plainpat

I like batiks, know nothing about them.Are they harder to cut,harder to sew together? Are quilts made of batiks washable? How can you tell a good batik? Are quilts made of batiks meant for use or show?
That's a lot of questions.Thanks for any info.

Rainybug

Batiks are simply hand dyed fabric. You can (as usual) tell a better quality from a not so better one by feeling the fabric. Sometimes they are a little stiff just wash in cold water and they soften right up. They are just like cutting or sewing any other cotton fabric, they wash up same as any other. You should have no problem using them, just enjoy!

thequiltmama

ditto :)

BKrenning

Some times the dye hasn't been set properly or the fabric has too much dye causing it to run so always test a piece before using it & pre-washing is highly recommended. Also, since some of them are actually boiled to get the wax designs off, they tend to be more tightly woven and harder to hand quilt through like using pima or Egyptian cotton sheets.

ckcowl

batiks are normally a tighter weave cotton than what we usually use in our quilting, but that is not a bad thing!
to 'create' batiks the fabric is (waxed) then dyed, sometimes multiple times with re-waxing, re-dying...then boiled to remove the wax. sometimes the dyes run in batiks..it is always best to pre-wash - test for color fastness- before using in a quilt that will be laundered later.
there are TONS of bed size-usable quilts made with batiks...check out the book..."Batiks and beyond" ...if you do a simple 'batik quilt books' search you will find LOTS.
some people like using them, some do not. i have found i sometimes have problems if trying to use fusables with them (i blame the wax) and i've had some that ran and ran (a purple) but i love them so continue to experiment and try them when ever i can.