Moda Block Heads Round 3 Block 4

Good Morning and welcome to week 4 of this round of Moda Block Heads.

This week, we have a fun applique block designed by Jan Patek.  To download the free pattern, visit Jan’s blog.  Yes, it is applique–and I have a lot to say about the topic of applique.  So keep reading if applique is something that you have been intimidated by…I hear this a lot!

I’ve noticed that in the Moda Block Heads Facebook group that there seems to be many new to Block Heads and new to quilting in general.  Because of this, I wanted to take a little bit of time today to talk about some of the questions that arise with applique.  I know I won’t be able to address everything but hopefully it will help!

I have always loved applique…in fact, this is the first pieced quilt I ever made:

The stems and leaves on this quilt were hand appliqued and the coins were raw edge machine appliqued.

And this quilt was probably in the first five quilts I made (also hand applique):

I don’t think applique is that tricky…but many people have either convinced themselves it is, or someone else has done that for them! =)

I enjoy applique so much that for a number of years I ran an applique business where I designed, appliqued, and sold handmade kids clothing.  This happened after making the quilts above.  And here are a couple of the pieces I made and sold:

These are not done on an embroidery machine.  They are machine appliqued, free hand using a tight zig zag stitch on my little, non-computerized Bernina.

I sketch the designs, trace onto paper-backed fusible web, iron to the fabrics, then to the clothing, and finish with machine stitching.

Isn’t toddler Chloe so cute!–I can’t believe that she is almost 15. =)

I think one of the things that confuses people with applique is all of the terms.  If you are new to applique, I may have thrown out a couple words already that had you scratching your head.  So let’s begin with the basics.

What is Applique?

It’s basically attaching one piece of fabric to another.

How do we applique?

Here’s where things get fun..there are a lot of different ways to go about completing applique (attaching one piece of fabric to another).  You may have some or all of these things referenced, “needle turn applique”, “freezer paper applique”, “raw edge applique”, “fusible web applique”..and I’m certain there are more.  This is great because it means if one technique isn’t your jam…you’ve got lots of other ways to approach it.

I have tried a lot of different types of applique and for this post, I am going to focus on fusible web applique finished by machine.  I find this method user friendly, and it is faster for me than doing things by hand.  So, from here on out, anything I mention will be about this type of applique.

Okay, so we are talking Fusible Web Applique…what does that mean?

Fusible web is a product that is adhered to the back of one fabric to “glue” it in place onto another fabric.  It’s often set by heat and allows the pieces to be machine stitched easily once they are stuck down.

There are a lot of different fusible web products.  My favorite is Heat N Bond Lite.  It is a paper backed fusible web (not all of them are).  Having the paper backing means the shapes we want can be easily traced directly onto the fusible web.

Heat N Bond Lite does not gum up my needle when I am sewing through it (the Lite is important–there are other weights of Heat N Bond that will gum up your needle or are not to be sewn through) and it’s lightweight enough that it doesn’t add a lot of bulk to your project.

Here is a quick video from ThermOWeb about Heat N Bond Lite (and feather lite):

Note:  I like the featherlite weight as well but, for me, the paper backing doesn’t remove as easily so I stick with the Lite version.  And one other note on the video.  It shows ironing to the back of the fabric and then tracing the applique shape.  It is much easier to trace the shape first, and then fuse to the back of your fabric.  I’ll talk more about this but wanted to mention here as well.

So, what do I do first?

Buy your fusible web.  Heat N Bond Lite can be purchased in packages or off the bolt.  If it’s possible to purchase off the bolt (it’s 17″ wide) do so.  Sometimes the packages have a crease in the fusible that isn’t as nice to use.  Many quilt shops carry Heat N Bond Lite.

Next, trace the shapes needed onto the paper side of the fusible web.  You will be tracing on to the smooth side.  Jan’s pattern has a total of 11 pieces.  Using scotch tape, tape the page with the shapes onto any household window.  You want to tape the page with the printed side facing the window.  The back/blank side should be facing you.  Place the fusible web right on top of the page and trace the shapes onto the paper side of the fusible web (not the bumpy side).  Leave about 1/2″ or so in between each of the shapes as you are tracing.  By tracing our shapes with the wrong side of the pattern paper facing us, our shapes will be facing the correct direction when they are finished.

