1. Prewash? 2. Underline with stabilizer? 3. Marking Choices? 4. Type of Batting? When starting any new quilt, there are many choices to consider and decisions to make regarding materials, designs and techniques. The above sample is testing background filler stitches. Working with silk creates it's own unique challenges. Although many quilters are choosing to work with silk today, resource info was scattered and hard to find, both on-line and in books. One invaluable source has been the book "Silk Quilts" written by Hanne Vibeke de Konig. Published in 2000, the information is well researched and still relevant today. 1. Pre-wash? Once the fabrics have been chosen, in my case it's a silk dupioni, the question of pre-washing must be resolved. Opinions in the quilting world vary on this, although my findings led me to believe most quilters choose not to prewash silk. The draw back to this is that the quilt must then be dry cleaned if it ever gets soil