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Posted by Dr. Zachary Smith on October 13, 2009, 10:18 am
Of course you do. It was a bad reference from Seinfeld, but it
works...
Anyhoo, I bought some black quilting cotton last week(?) for my PCQ
foundation [reminder: utility quilt] that was, according to the bolt,
44"/45". Unfortunately I took the bolt at its word. I washed the
fabric in cold water as I'm supposed to, to pre-shrink it. So I
ironed it last night, layed it out to cut the foundation (bought
enough for three tries just in case...) and find it's now only 42"
wide. Now I/we expected shrinkage, but is 3" reasonable or do you
think this stuff was not 44"/45" as represented? It's not going to
kill anything - so I start with a 42" square foundation instead of 44"/
45" - big fat hairy deal... I'm just curious if quilting cotton is
usually prone to shrink that much...
Next step is to hem the two rough edges to prevent fraying while I'm
working on things...
Doc
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Posted by Polly Esther on October 13, 2009, 10:31 am
Doc, I have heard the history of the board but it doesn't come to me just
now - but you know, of course that a 2 by 4 is not 2 or 4 anywhere. Width
of fabric can be just about anything. Probably more than 39", sometimes 60
or so just because.
Clothing, of course, is another matter. All of us know that clothing
left to its own devices just hanging around in a closet can and certainly
will shrink. Just another case of 'never assume anything'. Furthermore,
your yard stick, tape measure, square ruler and lipped ruler will not always
measure the same.
I'm thinking that using 42" (more or less) for your foundations is
rather cumbersome. Might be easier to begin with something about half that
size. Polly
show/hide quoted text
"Dr. Zachary Smith" <wrote> Of course you do. It was a bad reference from
Seinfeld, but it
show/hide quoted text
> works...
> Anyhoo, I bought some black quilting cotton last week(?) for my PCQ
> foundation [reminder: utility quilt] that was, according to the bolt,
> 44"/45". Unfortunately I took the bolt at its word. I washed the
> fabric in cold water as I'm supposed to, to pre-shrink it. So I
> ironed it last night, layed it out to cut the foundation (bought
> enough for three tries just in case...) and find it's now only 42"
> wide. Now I/we expected shrinkage, but is 3" reasonable or do you
> think this stuff was not 44"/45" as represented? It's not going to
> kill anything - so I start with a 42" square foundation instead of 44"/
> 45" - big fat hairy deal... I'm just curious if quilting cotton is
> usually prone to shrink that much...
> Next step is to hem the two rough edges to prevent fraying while I'm
> working on things...
> Doc
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Posted by Dr. Zachary Smith on October 13, 2009, 11:13 am
show/hide quoted text
> Doc, I have heard the history of the board but it doesn't come to me just
> now - but you know, of course that a 2 by 4 is not 2 or 4 anywhere. =A0Wi=
dth
show/hide quoted text
> of fabric can be just about anything. =A0Probably more than 39", sometime=
s 60
show/hide quoted text
> or so just because.
Correct, a 2 x 4 is 1-1/2 x 3-1/2 wherever you go (in the USA), and
tolerances are within 1/16".
There are standards. I see fabric in bolts labeled 41/42, 44/45, and
I think (but not sure) a few others in the neighborhood. No
standards. I did specifically ask the clerk how wide the fabric was.
She said she thought 41/42, but when we looked and saw 44/45, she said
it should measure out in that range, and I believed her. (In the law,
that's called "superior knowledge" but I'm not trying to make a
federal case out of it.) All I really want to know is if 3" shrinkage
is typical/expected of quilting cotton fabrics in that nominal range
so I'll know how to estimate things in the future (This used to be the
construction manager's purview...)
show/hide quoted text
> =A0 =A0 I'm thinking that using 42" (more or less) for your foundations i=
s
show/hide quoted text
> rather cumbersome. =A0Might be easier to begin with something about half =
that
show/hide quoted text
> size. =A0Polly
Yeah, I'm getting a lot of that. I would have preferred 45". I
should probably publish (here) my project specs.
For constructing the quilt, I'm tentatively using a modified "antique
method" (combining some aspects of other methods) as outlined in
Michler's "Crazy Quilting - The Complete Guide". It was recommended
by someone here; I don't recall exactly who... She (Michler)
describes 10 different ways to patch a CQ, and this one (at *least*)
says, "A foundation can be the size of the entire quilt top, or a
block of any size." As always, if what I'm trying doesn't work out, I
always have a backup plan. OTOH, if it DOES work the way I envision,
it should be just what I want, and I shall endeavor to be insufferably
smug about it. 8^P [JUST KIDDING!!!]
