AboutConnie Hester Expertise Quilting and applique expert.Can advise on the following topics:quilting, art quilts, quilt design and construction, machine and hand quilting, paper foundation piecing, machine piecing, hand piecing, raw edge applique, turned-edge applique and fiber art.
Experience Winning awards in international fiber and art competitions since 1983; http://www.conniehester.com/
BS,MS
See my work and books at http://www.conniehester.com/
Expert: Connie Hester Date: 2/12/2007 Subject: my fabric bled
Question I followed every step with 100% cotton fabric, that I pretreated in the wash. Soaked in Bubble jet 2000. dried. ironed to the freezer paper and printed in the best mode. I have a Lexmark photo printer. Came out very nice. Went to wash it per instructions on the bubble jet bottle and let it drip dry as I have to dryer. It ran all over. ALl the colors. Did a blue bonnet sue motif. Feel so disappointed. WHat went wrong?
-------------------------------------------
The text above is a follow-up to ...
-----Question-----
If I print out my own fabric for quilting can I use colorfast white fabric to ensure washability. Will the ink be colorfast on storebought colorfast material or do I have to use a specially treated fabric made for this? Thanks.
-----Answer-----
I do not understand what you mean by "colorfast white fabric".
Epson Durabrite inks are pretty much the only dependably water-resistant inks (so they are washable) being used in printers right now (although there is some effort being made by HP with 2 versions of a new ink to catch up to Durabrite) on untreated fabrics and virtually the ONLY lightfast (on fabric) ink being used in printers right now. Not all Epson printers use Durabrite inks, but a majority of those who are using inkjet prints for art purposes are buying the C-series Epson printers for that purpose. They retail for under $100, but often coupons make them about $69. The most current model is a C-88.
Epson Durabrite inks are pigment-based. Other inks, like those in HP printers are dye-based. To make dye-based inks water-resistant (but with NO effect on their lightfastness), you can soak (and dry flat) fabric in Bubble Jet Set 2000 solution (available in most fabric and quilting stores) before printing.
Regardless of ink type, it is important to "scour" fabric before printing in order to remove any invisible finishes and/or grime which may prevent their bonding with the ink - and thus getting a good print. To a washing machine medium load of 2-6 yards of fabric (to give you an idea of proportions), I use 1/2 cup Arm & Hammer washing soda and 2 teaspoons Dawn/Joy/Palmolive dishwashing liquid.
I always prepare my own fabrics for printing and do not purchase pre-treated fabrics.
Connie Hester
Answer As noted in my previous response, *Epson* pigment based inks are currently the only dependably water-resistant inks which can be printed directly to scoured fabrics, and Bubble Jet Set 2000 was designed to make *HP*-formula dye based inks water-resistant on scoured fabrics. I have no idea what sort of ink your particular Lexmark photo printer uses. As I have done for all art-related fabric printing, you may need to purchase an Epson pigment based ink printer for art printing.
One more thing to try before going out and purchasing another printer ... allow your printed fabric to rest for 24 hours before washing.
