kellyer21

What is your reasoning for this? I like the crisp look of a quilt when it's first completed andthat's achieved by piecing without washing.

bearisgray

My fabrics still look "new" after being soaked and washed because they are allowed a lot of room in the washer and dryer and therefore minimal rubbing of surfaces together.

one can use sizing or starch to get whatever stiffness you like to work with.

Of the thousands (yes- probably more) of pieces of fabric that i measured before and after washing - maybe ten did not shrink at all.

I like to avoid post- cutting annoyances - such as bleeding - and I like to know what the fabric will be like after it has been washed.

Some fabrics will soften up after being washed - some stay harsh feeling. Some seem to have a nice body before they are washed and become so limp puny feeling after washing that they would make very good hankies.

I figure a good quality piece of fabric should still look decent after one episode of being exposed to water.

I am not a usually a person that goes around looking for ways to make extra work for myself. I feel that avoiding " surprises" like bleeding and shrinkage while steam pressing is worth my time and effort.

There are those that claim to never having had a problem. I have.

Watson

Hand anything. Applique, piecing, binding....just don't like sewing by hand.

For those that haven't had any luck with paper piecing, I couldn't do it to save my life until I took Peggy Martin's Quick Strip Paper Piecing course on Craftsy. Not sure if you can get it anywhere else. I know she has a book. With this technique even I can turn out a New York Beauty!

Watson

dunster

I'm a pre-washer too, not only because of bleeding/shrinkage, but also because I don't like the chemicals that can be in unwashed fabric. I would defy anyone to tell the difference between a quilt made with prewashed fabrics and one made with unwashed fabrics. Quality fabric is meant to be washed.

CanoePam

This. I try to hard to not make donation quilts in girly colors and patterns. There are more boys than girls in foster care, in hospitals, and even in NICUs. I recently made two girly quilts because I had a bunch of fabric left over. I am now on my third non-girly quilt to try to make up for it! Since I am not a girly-girl and never have been, I know a lot of girls/women prefer fewer flours and pink too.

Oh, and what I avoid is paper piecing. My brain just can’t handle it. I have had a number of great teachers who have tried to teach me, but it just doesn’t stick. Then again I can’t do macrame or knitting, and I can’t tell my left from my right either! I think it is all related to a brain problem of managing visual directions. Oh, and I can’t tell north from south without a map.

aashley333

I stay away from flowery fabric. I'm coastal and not really a bling-bling girl. Don't have much pink, and no juvenile fabric.