Appliqueing Hints

Just a couple of little things I have picked up along the way when cutting out applique patterns... don't be afraid to switch scissors from big to little when cutting different sizes.... cut inside curves first.... cut your smallest objects first... easier to handle on a good size piece of fabric.... when cutting with your scissors open your scissors wide and insert fabric down at the end so when cutting you can make one smooth cut or even cut a cirlce smoother... if anyone else has suggestions I would love to hear them...

its a good idea to start this Golo, will add stuff as it comes to mind, great resource

Golo....what I have trouble with since starting applique is trying to figure out which side to draw my pattern on on the steam a seam lite. Seems i always end up drawing on the side that peels off first, hense losing my pattern. I have been able to struggle it to switch sides, seems to me the paper should be different colors...is this making sense to you?

Calico its makes lots of sense.... I don't use steam a seam.. I use wonderunder ... and you can only draw on one side of it... so no problem there...

I have that same problem with the Steam a Seam too, Chris. It is maddening. I have switched back to Wonder Under for the time being.

perhaps you could iron a test piece of your steam a seam onto fabric to work out which is top and which is bottom and then on the top side you would draw on, draw a pen line all along the long edge so no matter when you open it to use, the pen line will tell you which is the right side to draw on, just an idea.

I use heat 'n' bond lite, like Golos, there is only one side to use, one side paper the other the glue stuff.

The only wonder under i've seen at Joanns is the tape. Do they sell that with the bolts of stabilizer and such? (all that stuff they keep behind the cutting counter).
Is it as lightweight as the steam a seam light?
I'll look for the heat n bond lite too...have only seen regular heat n bond at my joanns as well. I may need to go to the larger Joann's one town east of me. Its a bigger Joann's.

Yes CC, they sell it with all their stabilizer bolts.. interfacing bolts etc. Wonderunder comes in different weights so make sure you get the light weight... I just bought a bolt from Joanns on line at 50% off at $1.00 a yard... so I now have 35 yds of it... its usually 18" wide and I was always buying 3 or 5 yds at at time... Just ask they should help you find it... take a coupon with you...

I'm well stocked with Joann's coupons again...don't you hate when you run out!
I'll look here this week!

I have trouble with not points the opposite of points, the valley's I guess you would call it, they are sharp and hard to applique. Any hints here.

Rita

Do you mean like the valley in the top of a heart? Stitch along one side...then clip into the seam allowance almost to the line (just a thread away) of where you turn under right at the center of that valley. Take one stitch right in that valley..then swoop the seam allowance under on the other side of the valley. The heart shape comes to mind as one of the best learning applique shapes because you have points, curves, and valleys. Practice really helps you get more comfortable with it. Maybe take some of your scraps and do up a baby/doll quilt or pillow top..just to get the practice?

AOL You are absolutely right, as usual.

I don't have the patience for Steam-a-Seam - and when I did use it my edges frayed. My favorite Heat n'Bond Lite is a little stiff if you use a big chunk of it, but I cut the centers out so I have only about a 1/4" around the edge of all but the teeniest applique pieces. Then it doesn't seem stiff at all, and judging from DGS's quilt it holds up really well to lots of love and washing!

This is my latest, greatest discovery! (thanks to reading about it on the Karen Kay Buckley site) I bought this stuff called Pattern Ease and used it to make an overlay for placing the applique. I guess it's kind of like non-woven interfacing, but it's very sheer and soft. I put the piece of it on my paper pattern and traced with a Micron pen. Then I lay it on the block. It doesn't slide around; it's easy to see through; and it's easy to lift out of the way with one hand while positioning the applique with the other hand.

QBee..I tried drawing out my pattern on clear plastic that comes by the yard and it was awful to work with IMO. It got wrinkles in it from bringing it home and storing and you can't iron plastic. Trying to smooth as I worked didn't help much..and I found my placement was "off". I like that pattern ease you have. I have a bolt of lightweight interfacing I got at a garage sale..and I bet it would work the same?
Thanks for posting this! I hadn't thought of trying that.

AOL - I know what you mean! I bought a giant roll of it, based on the recommendation in the Piece o'Cake book. Why didn't I try a small amount first to see how I liked it?? Besides the problems you mentioned, I marked it with Sharpie markers, and the "permanent" marker rubbed off onto any other vinyl it came in touch with.

Give your lightweight interfacing a try and see what you think. I'm not sure it will be as soft and flexible as the Pattern Ease, but that might not matter at all. When I read about it at Karen Kay Buckley's site, she said she sews it to the edge of her block to keep it in place. I don't think I'd like the overlay dangling off the side while I stitch.