I guess I am a creature of habit, and slow to embrace change.
I just now purchased my first pre-cuts.
The appeal has been there for awhile --- all of those different fabrics, in little pieces, for an outlay of a few dollars.
I just now purchased my first pre-cuts.
The appeal has been there for awhile --- all of those different fabrics, in little pieces, for an outlay of a few dollars.
I've been hesitant as I'm a "prewash all fabrics" type of quilter. Everyone has told me that you shouldn't prewash pre-cuts as you would just have a big mess. But, I worry about fading, shrinking, and the smell and feel of unwashed fabrics.
I did a little experiment; I took a red fabric from the packet and soaked it in hot water. There was no noticeable fading; but after ironing there was about 1/8" shrinkage in the cross-width of the 5" piece. No shrinkage was noted lengthwise, however.
I debated about if I should prewash all of the fabrics, as I didn't find it to be tedious or a mess. However, I decided whatever -- I would just jump into it and cut and sew right out of the packet.
Occasionally, I get a whiff of the smell of the unwashed fabric and I'll sneeze. Is that the sizing?
One thing I have enjoyed is the lack of large amounts of fabrics strewn all over my sewing room. Pre-cuts are very efficient. This is all I have left after cutting out pieces for 60 flying geese units.
I did a little experiment; I took a red fabric from the packet and soaked it in hot water. There was no noticeable fading; but after ironing there was about 1/8" shrinkage in the cross-width of the 5" piece. No shrinkage was noted lengthwise, however.
One thing I have enjoyed is the lack of large amounts of fabrics strewn all over my sewing room. Pre-cuts are very efficient. This is all I have left after cutting out pieces for 60 flying geese units.
Any suggestions or ideas on using pre-cuts would be appreciated.
Stay tuned for the resulting small quilt. I'm especially loving the Jo Morton fabric designs.
I'm joining the following:
Confessions of a fabric addict for Can I Get a Whoop Whoop Friday
Quilting Readers Garden for WIPS Be Gone Friday
Love Laugh Quilt for Monday Making
Cooking Up Quilts for Main Crush Monday
Quilt Story for Fabric Tuesday
6 comments:
Thank you for sharing your experiences with pre-cuts. I have never pre-washed my precuts or had an issue with bleeding colors. The first few times I wash a quilt, I use Color Catchers in the washing machine. If it's a gift, I wash it a few times before gifting it.
I'm so glad you shared your experiences because I hadn't thought about the shrinkage issue. Thank you!
Love the pieces I can see. That is a luscious line by Moda and Jo Morton. You can go over to Moda Bake Shop and find a ton of patterns. On the right side bar is their Bakery. You can find patterns for all those kind of pre-cuts there.
Look forward to seeing what your quilt looks like. Thanks for linking to WIPs Be Gone. Good luck on the giveaway.
I'm like you, a dedicated pre-washer, so this was an interesting post. I recently purchased my first pre-cut stack but haven't done anything with it yet. I guess I'll worry less about shrinkage (but I'll still be concerned if I ever have a pre-cut red).
--Nancy. (ndmessier @ aol.com, joyforgrace.blogspot.com)
Your post is so very enjoyable and I love your choices. Sometimes, when I need a less challenging quilt finish and I'll simply sew charms together into large 4-patches, join them up and throw slab borders onto it and done!
When I first started quilting I bought a lot of precuts, mostly charm packs. I still occasionally use them, but my favorite precuts are fat quarters. I just find there are more options with those. I have never prewashed, and I have never had an issue with bleeding with the precuts.
Interesting post. I'm afraid I throw caution to the wind when I quilt! ;)
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