Reverse appliqué
 

What qualities in a fabric do you look for when you do reverse appliqué. I tried using kona white fabric and i am having alot of difficulty. Even though it was washed, the fabric still felt a bit "stiff" and was difficult if not impossible to get rounded pieces to come out correctly. It looked very angular. I want to start a quilt from the Dutch treat book and I want to buy appropriate fabric. Are any brands better than others for reverse appliqué?

second question... How much fabric do you leave to turn? 1/4 or 1/8 inch? What is easier? Does it matter?

Thanks in advance for your assistance.

I like fabric with a tighter weave - in fact, I'm very fond of batiks for applique. I like Kona, too, but more for a background than for the applique itself.

I don't do a lot of reverse applique, but for regular applique I turn under 1/4 to 1/8 inch. Less that 1/8 is too difficult, but when it gets to 1/4, sometimes it leaves too much bulk.

Janet

I don't do a lot of reverse applique but I do needle turn applique. I agree, the tighter the weave the better it is to applique with. The only material I really will not applique with is homespun. As for turning under I think 1/4 to 1/8 is good. You didn't say with method of applique you are using. If you are doing needle turn and the applique piece looks to angular, go back around it and tuck in those spots that look to pointy. You can make it work.

I am doing needle turn. I really enjoy it. Prior to trying, I was very intimidated by appliqué. I am glad I jumped in. I am just having a lot of difficulty with this pattern. It may be that the shapes are so small. I may increase the size by 50% and try again.

I've heard Nancy Chong from Pacific Rim Quilt Company speak, and she claims there is no such thing as reverse applique. You're still turning under some fabric and stitching it down, so it's just applique. The only "difference" is that the primary design element is on the bottom instead of the top. I guess the term 'reverse applique' is her pet peeve.

Regardless, I don't do a lot of needle turn, but I have found that some fabrics turn under more smoothly than others. White on white, for instance, doesn't turn nicely because of the thicker areas. Batiks don't ravel, but I've found that some of them are not as soft and easy to turn as others. My friend who does do a lot of needle turn often remarks on what a nice hand some fabrics have, so I think you will learn to tell by feel whether a fabric will work well for applique.

For "reverse applique" it is important to have a fabric that is tightly woven so it won't fray. Many years ago, I did some
reverse applique with 4 colors...that was fun! the top fabric was constant, but depending on how many layers you cut through to get to the color you wanted to show for the reverse part was a bit tricky, but loved the look.