Rick Rack Patchwork Blocks
October 21st, 2008
Rick rack rocks … sorry I couldn’t resist! (Or is it ric rac?)
Anyway, check out these super gorgeous quilt blocks with rick rack. And, here’s the detailed tutorial on how to put it all together. Definitley a colour explosion!
I had never heard to wash rick rack before. Does it run, or shrink, or both?
I’ve seen red and pink rick rack that bleeds. Shrinking usually doesn’t happen. I do the bleed test: wet the end and lay on a paper towel till it dries. If it doesn’t bleed, I don’t bother pre-washing. Of course, some people are more “strict” about pre-washing everything!
I wasn’t concerned with the bleeding so much as the sizing. Rick-Rack is a lot softer after washing and drying, to the point that the shape changes a little bit. I didn’t want to sew a bunch of it into seams of a quilt without washing out the sizing first. The photos of the finished quilt were taken after the quilt was machine-washed and dried and you can see how the rick-rack is still laying nice and flat. I attribute that mostly to the fact that it was prewashed and dried in the machine. (By the way, thanks for linking to my blog!)
Elizabeth and Sid,
Thanks for the info. The sizing makes so much sense.
Michele
These blocks look deliciious!
I have never prewashed rickrack but will from now on. I just love that quilt. Thanks for the great tip.