Welcome back to my wool appliqué series. We are now on to part 2 of the series where we will cover tips on creating your wool pieces using the fusible shapes you drew and cut out last week and laying out the motif on your background. If you missed the first week, you can find that post here: Wool Appliqué for the Beginner – Part 1. As with last week’s post, there will be a mini video tutorial at the end of this installment demonstrating what I talk about. Let’s get started!
Creating the Wool Shapes
This step is where we use those fusible web template shapes created in part 1 to make the appliqué motif pieces from the wool.
Place the fusible shapes in a corner on the piece of wool you have chosen so there is as little waste of wool as possible when they are cut out (left photo, above). Once you have the shapes in place, follow the manufacturer’s directions for the fusible web and use your iron to fuse it to the wool.
Tip! Wool can be used on either side, however one side of your piece of wool may be prettier than the other, especially if you have a piece of hand dyed wool. Once you decide on the side you like, iron the fusible web shape to the reverse side.
Once I am sure the fusible web is fused securely to the wool, I cut away the leftover wool and put it back in my stash. I like to use the scissors below (left photo). They have a sharp serrated edge and cut the wool cleanly.
The next step is to use the drawn lines to cut out the shapes. Remember that we cut out the fusible shapes outside the lines last week. Following the drawn line now insures our final wool appliqué pieces look like an actual flower. It’s easier to cut along lines now than trying to follow the outside edge of the fusible web.
Once the shape is completely cut out, you can peel off and discard the fusible paper (right photo, above). Notice how the back of the shape is now shiny (photo below). That is the adhesive transferred from the fusible web during the ironing process and it’s the side that will be placed face down on the background when fusing down the motif.
Design Layout
Now that you have all the appliqué shapes cut out from the wool, it’s time to layout the design. This is when those drawn lines or creases you made in your background become useful to guide placement.
Stems: If your appliqué motif has stems, those are usually laid out first and glued in place. Stems for these projects are commonly as thin as 1/4″ so I do not use templates and fusible web to create them. I simply cut strips for the stems from a piece of wool and lay them out using a small amount of Roxanne’s glue to secure in place.
Tip! Use the other appliqué motif pieces as a guide for getting your stems in the correct position before gluing.
As you can see from the above photos, I am using the folds in the background, the flower pot and one of the flowers as guides to laying out my stems. Once I have them in the right place, I glue the stems so they do not move as I lay out and fuse the rest of the design in place.
Lay out & Fusing Design
Now it’s time to layout the rest of the design and fuse it in place. Here’s the design all laid out:
Now that I have the design completely laid out and the stems glued where I want, it’s time to fuse the entire motif. I use a steam method to do this. Since I do not put water in my iron, I use a spray bottle of water to dampen a towel laying over the wool motif. Be careful not to move any of the pieces as you are covering the project with the towel. Be sure to use a white towel so there is no chance of a dye transfer to your project.
Once the project is covered with the towel, spray it with enough water to dampen it very well. Next, carefully press the project through the towel, holding it down for about 5 to 10 seconds. “Press” being the important word here. Do not to move the iron back and forth during this step. Once you press one section, lift the iron up to move to the next section.
Don’t forget the mini video tutorial at the bottom of this post!
So that’s all for week 2! See you next week for the last installment in this series. Leave me a comment or ask me questions below and be entered into a drawing for two of my newest mini wool appliqué patterns, Snugg-let Winter Friends and Snugg-let Sew with Friends.
The drawing will be on Monday, November 13th. Good Luck!**We have a winner! Congrats, Diana DeWitt!**
Happy Quilting & Stitching!
Deanne
Thanks for your wonderful tutorials. I never thought about spraying the pressing cloth to create steam. I also don’t put water in my iron, but I have only used dry heat to fuse my pieces to the background. Love the tip.
Always good instructions and tips. Thank you!
I normally don’t use fusible on wool, but will try your method soon.
Thank you for giving such good and clear instructions.
Love the tutorial
Thank you so much
Thanks for the tips. I have never thought about using glue on stems instead if fusible. Looking forward to part 3.
I hadn’t tried your method of wetting a cloth instead of steam in an iron. I’ll try that. I’ve always used the steam iron with a pressing cloth over the wool.
You never put water in your iron?? Even when ironing your fabric before beginning a regular sewing project? I’m curious as to why. Could you explain?
I don’t put water in the iron because no matter how hard I tried, I never was able to empty it completely after use. They also tended to leak and get water where I didn’t want. I use a spray bottle of water or best press to lightly spray fabrics I am pressing. Works great!
Thank you for letting me know. I’ve gone through so many irons through the years because they all eventually leak terribly, even the high priced ones. Using a spray bottle of water is a much better solution. Thanks for the tip! I appreciate it.
Thanks for the hints on wool applique, I love the feel and look of wool. You make it look easy!
Thanks for the great instructions and tips- very helpful! I love your patterns!
Just got a new iron… thanks to you I will not be adding water to it, but use your towel suggestion instead. Thank you so much!
Your steam method is new to me, I’ll have to give it a try this week
I love wool applique and have only pin basted before. I will have to give the fusible a try as it would make the project much more portable and also less stick free! Thanks for all your great tips and yes, I save every tiny wool scrap also!