Rag Quilt Questions

Hi all. Quick question here. I've been reading through the group's archived
posts on Google about rag quilts and I have a couple of questions for those
who've made them. I have three great flannels I've purchased to make a rag
edge quilt. I have not prewashed yet. I've seen some directions that say to
prewash first, others that so don't wash at all until you are done and
clipped. I plan on using very thin cotton or poly batting in mine, if that
makes a difference. If I don't prewash first, is it going to shrink a ton? I
have a finished size of 35" x 45" in mind and I'll be disappointed if it
shrinks a fair amount....do I need to plan accordingly for that? I'm also
debating over the size of the seam allowance. One pattern I have says to use
1/2" seams and others say 1". I don't want the seams to be too floppy, so
I'm leaning towards the 1/2", but wanted to get opinions from the experts
before I proceed.

Thanks!

--
Nancy in Livermore, CA
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I did not prewash the flannel when I made a rag quilt and it was fine. I
think my seams were about 3/4".

Julia in MN
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I haven't pre-washed my flannels when I've made rag quilts and they've come out
fine. I wouldn't worry about losing *that* much dimension, especially if
you've bought tightly woven flannels. Just a warning, though - I've made mine
with thin cotton batting, and they are still quite heavy, although the finished
size has been larger than what you are making. I use about a 3/4" inch or 1"
seam. I love making rag quilts - it's something I can finish quickly!

-JoyceG in WA
Hi all. Quick question here. I've been reading through the group's archived
posts on Google about rag quilts and I have a couple of questions for those
who've made them. I have three great flannels I've purchased to make a rag
edge quilt. I have not prewashed yet. I've seen some directions that say to
prewash first, others that so don't wash at all until you are done and
clipped. I plan on using very thin cotton or poly batting in mine, if that
makes a difference. If I don't prewash first, is it going to shrink a ton? I
have a finished size of 35" x 45" in mind and I'll be disappointed if it
shrinks a fair amount....do I need to plan accordingly for that? I'm also
debating over the size of the seam allowance. One pattern I have says to use
1/2" seams and others say 1". I don't want the seams to be too floppy, so
I'm leaning towards the 1/2", but wanted to get opinions from the experts
before I proceed.

Thanks!

--
Nancy in Livermore, CA
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I washed mine first and it still fluffed nicely at the end. Some of my flannel
shrank 4" across the width. I made either 3/4" or 1" seams (don't remember). The
ragged seams were not too floppy at the end.

Photo available at: http://community.webshots.com/photo/...05832588GngFPX

--
Anne in CA
"It's not having what you want; it's wanting what you've got." -- Sheryl Crow
http://home.covad.net/~arudolph/annes.htm



"Nancy in Livermore, CA" wrote:

Hi all. Quick question here. I've been reading through the group's archived
posts on Google about rag quilts and I have a couple of questions for those
who've made them. I have three great flannels I've purchased to make a rag
edge quilt. I have not prewashed yet. I've seen some directions that say to
prewash first, others that so don't wash at all until you are done and
clipped. I plan on using very thin cotton or poly batting in mine, if that
makes a difference. If I don't prewash first, is it going to shrink a ton? I
have a finished size of 35" x 45" in mind and I'll be disappointed if it
shrinks a fair amount....do I need to plan accordingly for that? I'm also
debating over the size of the seam allowance. One pattern I have says to use
1/2" seams and others say 1". I don't want the seams to be too floppy, so
I'm leaning towards the 1/2", but wanted to get opinions from the experts
before I proceed.

Thanks!

--
Nancy in Livermore, CA
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