What is batik fabric? Beautiful, of course! They make fantastic batik quilts! But if you need a more technical description about how batik fabrics are made, let us explain! Batik quilt fabric is a unique material in which wax is applied to certain areas of the fabric. Once the wax hardens, the fabric is submerged in a beautiful dye, and the wax actually prevents the fibers from absorbing it! After being properly submerged, the batik fabric print is then boiled to remove the wax. This fabric-dyeing method gives the fabric a tie-dye, crackled look, which is what makes batik quilt fabric so stunning! But this is just one way batik fabric prints are made. The four other ways batiks can be made are through hand-drawing, digital printing, metal blocks, and screen printing.
Batik quilt fabrics can actually be made with many different fabrics. Most cotton weights work well with the waxing and dyeing processes, so long as the wax is able to penetrate through the material. But finer weaves typically work best for batiks. What’s more is batiks aren’t only sold by the yard, they’re also sold as precuts, which we carry as well. Whether you prefer a batik layer cake or a batik jelly roll, you’ll see plenty of both in our selection of batik quilt fabric!
Since batik fabric prints are made through such an elaborate process, you may wonder if they bleed when you wash them. The answer is YES. Batik quilt fabrics do indeed bleed, but the best way to avoid a tie-dye batik quilts disaster is to pre-wash your batik fabrics with some water and Retayne. If you’re unfamiliar with Retayne, it’s simply a color fixative that helps “lock” fabric dye in to prevent excessive bleeding. All you need to do is soak your batiks in enough water to completely cover them, add about a teaspoon of Retayne and let it all soak for approximately 20 minutes. Then, give your batiks a rinse with cool water, toss them in the dryer, and voila—tie-dye disaster avoided!
Can batik quilts be washed? Of course! You already know to pre-wash your batiks, but all regular washes of batik quilts afterward should either be by hand or on a very gentle cycle in your machine. And since most batik fabrics are cotton, ironing—preferably on a low or medium setting—is completely safe.
Now, when it comes to working with batik fabric prints, most actually don’t have a right or wrong side. You’ve likely heard Jenny refer to the “right” and “wrong” sides of fabric in her tutorials—the “right” being the side of the fabric where the colors and designs are the most vivid. Because batiks are dyed all the way through, both sides are typically just as vivid as the other, so there is no right or wrong side! Though this isn’t always the case with all batik quilt fabrics, so when you encounter a batik with sides that are nearly identical, just pick the side that appears brightest to you and let that be the “right” side for your batik quilts.
One of the best things about batik quilt fabric is how versatile it is--it’s not limited to specific colors or a particular look! One of the most common batik patterns is typically a beachy, tropical look, but since many popular manufacturers make batiks, there is a great variety out there to explore! Moda Fabrics, for example, creates batik fabric, so if you’re a big fan of Moda, you’ll be thrilled to know that we carry Moda batik fabrics! We adore batik quilt fabric just as much as regular cottons; our selection includes fabric by the yard (of course), Tonga Batiks, Island Batik fabric, Christmas batik fabric, and so much more!
If you’re not sure what to do with batik fabrics, don’t stress! We have plenty of batik projects that can introduce you to the beauty of batik prints, such as batik quilt kits and batik quilt patterns. We also carry many batikprecuts, and even extra wide batik backing fabric to use with our batik quilt patterns! So come take a look and see what your next—or first—batik creation will be!