Washing or Not

I have a whole ridiculous set of goals every year, separated by category, no less.  There are even mid-year goal adjustments.  Some are long-term, like "worry less" and "figure out the winter evenings."  And some are easier to achieve that check mark signifying that the goal is complete.

Several years ago I made this simple little pumpkin quilt, about 14" x 20". I don't even remember where I first saw it, maybe in the Fons and Porter magazine.  Every time I would see it, I'd think, "I really need to quilt that" but I never did.  This year, I put it on the goal list.

It only took a couple of hours to quilt and bind it, and even then only because my quilting is so dense.  After it was finished, I decided to wash it.

I've been reading a lot about whether to wash a quilt once it's been quilted.  Just like prewashing the quilting fabric, there are two different schools of thought about it.  Washing the quilt shrinks both fabric and batting, but especially the batting, so the quilt crinkles a little.  It's softer.  The quilting buries in a little. 

I've mentioned before that I don't wash my donation quilts because they get washed at the hospital.  And I don't think I'll wash quilts every time.  I just finished a wedding gift, for example, and I want to give it in all its cripsy newness.  Church banners, probably not, because they are viewed up and away and no one sees them up close except for me and maybe a curious person or so.

But, for smaller things like this, that I'll keep on a table or display on a wall, I'll be washing.  For one thing, when the quilting recedes, the mistakes are much harder to see.  I like that.  And I like the texture, it's just nice to touch.  The fabric softens all that dense quilting, both visually and in the way it feels. 

I want to quilt and wash something else. There has to be something else in my UFO box.