I Could Just Cry

Yesterday I put a few hot fix crystals on the poinsettia quilt. It was my intention to put them all over the poinsettia print. Never having done that before (embellishing is outside of my comfort zone), I only put a few on before I washed the quilt. I wanted to make certain they, and the beads I sewed on last week would stay on the quilt.

I washed the quilt like I do all of my quilts. Cold water, gentle cycle (or delicate, which ever one is the 'softest'), Liquid Ivory and a Shout Color Catcher. Also in the wash to help protect the beads were too small lap quilts which have been washed several times (one is 18 years old).

Pulled the quilts out and tossed them in the dryer.

When I pulled the quilts out, I discovered the red batiks had bled all over the off-white background. I could just cry. The photos don't show the bleeding well. It's worse in person.

The batik fabric was prewashed before I used it. In fact, I used this same fabric/pattern to make sweatshirts for all the women in my family for Christmas 2004. My sweatshirt has been washed at least 15 times with out any bleeding (picture is when the shirt was made).



I'm glad now that I didn't put all the crystals on the quilt. But can this be salvaged? I've had 4 suggestions so far: 1 - rewash with a Shout color catcher; 2 - use a dye remover; 3 - take some of the offending fabric and dot on more color; and 4 - (from DH) give it away and start over.

I don't have any more of the fabric -- except for what's on the sweatshirt - and it's not bleeding. The center section of the quilt was finished several years ago, and I got the borders on it about a year ago. I didn't have any border fabric to use for the binding, so I had to buy something else - not that you can really tell that it's different.

Anyone have any success getting dye out? Or ideas on how to 'fix' this? I'm open to suggestions. And here I thought I was going to get another UFO done before the end of the month.