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Stitching & Crafting Room:  question about charm squares  |
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willowtreecreek
True Blue Farmgirl
4813 Posts
Julie
Russell
AR
USA
4813 Posts |
 Posted - May 22 2007 : 08:36:58 AM
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I found some super cute charm squares in an online quilt shop. I want to use these for a quilt but I am not sure about prewashing. I always prewash my fabric when I am making something that might be washed. Are charm squares prewashed? Have any of you used them in making a quilt before? How do they hold up, shrink, etc. Thanks!
Jewelry, art, baskets, etc.
www.willowartist.etsy.com
www.willowtreecreek.com |
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candismom
True Blue Farmgirl
560 Posts
Elizabeth
560 Posts |
Posted - May 22 2007 : 09:09:01 AM
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Julie,
I don't wash mine. I just make my quilt. In fact I don't wash any fabric before I use it. I love the new charm squares. They are wonderful.
HUgs,
Elizabeth
www.athomewithelizabeth.blogspot.com
My shop www.theclothesline.etsy.com
I sell Crabapple Hill Studio and other Patterns. Pluse lots of other handmade items.
May the Lord bless you and keep you.
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willowtreecreek
True Blue Farmgirl
4813 Posts
Julie
Russell
AR
USA
4813 Posts |
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sunshine
True Blue Farmgirl
4877 Posts
Wendy
Utah
USA
4877 Posts |
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DaisyFarm
True Blue Farmgirl
1646 Posts
Diane
Victoria
BC
Canada
1646 Posts |
Posted - May 22 2007 : 10:40:23 AM
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I'm from the flip side of the coin...I wash every piece of fabric before sewing with it. Granted it is much easier to handle and sew unwashed, but almost all fabrics are treated with a chemical finish to make them stand up and look nice on the bolt. Some of these finishes contain formaldehyde.
Story...I made a white sun bonnet for my newborn daughter from brand new cotton. We wore it to her first check up, on a hot August day. She was sweaty by the time we got there and had a urine smell. As a new mom, I was mortified. Fortunately my doc knew me and knew that she wouldn't smell that way. After removing her new hat, we both realized that the smell was coming from the damp cotton. The formaldehyde sizing in the fabric!! My wonderful doc brought me a handtowel and we washed her head before we left. Scary.
It's true that quilts don't get washed routinely, but mine do get washed and I want to make sure colors don't run and they don't pull out of shape from shrinkage before going to all the work of making one.
Just my two cents..
Diane |
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Lizabeth
True Blue Farmgirl
560 Posts
Washington
560 Posts |
Posted - May 22 2007 : 11:00:49 AM
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Personally, I wash all fabrics before sewing. Think of where the fabrics been! and how many people have touched it! think of the chemicals lacing the fabric! eww :P I want to be able to enjoy the project and not feel squeamish.
My recent frustration has been finding when pulling a thread for a straight grain a 1/4 in on one side graduating to 4, 5, or even 6 inches on the far side. This can affect pattern layout significantly. So I've now started requesting at least a 1/4 yard or even 1/2 yard more than I need.
http://www.handcraftsbyheather.com |
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willowtreecreek
True Blue Farmgirl
4813 Posts
Julie
Russell
AR
USA
4813 Posts |
Posted - May 22 2007 : 12:21:41 PM
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Thanks ladies. I am leaning towards the washing before I sew side. I too am a little concerned with chemicals and I do wash my quilts that get used regularly at least a few times a year. Thanks for all the tips!
Jewelry, art, baskets, etc.
www.willowartist.etsy.com
www.willowtreecreek.com |
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MariaAZ
True Blue Farmgirl
203 Posts
Phoenix
AZ
203 Posts |
Posted - May 22 2007 : 4:28:13 PM
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Nothing is more disheartening than to spend a lot of time fitting and sewing that perfect dress, then washing it per instructions and having it shrink just a bit. It wasn't the size of the finished piece that was the issue, it was the puckering of the seams caused by the shrinkage. I think part of it also was the sizing that washed off; the fabric was much stiffer off the bolt, so I adjusted the thread tension accordingly. The tension was completely off on the washed dress. On another project, I was using two different colors of the same fabric. When I washed the finished piece, the darker fabric had bled just a bit and tinted the lighter one with an uneven, blotchy shade.
Visit my blog at www.craftyfool.net |
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sunshine
True Blue Farmgirl
4877 Posts
Wendy
Utah
USA
4877 Posts |
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BotanicalBath
True Blue Farmgirl
1014 Posts
Elizabeth
Ohio
1014 Posts |
Posted - May 22 2007 : 5:06:28 PM
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I need another project like I need a hole in my head.
I need another project like I need a hole in my head.
I need another project like I need a hole in my head.
I have been eyeing a few of those charm packs
Vintage Holiday
Monkey n Around
Chez Moi
Old Sturbridge Village Blues
Maybe after the pole barn is built...
E-
BotanicalBath@peoplepc.com
www.Botanical-Bath.com
"I do my housework in the nude. It gives me an incentive to clean the mirrors as quickly as possible." |
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Stitching & Crafting Room: question about charm squares |
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question about charm squares
