A question of process

just wash'em all together in a bucket by hand, slosh them around a bit, rinse them, dry them, iron them, fondle them, then eventually make something with them. doing them in the machine will probly mess them up more than you'd like. j.

"John" wrote... I have a lovely pkg of Civil War reproduction quilting fabric, that is in a Fat Quarter bundle, 10-1/2" square. . This is the first time I have dealt with a fat quarter sized group of fabrics. The edges of these pieces of fabric are "Pinked" with a pinking shears. I normally pre-wash all of my fabric. The question for the cognoscenti is: Is this the sort of thing that can be done with these fabric pieces, (pre- wash), without reducing them to colorful rags? I want to use them for a quilt I am designing, and I want to be able to wash this quilt after it is made, so I don't want a mixture of pre washed and non pre-washed fabric used during the construction of the quilt. If it is not ideal to pre-wash the FQ pieces, then I can of course use them for a wall hanging, and be done with them. But, I really would like to use them in the quilt. I guess I could wash just one of them and see what gives, but I would hate to sacrifice one of them on the altar of stupidity.

John

I often wash 'delicates'- like small fabric pieces ;-) inside a pillowcase on a short, gentle cycle. Just fold the open end over several times and use a large safety pin to hold it closed. Pressing the fabrics while still damp should take care of the shrinkage issue, but my pre-washing habit stems more from chemicals and dirt than pre-shrinking. Your project sounds cool with you designing it yourself- remember we'll need pics of the finished quilt!

Leslie & The Furbabies in MO.

------------------------------------- Lynne

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I agree totally with J's reply especially the fondling! Since the fabric has been pinked it will fray less. However I should note you don't have "fat quarteres" you have 10 1/2" squares!! Fat Quarters are 22" X 18" Thus the term Fat. Since a regular 1/4 yard would be 9" X 44."

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I'm pretty sure what ya got there is a "Layer Cake", John, not fat quarters, but anyhoo, I'm not a pre-washer, but friends that are, just throw them in one of those net bags that you use to wash delicates. Since you might not know what that is, go to the ironing board aisle at your favorite discount store and look for a mesh bag with a zippered top. Get a decent sized one. I came home with a new one the other day and it's about 5X7. I didn't pay attention to the label. You want something big enough so the stuff can kind of slosh around in there.

Cindy

I also employ the slosh-in-the-sink method. My most delicat machine cycle still makes small pieces fray more than I'd like. I still dry them in the dryer so they'll shrink however much they're going to andget it over with before they're in a quilt.

Sherry

These are evidently fabric sample packs. They are Moda so I think they are fairly good quality colorfast fabric samples. Maybe I will just use them for a wall hanging I am also thinking about. They were so cheap I couldn't pass them up, and they are coordinated within a color range, but with different patterns. I guess the fact that I have always bought bolt fabric and never had to address the washing of small units of fabric, tells me something about my acquisition of fabric approach. It has stood me in good stead so far, except for this one time, and I should stick with a proven winner.

John

John, I'm betting that you'll have a good time with the reproduction fabrics pack. You'll get to create with a variety of prints and colors without making a lifelong commitment to a bolt of fabric. We saw the wild gag ensemble you made for your DW and look forward to seeing your next creation. Polly

"John" These are evidently fabric sample packs. They are Moda so I think they are fairly good quality colorfast fabric samples. Maybe I will just use them for a wall hanging I am also thinking about. They were so cheap I couldn't pass them up, and they are coordinated within a color range, but with different patterns. I guess the fact that I have always bought bolt fabric and never had to address the washing of small units of fabric, tells me something about my acquisition of fabric approach. It has stood me in good stead so far, except for this one time, and I should stick with a proven winner.

John

Howdy!

Why not use them like any other good fabric? They get cut into pieces anyway, and slip right into the quilt pattern, whether they come in 5-yard pieces or 5-inch squares. The edges are pinked 'cause the folks at the quilt shop thought that was a cute way to present them. As for "sample" - well that's a way to get your attention and let you see all the pieces in that collection, then you fall in love w/ a couple of them and decide you have to have more, more, MORE!!! and you go back for yardage. It's a conspiracy, see, to sell more fabric. ;-D I wash smaller pieces by hand, either line or machine dry, then iron so they stay pretty-looking & stack into a nice flat pile. I wash all my quilts, too; if they won't stand up to normal usage- well, then I didn't make them! Don't let the packaging fool you; good fabric is good fabric, and "no good fabric goes to waste" (S.E.). Be brave, John. We're not demanding you break out of the box, just asking you to expand the area some.

Cheers!

R/Sandy - not ask> I have a lovely pkg of Civil War reproduction quilting fabric, that is

You are soooo cruel. Just because I belong to a Senior center, doesn't mean I am old enough to remember the Civil War.

John

Aren't those bundles called Layer Cakes right now?

Rebel warning here.... I mix pre washed and not pre washed fabrics in the same quilts. Mostly I don't pre wash because I am making class samples, am in a hurry and so forth. For garment sewing I prewash. So remnants from clothes end up as pre washed pieces in some quilts.

It works for me. As for pre washing charm packs, of various sizes, whether layer cakes/ dimes, "charms"/nickels or other, some people do, many people don't. If there is shrinkage, you may not be able to use the same pattern, because each fabric may not shrink the same. Some people use a spare salad spinner to wash/rinse small (5") charms, not sure if it would work for the dimes or not.

If you are concerned about shrinkage, then submerging in hot water, then drying will do the job. To remove finishes you need a bit of soap or shampoo, rinse well and dry. If using a dryer, not having a lot in the dryer will reduce the fray factor. And shouldn't take long at all. You will actually want to press them completely dry, because you will get a smoother finish than pressing completely dry fabric pieces.

Sometime you have to determine if the work is worth the time it takes.

Many people do not pre wash fabric. If it is good quality you should be fine. If you are worried about color bleed, dampen a white cloth and run it firmly over the fabric to see if there is color transfer. Or set a damp white cloth on it with a weight of some sort. No color transfer?? Fabric should be color fast.

Have fun with the layer cake you have.

Pati, > I have a lovely pkg of Civil War reproduction quilting fabric, that is