Most fabrics have quite a bit of sizing on them making it very hard to get fusible to stick. I prefer Steam A Seam and the package says to prewash and not use fabric softener. I admit I have never prewashed and had no problem but felt lucky. Steam ASeam is presently out of production but should appear soon on the shelves. I have found using other brands that they all have their own pros and vons. If I am going to either hand or machine sitch I always use the lite version. If no stitching, just sticking downn, then I use Ultra. Banck to your problem - the sizing is probably the culprit and the paper not releasing probably didnt get the iron hot enough or hold it down long enough. What brand fusible are you using?