You can now buy a pinking blade for your rotary cutter.

I used to pre-wash, now I don't because I like the old fashioned wrinkly quilts. I think it's all a personal preference, some on board do and some don't.

I seldom wash my fabric because I don't want to waste time ironing it. I will snip off a square and put it in hot water to see if it will bleed. If it does I don't use it, I'll give it away to someone who wants to mess with it.

I overcast the raw edges before washing.

I use either a long narrow zig-zag stitch or a narrow overcasting with the serger. My serger is my first choice, but if I have black on it and the fabrics are light colored, I go with the sewing machine. It's easier to change the thread colors on.

Takes a bit longer, but then the most fabric I ever lose is the width of the stitching - and no loose threads to fight with.

I find that many fabrics shrink some and I prefer a flat quilt.

You will notice that there seems to be no definitive "right" answer to this question.

I always pre-wash to avoid puckering and dye run in the finished product. The threads and tangling don't bother me. I keep a pair of scissors by my ironing board and just clip them apart.

Ironing secret - take the material out of the dryer while it is still slightly damp. While ironing, it steams itself and comes out completely wrinkle free! Fold loosely and it will stay that way until you are ready to do your project.

If you put the fabric into white, small pillow cases before putting it in the washing machine, it won't strip as much.(Put a few pieces of light or dark fabric together in each pillowcase.) I also avoid putting the wet fabric in the dryer for more than 10 minutes. I hand flatten the "wettish" material and lay it out to dry on a plastic sheet on my diningroom table. Hand "ironing" is so much nicer than regular ironing. If the quilt is definitely going to be a wall hanging, I don't wash it at all. Happy holiday and happy quilting too.

I square every piece of fabric, except fat quarters, then I clip the ends....they don't ravel in the wash if you clip the ends. Try it, you'll like it

Regina

i always wash my material before sewing with it i put it in the washer with warm water and little soap
but before i wash it i either serge or sew around the raw edges before washing and have never had a problem with "strings" also that way when i bring new fabric into my sewing room i know that if it has been sewed or serged around the edges it has been washed, after i take it out of the dryer i iron it with spray starch and get a crisp piece of material to work with , sometimes i noticed wrinkles are easier to get out if i dont use steam to iron them ( depends on the material)

I got a GREAT tip at a quilt show last year. One Tablespoon of vinegar and one cup of water in a spray bottle. Gets out the TOUGHEST wrinkles.

Does the fabric smell like vinegar after pressing?