If you do the QAYG blocks you don't need stabilizer because you have the batting and the backing. Other than that you'd want either a WS or a tear away. One that isn' stiff.

thanks for the help on stabilizers! Has anyone ever used battilizer on embroidered blocks?

Hi,

My dealer recently was telling us that we should use a very light featherweight fusible interfacing (not stabilizer) on the back of our cotton fabrics when we are making quilt blocks. Then you hoop your stabilizer and fabric (that has the interfacing fused to it) and embroider. I am into using the stabilizer that is a tear away, but you wet it with a sponge and stick your fabric to it, embroider, and you can tear it away. Wet N Stick or Hydro Stick are a couple brands. It eliminates a lot of puckers!
If you google it or check out embroidering quilt blocks it seems to be the way to do it now. Anita Good Design is teaching doing it this way now also. Cuts way down on the puckers....which I hate!
I've done quite a few embroidered wall hanging quilts and runners.....love em!

A stabilizer that you just slip under your hoop, isn't hooped with the fabric in the hoop.

There are a lot of techniques out there -- hooping only the stabilizer then spraying the stabilizer with a spray baste and attaching the fabric to the stabilizer keeps the fabric from stretching too much. I have done this with a water soluble and lightly sprayed the fabric. A further anchor with a couple of pins.

The idea is to keep the embroidery from bunching up the fabric. I have also done a lightweight fusible with a water soluble in the hoop (I tend to stretch my fabric too tight if I put it in a hoop).

My advice is to play. Get small amounts of various stabilizers and play -- don't be afraid to use more than one stabilizer layered. Figure out what works best for you and your machine.