DonnaFreak

Howdy y'all. ☺

I have a problem that I've never seen discussed here before. Whenever I start a new quilt and I'm in the cutting process, I have to walk away after about 20 minutes or so because I start coughing my head off and/or sneezing. It seems that every miniscule piece of fiber that is released by the cutting process heads directly for my nose and throat! No other part of the quilting process affects me like this, so I can literally work on a quilt for hours without a problem once the cutting part is finished. Does anyone else have this problem? If so, have you found anything that helps? I love working on my quilts, but it gets frustrating to have such a slow start to every quilt I make! I find myself avoiding starting a new project because I know it's going to take me days just to get it to the point where I can start sewing! Any advice would be very much appreciated!

Donna

Monale

I don't have that problem, but I am thinking that maybe a surgical mask would help? Then your mouth and nose is covered and you won't inhale all those particles.

QuiltingHaven

Do you wash your fabric? I wash my fabric when I bring it in the door and have had no problems after doing that.

NatalieF

I would also say to wash the fabrics as they are coated with chemicals, and if that isn't enough, try a mask. It could be the dust created from cutting that's bothering you. They usually sell them at the dollar stores. It can be a pain to wear one, but at least you would get through your cutting quickly, therefore you wouldn't be stuck wearing it for long. Best of luck.

luvstoquilt

I can only be in a fabric store for about 10 minutes before my eyes start tearing , my nose starts running and I start sneezing. I suffer through it because I love all fabric stores! I wash my fabric when I get home and I don't have a problem after that. Imagine allergic to fabric!

GingerK

I also have problems with breathing around new fabric. I hand rinse all my fabrics in as hot water as I can stand. Some are so heavily sized that the water looks like I have added too much soap!! Then they go into the dryer. I find this really helps me. If you are already doing that, then I think Monale might have a good solution for you. And if you can't find masks at the pharmacy, try a hardware store. Many people use them when staining furniture.

Tartan

Since the same fabric doesn't bother you once it is cut, I also would try a surgical or germ mask when cutting.

wesing

If there is a window in your cutting area you might put a box fan in the window to pull the particles out as you cut.

maryb119

I have the same thing and washing the fabric helps with that.

Onebyone

I can always tell when a shop had new bolts of fabric out, my eyes water and sting. The chemicals used in fabric manufacturing are very harsh.