Doc
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Posted by Roberta on October 13, 2009, 1:01 pm
Not many bolts actually measure 44-45", IME. Regardless of what it
says. Maybe the loom was that wide, or something. I always assume
"around 40" and buy accordingly, on the few occasions when I buy for a
specific project. Fabric doesn't shrink that much. What DOES happen
when you wash it is relaxation. Grain lines sometimes shift back to
where they were when first woven, sizing washes out, everything goes
softer. You frequently lose a couple of inches on the length, if you
were counting on cutting strips on the crosswise grain, because the
cut they made at the store is no longer at right angles to the
selvedges. Sometimes you just have to choose whether to respect the
lengthwise or the crosswise grain, can't have both!
Roberta in D
On Tue, 13 Oct 2009 08:13:18 -0700 (PDT), "Dr. Zachary Smith"
show/hide quoted text
>> Doc, I have heard the history of the board but it doesn't come to me just
>> now - but you know, of course that a 2 by 4 is not 2 or 4 anywhere. Width
>> of fabric can be just about anything. Probably more than 39", sometimes 60
>> or so just because.
>Correct, a 2 x 4 is 1-1/2 x 3-1/2 wherever you go (in the USA), and
>tolerances are within 1/16".
>There are standards. I see fabric in bolts labeled 41/42, 44/45, and
>I think (but not sure) a few others in the neighborhood. No
>standards. I did specifically ask the clerk how wide the fabric was.
>She said she thought 41/42, but when we looked and saw 44/45, she said
>it should measure out in that range, and I believed her. (In the law,
>that's called "superior knowledge" but I'm not trying to make a
>federal case out of it.) All I really want to know is if 3" shrinkage
>is typical/expected of quilting cotton fabrics in that nominal range
>so I'll know how to estimate things in the future (This used to be the
>construction manager's purview...)
>> I'm thinking that using 42" (more or less) for your foundations is
>> rather cumbersome. Might be easier to begin with something about half that
>> size. Polly
>Yeah, I'm getting a lot of that. I would have preferred 45". I
>should probably publish (here) my project specs.
>For constructing the quilt, I'm tentatively using a modified "antique
>method" (combining some aspects of other methods) as outlined in
>Michler's "Crazy Quilting - The Complete Guide". It was recommended
>by someone here; I don't recall exactly who... She (Michler)
>describes 10 different ways to patch a CQ, and this one (at *least*)
>says, "A foundation can be the size of the entire quilt top, or a
>block of any size." As always, if what I'm trying doesn't work out, I
>always have a backup plan. OTOH, if it DOES work the way I envision,
>it should be just what I want, and I shall endeavor to be insufferably
>smug about it. 8^P [JUST KIDDING!!!]
>Doc
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Posted by Dr. Zachary Smith on October 13, 2009, 4:21 pm
Hi Roberta,
show/hide quoted text
> Not many bolts actually measure 44-45", IME. Regardless of what it
> says. Maybe the loom was that wide, or something. I always assume
> "around 40" and buy accordingly, on the few occasions when I buy for a
> specific project.
Yeah, on most fabrics, our rule of thumb is 40" of useable fabric,
which makes a lot of kits & other estimates way off, but it seems to
be the real world. I was willing (and still am) to take what I can
get. It's the labeled width that disappointed me (along with the
clerk's optimism - it's not like I wasn't going to buy it or
anything...)
show/hide quoted text
> Fabric doesn't shrink that much. What DOES happen
> when you wash it is relaxation. Grain lines sometimes shift back to
> where they were when first woven, sizing washes out, everything goes
> softer. You frequently lose a couple of inches on the length, if you
> were counting on cutting strips on the crosswise grain, because the
> cut they made at the store is no longer at right angles to the
> selvedges. Sometimes you just have to choose whether to respect the
> lengthwise or the crosswise grain, can't have both!
I accounted for that. Assuming 45" max., and 3 "squares"... (45 x 3)
=3D 135 / 36 =3D 3.75 yds., so I bought 4 yds. I'm good. Since it came
out to 42" after washing, we made the length 43, and hemmed both ends
for a finished size of 42" square. Whatever it comes out to when it's
covered, it is.
Doc
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