to throw it in the wash.

In a nutshell, I'd just rather be safe than sorry and not possibly ruin a perfectly good quilt.

Lindsey

I wash most of my fabric before using and then i do spray starch before cutting and sewing. If the pattern calls for the fabric not to be washed then I don't or if its a precut kit I don't wash..

ghostrider

I always pre-wash for many reasons: to remove the formaldehyde and other chemicals, to pre-shrink it, to get rid of loose dyes (runners are rewashed with Retayne), so it's ready for fusibles, and to tighten the weave. I never starch, ever.

sahm4605

only wash batiks that i suspect will bleed and any other that might. just in case. otherwise i don't worry about it. just starch and go.

Willa

I use to not wash first but then I was with my aunt once and she does wash first. Luckily she did on one of the fabrics she got from Wal Mart cause the print faded so bad in the middle she ended with a white streak there so now I wash first.

GrannieAnnie

absolutely wash in the hottest water to pre-shrink it and to get rid of the first bleed if it's going to do so.

TanyaL

I RINSE it in HOT, HOT water to see if it bleeds and get any shrinkage taken care of, wring it out and hang it to dry to see how it wrinkles. Then iron, starch, cut and sew. If it doesn't wrinkle and the pattern is appropriate it may go into clothes not quilts.

Mariposa

Yep! I always wash and dry my fabrics! Don't like the fumes, chemicals, etc.
I don't iron until I need the fabric, then spray with a bit of sizing.