What to Do When You Forget to Pre-Wash High Contrast Colored Fabrics (in a Quilt)

What to Do When You Forget to Pre-Wash High Contrast Colored Fabrics

After picking the high contrast fabrics for one of my latest quilts AND after cutting into it AND after piecing it…I realized I should have pre-washed it!  How was I going to prevent bleeding on my project???

When I thought to pair magenta, black and white fabrics together in my recent Jacks Quilt, the thought of pre-washing never crossed my mind.  For quilts, I am not a pre-washer and so I went about my normal way cutting and piecing until it hit me…that all the saturated colors could bleed onto all of that white! I wanted to cry in that moment because there was NO way I was going to buy new fabric and start over. My pockets and my sanity wouldn’t allow it since I had cut hundreds of pieces already.  I couldn’t wash all the  small pieces I had because the threads would fray and there would be considerable size distortion…

I know there is a divided camp among those who always pre-wash fabrics no matter what and those who don’t.  Personally, I don’t wash because I DO love that crinkly texture after a quilt is finished and then laundered.  Also, many times I make quilts that will be photographed and need that crisp color that is fresh off the bolt. Which side of camp do you belong to?

WashingQuiltTools

So off I went to find out how I could prevent any bleeding from occurring.  I consulted with a few quilty friends and good ol’ Google to see what was out there.  Synthrapol kept coming up as the go-to detergent to help dyes from re-depositing back onto the quilt. I also received many recommendations to Shout Color Catchers for this dilemma and to use in pre-washing going forward.  I decided why not try both products since I didn’t want to chance ruining my new quilt?

ColorCatchers

I followed the instructions on the bottle of Synthrapol to use only 1 tablespoon for my quilt without any additional detergents.  I did add two Color Catchers into the load as well.  Why two? I figured the magenta and black fabrics held such strong pigments that two catchers might be needed. As you can see, both Color Catchers did their jobs and caught a good bit of dye (Sigh of relief!)

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The quilt came out without any bleeding…which I was still astonished to see despite my efforts.  The image about is after washing.  You can see there were no runs with the magenta or the black dyes onto the white.  Hallelujah!!!

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I flipped over to the back of the quilt to see if there might be any bleeding there as well.  It was completely clear!  The Synthrapol and Shout Color Catchers worked!

Although I’m glad this all worked out, my lesson has been learned to pre-wash high-contrast fabrics next time.  I plan to still use these products for washing all quilts afterwards…just in case 😉  What do you use to wash your quilts???

 

Hugs and Stitches,

Cristy

 

***I was not sponsored for the content of this post. All opinions and experiences are my own and have not been influenced by third parties.

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Aeroplane Bag: Pattern Review with Vinyl & Satin

AeroplaneTitle

I know there are a ton of pattern reviews on Sew Sweetness‘ beloved Aeroplane Bag, but I REALLY love how the gold metallic vinyl (pleather), bold stripes and teal satin turned out!  I was debating if it deserved a post, but after so much love on IG, I decided to share what I made and what I learned on the way 🙂

 

AeroplaneFabricPull

This fabric pull was inspired by my good friend over at Platopoo.  We made a crafty trade – she made me some awesome vinyl cut t-shirts and I would make her a custom bag.  I love a good barter…don’t you???  Well, her business cards are black and white stripes with some gold accents and I wanted to kick up this bag a notch, so we came up with this great combination:

 

StrapsandBottomSewn

Vinyl Strap Collage

 

Since I was using the vinyl for the bottom and straps, there were a few adjustments that had to be made:

  • Omit the strap interfacing
  • Cut 2 straps to 1.5″ width. Since the WOF (width of fabric) on the vinyl is 54″, the straps were then cut to 42″ in length
  • TIP: Take one 1.5″ x 42″ strap and sew it onto a larger piece of vinyl. Sew with 1/8″ seam allowance.  Trim the excess of the larger piece to size. Repeat with 2nd strap. (This allows you to have even top and bottom strap pieces.)
  • Be sure to use your walking foot to not stretch out the vinyl
  • Edges of the straps will be raw. You can use some permanent fabric glue or Fray-Check to “seal” the sides if you wish.  Some vinyls do fray the slightest bit over time…

 

ZipperGrill

Another detail to amp up this bag was the zipper.  I found this great black one with brass teeth at JoAnn’s as well.  It matches perfectly with the pleather and adds that extra professional look.

TIP – I used my walking foot to topstitch over the zipper.  There is quite a lot of volume between the exterior, lining and Flex-Foam (used in place of Soft & Stable.) This allowed me to get more even stitches without having to tug on the fabric as much.

 

CloseUpZipper

Additionally, I cut off 1/4″ by about 8″ of scrap vinyl to add a pull on the zipper.  Again, this little detail helps make the bag look more polished and pulls in more of the metallic look.  Plus, those little pulls are never long enough!

 

Interior

Do you like the satin interior? I am digging this pop of color and the change in texture for the interior.  I also love the 14″ zippered pockets.  They are generous in size to hide lots of goodies.  The only thing I wished I had were brass zippers for these pockets. (I got the wrong size from the store and was not going back anytime soon…I was already there twice in one week!)  They would have completed the look, for sure…

TIP – Cut the Shape-Flex larger than the interior pattern and fuse it onto the satin before cutting. The satin is delicate and can unravel pretty easily.  It is easier to handle if you iron the interfacing on first.

OpenTop

I love the wide opening of this design.  There is ample space to get your weekend gear into this bag….and this is just the “regular” size.  I can’t wait to try out the “long” pattern!

BagonTree

This was a fun project but definitely at the confident beginner to intermediate level.  Be sure to check if your machine can handle up to 6 layers of vinyl and Peltex at a time. I have a Juki TL-2010Q that can sew through with a Heavy Duty Organ Needle, but I still broke one needle in the process!

It’s going to be sad when I have to part with this baby, but at least I can make more 😉

 

The Newest Aeroplane Bag Fan,

Cristy

 

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