Care of hand dyed cotton fabrics

Here are some do's and don'ts for cotton fabrics. We're sure you have heard some of this before. Probably the mot important thing is to pre wash your fabrics before cutting and, most definitely, before you sew.

At our shop, we have had very good success starting the pre washing in water about 75 degrees; but don't let the temperature trip you up. If it feels warm it is warm: cool it down a bit. 75 degrees does not feel warm or cool. We would also like to recommend that you use Synthrapol in your pre wash. Synthrapol is specially formulated to handle dye molecules as they come off the fabric by surrounding the dye and preventing it reattaching. Hot water may be used for your wash. The most effective way to remove loose dye seems to be constant water movement through the fabric. If your fabric colors bleed, do not despair. Wash and rinse again until the water runs clear.

The use of household laundry detergent is discouraged, because some brands have soda ash in them and they may cause loose dye to set on fabric and become a stain.

For quilts that will be washed, we also recommend Synthrapol, because it is a super washing detergent for cotton, linen, silk, and rayon.

Also recommended is to take swatches of the fabrics you plan to use in a quilt, safety pin or baste them to a white or light colored piece of fabric, then wash that in Synthrapol Rinse and dry in the dryer.