The Journey of Donna's Stars: A Finished Quilt with a Cautionary Tale

Today I share the bittersweet story of a finished quilt.
"Sweet" because it is finished.

The story of it's journey is a bit of a "Bitter" one for me though, due to a bleeding nightmare that resulted in the faded colors pictured above.

It all began in March 2014, with some of Donna's favorite batiks, pre-washed and cut into strips.

Blocks were completed and I posted layout options in June 2014.
So, it was 18 months in the quilting - different sections at a time and continuously interrupted by other projects while I made decisions about how to quilt different areas.
Look how pretty those colors were!

Here is where the nightmare began:
Once quilted, the quilt came out pretty square and flat. Because all the fabrics were pre-shrunk, I thought I would skip the tub-bath and blocking process I often use before I attach binding. I had set red fabric aside for the binding but it did not look pre-washed when i went to use it. I couldn't really recall, so I gave it a hand wash and the water turned bright red. I rinsed and washed three more times, and the water continued to turn red.
The reds were purchased in 2014 from my local quilt shop, just for this quilt.  
Top of the line (Bali's?)
I read, and read, whatever I could find online about saving quilts...

And then I went about dealing with it:
I purchased Synthrapol at the art supply store. My LSC does not stock it, nor do they provide any advice in dealing with bleeding fabrics, nor did they seem to care one bit about the fabric culprit I kindly reported to them, that is still shelved in their store...hmph...

It is advised online to use Synthrapol with hot water and as much water as possible. I started by using the product to wash the red binding fabric by hand and I was able to rinse it out with clear water results.
Encouraged, I took the quilt to the Suds Shop...

I wasn't sure if I should use fabric magnet sheets in combination with the Synthrapol, but I did, and I could see them turning color in the machine while it worked.
After holding my breath for 28 minutes, the background looked pretty white when I took it out.
I folded the damp sandwich in some muslin, and felt hopeful as I packed her into the car.
Once home, I blocked it out on linoleum flooring.
Unfortunately, it was only a couple hours before the dreaded dyes began bleeding through to the backside of the quilt. Pictured here while still damp, as the dye began to seep..

I thought maybe not all the Synthrapol had rinsed out, perhaps continuing to draw dye out as it dried.
A bit forlorn, yet I persevered:
Next, I attached the binding and finished it by hand.
Back at the laundromat, we shot a before picture. Most of the damage was directly behind the red fabrics. This photo only shows the bleeding to the back of the multi-colored star.

Plus two areas of red in the background, on the frontside. 

The Synthrapol wash was repeated, and the red spots were still there. I then resorted to a back up plan, a color-out product I had picked up at the grocery.

Following directions on the package, I gave her another wash and it did work to remove dye from the White Kona.
Once dry, it was ready for final inspection. I noticed the faded colors, but nothing doing. Finishing Donna's Stars was my December goal for A Lovely Year of Finishes, as well on my Q4 list, and I was in a bit of a rush to package and ship, so it was a quick trip outside for photographs !
The random spots are gone and although a wee bit of dye is present on the back, the bleeding is far less noticeable overall.

 However, the fabrics do have quite a bit of fading.

Here is what I really want to share with you:
I think the fading could have been avoided.
Just last week, after washing my quilt, I found this great article by Vicki Welsh. I encourage you to click the button, read Vicki's advice, and save the article!

 Donna's Stars

 A special quilt for my DMIL!