Applique by Machine - Sew Many Ways - with Kathryn Zimmerman

Learn to do applique with the “turned and glued” method and then stitch with your machine.

Your pattern contains all the necessary shapes to learn techniques for bias stems, shapes with points, curves and circles. Practice learning the process before applying to your pattern. The applique shapes will be machine stitched with a blind hem or zigzag stitch to your background fabric. Learn tips to keep your background fabric smooth and flat. Other techniques of fused raw-edge and double blanket stitch applique will be demonstrated. The teacher will work with each individual student to get the best applique stitch possible from your machine. Threads and tension will be discussed. These are the techniques the teacher uses in her award-winning quilts. Several quilts will be shown with these machine applique techniques.

All supplies are listed in the supply list. Some tools as noted on the supply sheet will be available for purchase in the store. The teacher will have a $5.00 class kit available for purchase with applique foundation material, stabilizers, pattern templates, the turning tool and freezer
paper.

Supply List:
The pattern will be provided for the class. Most of the supplies that you will need are right in your sewing room. There are a few tools I recommend to make your applique project successful:
Karen Kay Buckley’s 4” Green Handle Scissors are great for holding and cutting fabric
A fabric glue stick such as Sew Line, Fons and Porter, or Quilters Select. Elmer’s glue sticks are too bulky to apply a thin line of glue to small pieces.
Roxanne’s glue. The bottle with the long thin metal applicator is best.
A set of bias fabric bars (or Celtic Bars). Metal is preferred to plastic, but plastic is ok and cheaper. You can find these on Amazon. A ¼” bias tape maker can also be used, but is not as reliable as the bias bars.
I will have a kit available for $5.00 that will contain the Ricky Tims “Soft Stuff” stabilizer, the Tear Easy Stabilizer, the cuticle stick, freezer paper, and the plastic pattern templates.
Sewing machine with an open toe applique foot to see where the needle enters the fabric. This is a must to be successful with machine applique. Your machine must have a zigzag stitch, in case the blind hem stitch will not narrow down to a small stitch. Also a throat plate that allows for zigzag stitch.
An LED stick-on closet light or something similar and a plastic project box to make a homemade light box to trace your pattern onto fabric. This is optional as you may use mine. If your background fabric is light in color, a light source may not be needed. If you have a light box or pad, bring it.

Fabric:
A background square 13.5” X 13.5”.  3 to 4 fat quarters for leaves, a fat quarter for stems and scraps or fat quarter for flowers and other motifs.

Thread:
Monofilament thread in clear or smoke or both depending on your fabrics. Polyester is preferred over nylon. I like YLI, but bring what you can get. Aurifil, Sulky, and Superior are other choices.
Cotton for the bobbin – a nice 50 wt. like Aurifil or Masterpiece that blends with your background fabric.
I use a lot of light and medium gray and also a medium beige.
40 or 50 wt. thread to match or contrast for leaves, circles and stems if you choose your stitches to show.
Large hand sewing needle
Scissors for cutting fabric
Scissors for cutting paper
Stiletto
Tweezers
Freezer Paper
Large Cuticle or Orange Stick. These are available at Sally’s Beauty Supply. The large one is what you need for learning the technique. These will also be in the kit.
Asheville Cotton Co will have an iron available to use, but students are welcome to bring their own iron, wool pressing mat, etc.
Microtex Sharps Needles 70/10 or 80/12. 
Rinse-Away or Ricky Tims Water Stable Stuff” Water Soluble Stabilizer. This product “falls apart”
when washed. Also available from me in the class kit.
Lightweight stabilizer for backing on background fabric. My choice is Sulky Tear Easy. You can get this in a packet from JoAnn’s. JoAnn’s also has a pellon product. Just make sure it is lightweight and tears away. Also available in the class kit.

Optional:
Fusible Webbing such as Heat and Bond, Wonder Under or Steam-a-Seam 2. Only need this if you are interested in fusing fabric to a background and using an alternate stitch such as a double-blanket stitch. This method will be discussed at the end of the class.
Spray Starch or Mary Ellen’s Best Press
Fat Quarter for the background. Fat quarter for stems, fabric scraps for leaves, circles, and other motifs.
Havel Blunt Tip Snip-Eze Thread Snips
Applique Pressing Sheet
Karen Kay Buckley’s Perfect Circle Templates
Bernina Magnifying Lens for Bernina Sewing Machines