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Jan
10
Fusible web management
Filed Under Fusible web, Machine appliqué, Photo tutorial, Product demo, Raw edge
Today I’d like to pass along a few little tips about how to wrangle your fusible web… the kind that comes on a bolt.
My web of choice for raw-edge fusible machine appliqué is Pellon’s Wonder-Under, regular weight. Your mileage may vary. I’ve kind-of got it down now, but it was not always so. When it comes to paper-backed fusible web, I suffer from separation anxiety. As in, the web separates from the paper backing before I get a chance to use it. Arggh!
In the past, I’ve tried passing an iron over it on top of a teflon appliqué pressing sheet in an attempt to stick it back to the paper… what a mess. Now I just chuck it when I find that’s it separated.
Here’s what I do now to alleviate the separation issue.
First of all, don’t let the clerks in the store roll it up for you. You know what happens, say, if you place one towel on top of another and roll them up together? The top one ooches along and ends up sticking out farther than the bottom one by the time you get there. I don’t know which law of physics makes this so, but the same thing happens with fusible web and its paper backing. Rolling the product encourages separation. Just ask them to fold it loosely for you.
Then, as soon as you get home, cut it into squares. This is information that I got from my pal Pam Crooks, who got it from the estimable Sue Nickels, machine appliquér extraordinaire. I keep a separate rotary cutter for cutting paper and this purpose. The width of the product is 17″, so if you cut it into 8 1/2″ squares that’s just right, and the squares fit perfectly into a gallon-size zippy bag.
Not only are they flat and happy and much easier to work with than a big floppy hunk, keeping the squares in a bag prevents them from drying out, another culprit in the separation issue.
I keep scraps in an old box lid that fits into the zippy bag when not in use.
As I work on a pattern I start with the smaller pieces and only start a new square when there’s a motif that’s bigger than my biggest scrap of fusible. It’s soooo nice to reach into that bag and pull out a nice fresh, flat sheet in such a manageable size.
Here’s another tip for working with paper-backed fusible web: trace the smaller pieces inside the larger pieces. I learned from Sue Nickels in her book Machine Applique: A Sampler of Techniques
Let’s say we’re starting with a pattern like this.
The leaves will fit inside the basket with enough room to spare to cut everything out roughly.
While you’re at it, go ahead and trace the flower center inside the flower.
Use a circle template tool to trace nice round circles. Use a size that is a little bit bigger than the circle. (When you trace, the circle shrinks.)
The arrow is my attempt at telestration in Photoshop.
Last tip for working with fusible web: the smallest, itty-bitty pieces like flower centers are too small to cut the center out of. Then it can be hard to get the paper backing started to peel it off when you’re ready to fuse. I tried the ’scratch it with a pin’ technique but somehow was never skilled enough to do it without fraying a thread or two. My new favorite strategy is that, once the motif is rough-cut, I peel up one side of the paper, going into the motif area a little bit.
Then I lay the paper back down and cut out the motif on the drawn line. When I’m ready to take the backing off, part of it has already been started. In this case, separation is good. 
Okay, that is my most sage advice for fusible web management. I hope it proves to be of use to you.
Until next time,
Kay
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14 Responses to “Fusible web management”
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I place a silicon pillow (the little pillows that come in tablet bottles) in the bag with the fussible webbing. One of the main reasons it separates is humidity and the silicon pillow absorbs any moisture.
If the webbing has separated I have found that a slightly warm iron, rather than a hot one, is better for the glue back to the paper and use baking paper (Glad Bake is what I use)rather than the teflon applique mat. The glue just doesn’t stick at all to the baking paper and there is no mess.
Excellent! Great to know, Rosemary. Thanks for sharing your tips!
Kay
I wonder if you can answer this question for me. If you’re doing machine applique and you have a multitude of thread colours to match your appliqué, how do you avoid all those colours showing through onto the backing fabric, other than using an extremely busy fabric?
Thanks in advance.
