schoolteacher

I am making a snowman out of 2.5 squares and when finished it will be about 5 foot. I have found the perfect fabric to use as a background. My plan is to make the snowman and then stitch it on to the other fabric. Then sandwich it and quilt it so in the end I will have a wall/door hanging. My question is ....should I put a stabilizer under the snowman before attaching it to the background panel? Or should I just sew it on with a decorative stitch, sandwich, and then quilt? I am unable to post a picture so am hoping I have explained it well enough. Thanks.

dd

You could use something under the snowman, especially if the background fabric shows thru. I would put it under the background so you can tear it off after you sew down the snowman.

PaperPrincess

My girlfriend made one & just sewed the snowman to the background around the edges, however, the quilting (which was quite dense) was done across the entire surface of the quilt. Also, the snowmen were about 3 feet tall.

Tartan

If you are not going to quilt inside the snowman then a fused stabilizer would keep it from wrinkling. If you plan to quilt inside the snowman then the stabilizer may be hard to quilt through.
I might add an extra layer of batt behind the snowman for a trapunto look instead and then stipple the background to make it pop out.

schoolteacher

Oh, I love this idea!! I've never done it before but do think it would look great!!

Prism99

It's actually more important to stabilize the background fabric first. When applying a large applique, the largest risk is that the background fabric may become distorted as you work around and you end up with wrinkles in the background fabric. My advice is to heavily starch the background fabric before starting; a 1:1 solution of Sta-Flo and water will work. The fastest way to do this is to "paint" the solution onto the fabric using a large wall painting brush, wait a minute or two to allow the starch to be fully absorbed into the fabric, toss fabric in dryer, then iron with steam. This will stiffen the fabric and keep it from distorting while you machine sew around the applique. If you don't use starch, then you *really* want to use some kind of stabilizer on the background fabric. This is much more important than stabilizing the applique itself, although you can do that too.

BettyGee

I would most definitely use a stabilizer and as Tartan, the amazing Canadian quilter, said use extra batting. Please post a picture as it sounds absolutely adorable. Just glanced up and read what Prism99 advised and love her advice also. This forum has people that can answer any question, solve any problem, and I'm proud to be a member.

Sandrea

I agree. I like tartans suggestion.