stabilizer?
#1
I have never used stablilizer before and really dont know what it is. Can someone tell me about it and what brands to look for or stay away from? I am making a quilt out of my sons baby clothes if that makes any difference in what to buy thanks
#3
If you're making something with old baby clothes it sounds like you just need to stabilize the knit fabrics so they don't stretch all over the place while you're working with them. A medium weight fusible interfacing would probably be best. I don't think it matters what kind of brand.
#6
Interfacing and stabilizer have some similarities but are not the same thing.
Interfacing (both sew-in and fusible) are meant to reinforce and stabilize areas of a garment, typically, although they are used to stabilize and reinforce other things. They usually have a little bit of give, even the non-woven ones, so they would not be suitable for something like machine embroidery.
Stabilizer on the other hand is a non-woven material that does not give at all. It is used to...well...stabilize fabrics so they don't distort and pucker when doing machine embroidery, for instance. There are many different kinds of stabilizer- cut away, tear away, wash away, self-adhesive, etc. You could also use stabilizer to stabilize the background fabric when doing applique. It also tends to be more expensive than interfacing.
Some people will use tissue paper, freezer paper, or newspaper or other kinds of papers as stabilizers that are removed after the project is constructed (paper piecing is a good example).
Interfacing (both sew-in and fusible) are meant to reinforce and stabilize areas of a garment, typically, although they are used to stabilize and reinforce other things. They usually have a little bit of give, even the non-woven ones, so they would not be suitable for something like machine embroidery.
Stabilizer on the other hand is a non-woven material that does not give at all. It is used to...well...stabilize fabrics so they don't distort and pucker when doing machine embroidery, for instance. There are many different kinds of stabilizer- cut away, tear away, wash away, self-adhesive, etc. You could also use stabilizer to stabilize the background fabric when doing applique. It also tends to be more expensive than interfacing.
Some people will use tissue paper, freezer paper, or newspaper or other kinds of papers as stabilizers that are removed after the project is constructed (paper piecing is a good example).
#7
Power Poster
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Western Wisconsin
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I use starch to stabilize fabric for certain applications -- especially machine applique and when piecing a quilt out of flannel. Heavy starch (1:1 solution of Sta-Flo and water) stabilizes the background fabric sufficiently for machine applique so that I don't have to use anything else, and the starch washes out later. Flannel has a tendency to stretch and distort when piecing, so again heavy starch comes to the rescue.
In the past I have stabilized knits (such as t-shirt fabrics) with fusible nylon tricot, which worked well. You need to pre-shrink the tricot by holding a steam iron above it for a few seconds; you can see it shrink before your eyes! An advantage of fusible nylon tricot is that it has some "give" and does not make fabrics as stiff as many other fusibles. It does, however, add quite a bit of thickness and weight.
In the past I have stabilized knits (such as t-shirt fabrics) with fusible nylon tricot, which worked well. You need to pre-shrink the tricot by holding a steam iron above it for a few seconds; you can see it shrink before your eyes! An advantage of fusible nylon tricot is that it has some "give" and does not make fabrics as stiff as many other fusibles. It does, however, add quite a bit of thickness and weight.
#8
Originally Posted by seahorsesanna
I have never used stablilizer before and really dont know what it is. Can someone tell me about it and what brands to look for or stay away from? I am making a quilt out of my sons baby clothes if that makes any difference in what to buy thanks
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