Belfrybat

Argh! That should be interfacing in the title, not interfacting!

In the thread where I posted a picture of a tie quilt I made (http://www.quiltingboard.com/picture...d-t274490.html), several folks have suggested I would have been better off using fusible interfacing instead of Steam-a-Seam.

Can anyone who has used both speak to this? I was working with silk ties and thought using S-a-S would be less damaging as the first side can be stuck to the ties without ironing. I guess I was wrong, but thought the less heat on the fragile silk the better.

Why would fusible interfacing have been the better choice to use?

PaperPrincess

A fusible featherweight interfacing adds body to the silk and will allow it to behave more like quilting cotton. It will also eliminate fraying so piecing will go better. Don't know what weight of SaS you used, but my guess is it was too heavy for silk. Also the adhesive is just temporary until you iron it so it may delaminate from the silk. Normally garment construction knowledge isn't necessary for quilting, but this might be one area that it helps.

ManiacQuilter2

I use Pellon lightweight fusible for when I did T-shirt quilts. I would think it would work for silk ties too.

cashs_mom

I agree with PaperPrincess. A lightweight fusible would have been my choice. SaS is really just to hold things in place. It's made to hold the pieces there until you can stitch them down.

RobertaK1

I just made 2 quilts out of dance costumes. I used the lightweight wonder under. I peeled the paper off and sandwiched between the piece from the costume and a Kona cotton backing, So I only had to iron once. It worked great.

ckcowl

Steam a seam is a fusible used for applique, fuses on both sides, fused to wrong side of one fabric, paper peeled, fused to right side of background-- is a common application. ( washes away when laundered)
Fusible interfacing has fusible on One side, stabilizers fabric -- stays in, comes in various weights, lightweight used in light fabrics, silks, etc. Medium or heavier weights used for things like stiff collars, cuffs, where stiff stability is needed. They ( SaS & interfacings) are two very different products.

toverly

I've wondered about Steam a Seam, is it the one that has some stickiness that holds it down a little? I am taking a class on Tuesday where they requested you use Steam a Seam.

Watson

With Steam a Seam, you iron it to your fabric, peel the backing off of one side and it will stick to your fabric until you iron it in place. It was a Godsend when I did this wall hanging.[ATTACH=CONFIG]540223[/ATTACH]

Bree123

Steam a Seam is heavier than most fusibles (probably not Heat & Bond, but everything else for sure). It also requires one of the longest pressing times. I never had much luck with it, but in fairness, I haven't used it in many years & perhaps back then I didn't realize that to add fusible it was critical to only use up & down movements to press & not iron side-to-side at all. I always had wrinkles in those projects and haven't gone back to it since.

Steam a Seam Lite is much lighter, but still requires one of the longest pressing times. For example, with Pellon 805 WonderUnder, you quickly tack the fusible to the applique (5 sec max) and then press the applique to your backing fabric (10-15 sec). SaS Lite has you stick it to the applique & the press to the backing fabric for 30 seconds.

The best product I could think of for doing an applique with silk ties would be Misty Fuse. It is the lightest weight fusible on the market & fuses at the lowest temperature. I've used it with silk organza & it is not even noticeable in the end. Because it is designed to fuse on the lower heat setting, it should adhere better to the silk... which should help reduce the number of wrinkles in your next project.

toverly

Thanks for clearing that up Watson, I didn't mean to hijack the thread. Looks like I will be buying some Steam a Seam.