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Instructions for Quilt Blocks using Silk Fabric
Written by Santi Nuss of Hatched in Africa
Dear Embroidery Friends....
We have had a lot of friends asking how to embroider on silk and how to align designs for quilt blocks or other projects.
Here is how we do it..
1. Cut your fabric into blocks the size you require and add at least 1" extra around to allow for edges to be straightened after embroidery. Have ready a wonderful product called Totally Stable from Sulky. Iron this onto the back of the silk. This will stabilize the fabric ...in other words you will strengthen the silk and have no movement of the fabric and it will also help you not to have any puckering embroidering on this fine but not very evenly woven fabric. This product also comes off very easy once the embroidery is done. Just pull it off.
2. Print out the grid block of the design on paper so that you can see how to place the designs on your fabric. (you should be able to do this with your embroidery software)
3. Mark the grid on your fabric with an air erasable marking pen...draw lines across the centre from right to left, and top to bottom.
4. In your software, open the design that you are going to use and print this on transparent paper available from your stationary shop. Make sure you purchase the correct one for your printer ie: ink jet. This paper is not cheap but it is long lasting and you can re-use the templates. If you take into consideration the price of the silk fabric, your designs and your cotton and time and effort this is a small price to pay for a perfect end result.
5. Now place the transparent template on your fabric in the position that you can clearly see on the grid that you printed in step 2 and match with the grid lines you drew on your fabric. Mark the centre with 2 cross lines. Take time to do this accurately.
6. You now may hoop your stabilizer in the hoop and mark the centre of the stabilizer with your blue marking pen, spray stabilizer with basting spray to hold your fabric in place, and place fabric on top of stabilizer matching center crosses. (Or if you prefer you may hoop your fabric.) Then sew the design in correct position by placing center of design on center cross. You also need to make sure that the design has been rotated into the correct position by placing the template on the hoop and checking on the screen of your machine that you indeed have the designs correctly rotated and aligned. This will save you a lot of heartache and trouble as one can easily make a mistake.
7. Embellish your blocks , do some stippling and sew together. We hope you found this helpful.
Best Wishes,
Santi
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