I am making a quilt out of my sisters wedding dress and brides maids dresses. I know that satin can be a bugger to sew. Would it be easier to PP? I'm thinking of doing a Log Cabin Heart. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Satin has a tendency to fray terribly. I would recommend foundation piecing for control and stability. (That's like PP but you sew on a backing fabric like muslin).

I've had luck using iron-on stabilizer and Microtex needles. It does stiffen it a little, but once washed, is fine.

I agree with MadQuilter, foundation piecing would be a great idea. I would do a couple of samples, 1 on muslin foundation and 1 using stabiliser...then wash them and see how you like the finished product. Good luck, brave quilter...you certainly have a challenge on your hands...Can't wait to see pics.

Yikes! Satin! Try some fray check, but that satin stuff can be a mess. It's all over the net with Halloween costumes. You can do it. Go slow, try not to cuss LOL! And you know we'll want to see...good luck!

maybe now would be a good time to look into getting a serger lol I would try foundation piecing and leaving closer to 1/2" seam allowances on it JMHO

If you decide to try a fusible, I would recommend fusible tricot. It is soft and leaves a soft hand to the fabric. Tricot is the stretchy fabric often found in under panties; they add fusible dots to one side.

JoAnn Fabrics sells it in little packets, but I found it much cheaper from an online drapery company -- $2 or $3 a yard, and the fusible is 60" wide. They had it in black and white. I think the company was Black's, but I no longer have the link. Found it by comparison-shopping on the web.

You could buy a packet from JoAnn's and, if you like it, order in bulk from a drapery company. If you use this, hold a steam iron above it for a few seconds to allow the fusible to shrink (you can watch it shrink) before lowering the iron to fuse it to the fabric.

Another option would be to wash the satin first, then starch it heavily (1:1 solution of Sta-Flo liquid laundry starch and water applied with a painter's brush), throw it in the dryer, and then iron it before cutting.

I would hesitate to paper-piece with Satin because it is so slippery, and because I would be afraid of creating runs in the fabric when taking the paper out.

Wow. Those are all great suggestions. Thank you all so much for the input. Lots of options. I love this board. You all are the greatest.!!! :D :D :D

I used satin from my daughters and DIL dresses for wedding memories quilts and found bonding to a stabiliser made it quite easy to sew. It does make it firmer to hand and you do need to be careful not to snag it either with pins (pin only in seam allowance) or with rough hands.

Good luck - love to see finished result.

They were just sewing with satin on "America Sews With Sue" today and they were backing the satins with fusible tricot like Prism99 suggested :wink: It kept the satin supple but took care of the fraying.