penski

i am making a quilt and on the outside border (made with muslin fabric) i have made a vine with flowers on the vine i used Steam a Seam 2 to put the flowers on , and it says no sewing needed that with steam a seam they will stay even after washing has anyone used this in appliqueing and not done a stitch to secure the applique and does it hold up after washings? the few times i have used the steam a seam i used them on decorating things that dont get washed so no reason to sew the applique and if i do need to sew the applique , with the muslin being the border do you think i need to use some kind of stabilizer when stitching the applique?

Thank you for any comments you have

Prism99

If you haven't heavily starched the border, then you will need a stabilizer to sew applique. Just a piece of lightweight paper might be enough.

I would test the Steam a Seam 2 on the muslin fabric by using some scraps to fuse a sample and throwing it in with every wash and dry load for awhile to see how they are. Years ago when I used it, it stayed fine without sewing when I ran a sample through the laundry like this. However, a lot depends on your specific application of it -- for example, your iron may not be as hot as mine was (or hotter) and that can affect the sticking power of the fusible, your fabric may not have been prewashed and it may be that some of the fabric finishing chemicals from the factory affect the holding power of the fusible, etc.

Does the package say you can sew through Steam a Seam 2? If so, you could also create a sample and then sew through the sample to make sure you won't have any problems with your particular combination of fabric, iron temp, age of fusible, etc.

VickyS

I just finished a class where we used Steam a Seam 2 (the 1/4" variety) to tack down the binding before we sewed it down. The teacher was very specific about the fact that the Steam a Seam 2 would NOT hold up to multiple washings - similar to a washable fusible it will wear off after about 10-12 washings.

This was on 100% cotton - not muslin and we were making quilts for charity and personal use that were expected to be laundered.

That being said: 1) sew it down and 2) use a lightweight stabilizer.

Show us what you are making!

Jackie Spencer

I use steam a seam all the time, but I do button hole stitch Applique, so mine are sewed down. I did find tho, that if I had sprayed my fabric with starch, before fusing my appliques, they did not want to stay on. Some would be falling off before I got my block or border stitched.

pinkberrykay

I used steam a seam for appliqué and before I was able to get them all stitched down they were coming off. I had to redo a few. My LQS owners mother told me it was b/c I heated it too much.

romanojg

I use steam a seam 2 and I like it alot; it's light and easy to use but I sew over the applique. I'd be concerned with any stablizer that over time it would come lose or fray at the edges. If you sew the flowers edges it's only going to secure them more so I'd go ahead and go for it. You could test it by washing a few times but depending on how many times the quilt gets washed in the future it may or may not hold up.

penski

Thank you for the information everyone i will be stitching my flowers down , after spending all the time to make the quilt i dont want it to fall apart on me down the road, i knew it was to good to be true that there was one step i could eliminate and still have a pretty quilt !!