T shirt quilt and interfacing

I'm making a tee shirt quilt for my kid's class. It'll be a wall quilt. I have done quilting but haven't done tee shirt quilts. I have been google searching on reading on how to make one:

formatting link
formatting link
(Simply Quilt has a show on tee shirt quilt) But I got confused on what inferfacing to use when I went to the stores. There are so many types and brands displayed on the shelves. I asked the people worked there which ones to use for tee shirt quilts. They told me to use woven interfacing. But from what I read, non-woven interface was the recommended one.

I only have little time to make the quilt. I'd appreciate if you would give me some pointers -- woven or non-woven. Please recommend the names / brands that you've tried and like.

Thanks much in advance.

Ming

Reply to
jms3913
Loading thread data ...

non woven.. the woven won't stabilise the stretchy t-shirt material sufficiently.

I wouldn't use one that is too thick or sewing would be horrid - heat and bond light (or similar) should do nicely.

HTH

Reply to
Jessamy

Heat'n'bond is not an interfacing; it is a fusible web. An interfacing is fusible on only one side, and is used to make a fabric feel firmer. A fusible web is used to fuse two pieces of fabric together.

For a t-shirt quilt, you want something that will make the shirts firmer and easier to work with, but not so stiff you can't still cuddle in the quilt. I would use the lightest weight, non-woven fusible interfacing I could find. Something like "Pellon featherweight" should work. Even the most stable non-wovens have a bit of stretch, and generally stretch more in one direction than the other. If the t-shirt stretches more going side-to-side, put the interfacing on it so the interfacing's stretch goes top-to-bottom. You could also try one of the soft fusible knit interfacing; they should be okay if you put the stretch in the opposite direction as that of the shirt, and they are nice and soft.

Here is a chart of interfacings that might be helpful:

formatting link
Julia in MN

Jessamy wrote:

Reply to
Julia in MN

No..... Not Heat and Bond.... that is a fusible web. You want a fusible interfacing for the t-shirts, Jess. Don't want to stick the shirts to the batting.

I like HTC brand interfacing better than Pellon brand. The glue on the Pellon is in tiny dots and I have had it come through the fabric in dots and pick up dirt. HTC's glue is more of a web, no dots. Buy the lightest weight you can. I buy and use quite a bit of it for specialty fabrics in quilts. Make sure the interfacing covers the area you want to use. and fuse it on before the final cut on the shirt, so you cut through both interfacing and shirt. When applying it, make sure to press, not iron. And overlap your pressing position, because the places where the steam holes are in your iron soleplate will not fuse, no pressure there.

Pati, > non woven.. the woven won't stabilise the stretchy t-shirt material > sufficiently.

Reply to
Pati Cook

LOL trust me to get the brand name wrong.. we have umpteen variations of the vliso brand to pick from .. all different...

what do I know ? just a silly foreigner I am

Reply to
Jessamy

What a fantastic tip, Pati. I would never have thought of that in a million years. Such a great point. Thank you so much. . In message , Pati Cook writes

Reply to
Patti

Thanks everyone for the great tips. I feel better now. :)

LOL, Ming

Reply to
jms3913

The collapsible 'travel irons' usually have solid sole plates. I buy those in thrift stores and use for fusible pressing. Just found a new Clover one for just $2, US ... less than the price of a FQ!

PAT > What a fantastic tip, Pati. I would never have thought of that in a

Reply to
Pat in Virginia

You're very welcome. It is the little things like this that can make/break a technique. I learned this the hard way.

Pati, > What a fantastic tip, Pati. I would never have thought of that in a

Reply to
Pati Cook

InspirePoint website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.