Two quick notes:  I opted to combine pieces A/B into one larger shape and pieces D/E into one larger shape.  This simplifies the applique.  You can easily do this when you are tracing the pieces if you’d like to do the same.  I am going to reference the pieces as combined below when I talk about stitching them down.

Next, cut out each shape leaving about a 1/8″ to 1/4″ perimeter around each shape.  Note:  If multiple shapes are going on to the same fabric, you do not need to cut them apart at this step.

I’ve got my fusible shapes made, now what?

Each shape will be fused on to the wrong side of your fabrics.  For Heat N Bond Lite, the video above shows how easily the shapes fuse to your fabrics.  A couple things…do make sure to use no steam and if your pieces aren’t sticking, you are most likely over ironing.  This step goes much faster than most people expect.

My pieces are fused, now what?

Cut apart each shape on the drawn line and then remove the paper backing.  The paper should remove easily and the back side of your fabric shapes should have a shiny, smooth surface.

Fuse onto the background fabric

The next step is to fuse the shapes on to your background fabric.  This will be done in steps.  To begin, lay out all of the pieces on the background fabric so you can center everything as you would like it.

Note: some people like to cut their background piece 1/2″ or so larger than required and then trim to size once all of the applique is complete. 

On page one of Jan’s pattern you can see the lay out diagram of how the pieces will overlap.  Once your pieces are centered take off all of the pieces except for piece A/B.  Piece A/B is the first piece that will be fused and then stitched in place.  Fuse piece A/B down.  Again, this is going to be a quick press of the iron–it’s really just a couple seconds with a medium/hot iron and no steam.  You should be able to run your finger across the piece with no edges coming up after it has been fused properly.

Note:  As mentioned above, I opted to combine piece A & B into one piece and will be referencing them as combined.

Piece A/B is fused–what is the next step?

Now you will want to machine stitch around the perimeter of this piece.  You can use a number of different stitches for machine applique.  I most often use a blanket stitch because I like the way that it looks.  Although a lot of machines have a blanket stitch, not all of them do.  A zigzag stitch or straight stitch are also popular choices.

If you use a straight stitch, your fabrics will fray a little bit around the perimeter of your shape.  If you are new to machine applique, I would recommend a coordinating thread to your fabric color (change the color for each shape if needed).  Coordinating threads will not show stitch imperfections as quickly.

Make sure to use an open toe foot for zigzag or blanket stitches and set your needle to end in the down position if possible.  Stop and start your applique stitches either on the top or bottom of piece A/B.  These edges will be covered with other applique shapes so you won’t see those stops/starts.

After stitching A/B down, move onto the next pieces.

Fuse Piece C and Piece D/E (remember I combined them) into place.  Machine stitch down.  Next, fuse pieces F-I down and stitch down.

So, that is kind of a basic tutorial on how I machine applique.  If you prefer hand applique, Jan’s pattern includes instructions for that approach.  You can also find a lot of great tutorials both video and written with a quick google search.

For my Birdhouse block, I used fabrics from Sugarcreek Prints, Sugarcreek Wovens, and Lulu Lane.

If you are interested in learning more about machine applique using fusible web, you might be interested in reading my book Playful Petals.

It’s a great resource for those new to applique–especially if you are interested in machine applique as I described in the steps above.

I hope that this post has given some of you new to applique an interest in trying out applique for yourself.  And that it has hopefully answered some questions you may have had about applique.

If you still aren’t sure about applique, I believe that on Friday at least two of the Moda Block Heads designers will be releasing pieced blocks. =)  So be sure to check the blogs!

2.5 – Jan Patek  <–we are here
2.12 – Brigitte Heitland 
2.19 – Lisa Bongean 
2.26 – Lissa Alexander
3.4 – Laurie Simpson
3.11 – Vanessa Goertzen
3.18 – Stacy Iest Hsu
3.25 – Robin Pickens
4.1 – Janet Clare
4.8 – Jen Kingwell
4.15 – Joanna Figueroa 
4.22 – Corey Yoder
4.29 – Sherri McConnell
5.6 – Betsy Chutchian

Thanks so much for reading along today! Corey