Thanks for all your tips! They are great for a newbie like me! I’m off to cut my wonder under now! I always wondered what I could do with it!!
Hi Linda! Hi Lisa! Thanks for stopping by!
Linda, if I’m understanding your question, it seems as though you’re thinking of machine appliquéing all the way through all three layers of the quilt. Actually, the appliqué is done only on the quilt top. It isn’t until the appliqué is complete and the top is all sewn together that I start thinking about what’s going to show on the back during the quilting process. Then I decide what threads I’ll use for quilting, and, if I’m using a variety, how to disguise the different colors with a busy back.
Does that help?
Cheers,
Kay
I’ve used heat n bond lite for over a decade. I gave up on wonder under because of the separation problems. Heat n Bond can be rolled up too. I’ve never had needle gum up problems with this product.
Barbara, thank you so much for this information. Your recommendation goes a long way with me… you do the best appliqué! (Readers, go check it out now if you missed my post on Barbara’s photo tutorial.) Next time I’m at the store I’ll get another hunk of this and give it another try.
Cheers,
Kay
I use wonder under, but I have the problem of getting it off of the piece I’m working with. It either doesn’t want to come off, or it all comes off and no wonder under is on the fabric. I follow the directions…
Hi Debbie, sorry to hear you’re having trouble. Sounds like heat problems to me. Not being able to get the paper backing off can result from having your iron too high or pressing it too long, and the product all coming off happens when the heat is too low. Try experimenting with iron settings. If that’s not it, the product could be old or a bad batch.
Let us know what happens!
Kay
Hi Kay,
I LOVE your site!
I am new to sewing and living in a non English speaking country. I have, due to much hard work and determination, found some sort of fusible web at the local fabric market. I have it in two forms…a small tape ( like scotch tape) and by the meter sheet. However, I am REALLY confused by how to use it. There is NO backing paper…..
I would be so grateful for any tips of hints you can give me on how to use this stuff….
Hi Joleen! So glad you’re enjoying the site. I’m going to bump your question to a new post so we can get other appliqué enthusiasts to chime in.
Kay
[...] got this comment from Joleen on my Fusible web management post. I’m bumping her question to this new post. Hi [...]
Kay–FANTASTIC page, just the kind of helpful tips I was looking for. A couple questions: Do you machine sew over your applique, and if so, does the Wonder Under give your needle a tough time? I saw the comment about Heat n Bond not gumming–any opinion which one is better?? Also, you recommend cutting the centers out of the large pieces of fusible–would you recommend that if people are NOT planning to sew over the applique (other than a little stippling during the regular quilting process)? In other words, if I’m not planning to embroider an edge around my applied piece, should I go ahead and fuse the whole thing down? I’m so worried that even though this is for a wall hanging, the ironed-on stuff will fall off or fray…
Finally, I have a suggestion for those annoying backing-won’t-separate issues: I’ve never done this on fusible web, but on other peel-apart stuff, you can often get an ornery backing to come off if you grab both ends of the item and rub it, shoeshine-style, over a curved surface (like a pencil). I think it works on that same law of physics that you mentioned earlier, with the rolled-up towels. I’ve gotten many a kid’s tattoo to come off the backing that way–give it a try!
Hi Jeanine!
I do sew the edges of my machine appliqué, with a small machine blanket stitch, and Wonder Under does not gum up the needle. As to which fusible is better, it’s a matter of choice so try each one and see which you prefer.
The reason for removing the centers of the templates is to reduce stiffness, which I prefer. For a decorative wall piece, if you don’t mind it being stiff, you can leave the centers in if you feel it might make the pieces stay better when not finishing the edges. I really feel it’s better to either finish the edges or quilt over the motifs (or both). In either of those cases you don’t need the motif fused in the middle.
There are certain fusing techiques where the fabric is pre-fused, and then the shapes are cut out. In that case, you can’t remove the center of the fusible. That’s the way Laura Wasilowski works… see my post of August 1, 2009.
Cheers,
Kay