Advice sought for fabric application/gluing problem please.

I am not familiar with Bondaweb, but I have used Wonder-Under to place appliqués on sweat shirts and T-shirts. However, I *always* stitched around the outer edges with a narrow zig-zag (satin) stitch to secure everything. I doubt Wonder-Under alone would stand up to washing.

Beverly

Thanks Beverley but I haven't got a sewing machine and the shapes would be a bit fiddley if I had. The Bondaweb said it was wash and dry cleanable but it doesn't stick well at all. I wonder if it's because the shape is polyester (man made) and the tee shirt is cotton (natural). Perhaps someone will come along and know?

Not to mention that your t-shirt is a knit, and the polyester is woven? There may be fabric glues that work, they seem to use them in commercial garments. Aleene's advertises an "OK to Wash Fabric Glue" and that line of products is generally good. I don't have experience with this product, though. Try it on a sample first.

Here's a selection:

I am not familiar with this site, and can't recommend it one way or the other, but post it only because it has a wide selection of fabric glues and information that might help you.

It's possible the different fiber content contributes to the problem, but not sewing the edges almost guarantees failure. You may be trying to do the impossible.

As for fiddly bits, one of the contributors to alt.sewing makes fabulous designs and appliqués them for her daughter. Here is a URL to some of her pics of a very complicated appliqué project:

So, it *can* be done, but you really need to stitch around the edges if you want it to last.

Beverly

I think the fact that your shapes are woven and your T-shirts are knit will stymie you. Unless you're able to stitch around the edges, that is. Why don't you blanket stitch (or needleturn) around the shapes by hand? It doesn't take long! Once you get into a rhythm, it's surprising how relaxing it is and how fast the work progresses.

For my money, whatever fabric glue you use will fail as soon as the person inside the T-shirt moves. The only way to neaten the edges of the polyester and be absolutely certain they will stay put is to sew them down. IMHO. For extra insurance, I'd use both methods: heat'n'bond them down and then stitch around the edges as well.

(NB. Am I going mad, or do I recall seeing a special version of heat'n'bond for applying wovens to knits?)

Adhesive wouldn't be my first choice (far from it!), but try this method of fusing -- it works well for interfacings and might work here

1) Prepare your ironing board. Remove any of those metallized board covers and replace with plain cotton muslin, duck or canvas.

2) Prepare your press cloth. Dip plain muslin in water, and wring out by hand till the fabric is moist, not dripping.

3) Prepare the iron. For most household irons, set it to "dry" and "linen" (that is, no steam, high heat). Preheat for at least 5 minutes.

4) Place the t-shirt on the ironing board. Add the adhesive backed appliques. Cover with the wrung-out press cloth. Press (straight down, with force, not sliding back and forth in an ironing motion) for 15 seconds. Move the iron and press again until all the appliques have been pressed on. Press cloth should be dry but not charring.

5) Now comes the hard part: DO NOT MOVE THE T-SHIRT UNTIL IT IS COOL. No, cool, as in room temperature. Get your fingers off the edge of that applique. Cool. Completely cool. Ok, now you can try to lift the applique.

If the applique lifts, try again, increasing the dwell time of the iron in 5 second increments until it stays. If the polyester melts, try a cooler iron or a shorter dwell time. If the adhesive strikes through, choose another with a lesser amount of adhesive. The keys to fusing fabric are heat, steam, getting the fabric dry and then cooled without disturbing it. Household steam irons don't produce enough steam to do the job thoroughly, and the aluminized ironing board covers seem to keep the fabric both too wet and too hot for good fusing.

Kay (who thinks it'd be a lot easier to just do a corded raw-edge applique and call it done)

Thanks very much for your generous advice. I will go and try these now and report back with my results. Thank you very much.