Tutorial using fusible fleece

What is fusible fleece ?

Fusible fleece has one rough/grainy fusible side and one fleece side.

Be careful when pressing, as most fusible fleece will melt and stick to the iron sole plate if you press directly on the fleece side. So always remember to use a pressing cloth when you press on the fleece side during construction steps.

Using fusible fleece

It is essential to first fuse some regular interfacing to the wrong side of your fabric.

The wavy (and ugly) aspect that the fabric takes when you apply fusible fleece directly. Applying a layer of regular fusible interfacing first will prevent this.

The other reason is that, particularly for bags, this extra thickness of stabilizer further improves the firmness and durability of the bag.

However, note that if the fusible fleece is only applied to the lining of your bag and not to the outer fabric.

Fusible fleece is a stabilizer that can be adhered to any fabric, wood, or cardboard to add loft to fabrics, softness and thickness. This material is typically made of polyester and features heat-activated adhesive bumps on either one or both sides. Fusible fleece can add a professional, finished look to many of your sewing projects.

Fusible Fleece Products

Fusible fleece -- a type of soft interfacing that you can iron-on -- gives structure and support to garments, sewn craft items or even bags to keep them from losing their form.

Notice:

The 2 Pieces are in the one package.

Steps

1. Fuse a regular interfacing to the wrong side of your fabric piece.

2. Cut your fusible fleece to the dimensions of your piece minus the seam allowances. It is important to remove the seam allowances from the fleece, this will reduce the bulk at the seams and the overall finish will be neater.

3. Center your fleece onto the wrong side of your fabric, previously interfaced and cooled down, fusible side against the wrong side of the fabric. Leaving an equal amount of seam allowance all around.

4. Spread a damp pressing cloth over the fleece. As a damp cloth you can use pretty much any cotton that won’t discolor (pillowcase, bed sheet fabric, …)

5. Apply your hot iron (set on wool or cotton without steam) on the damp pressing cloth for 15 seconds on each portion of your fabric piece, until you’ve gone over it entirely.

Do not glide your iron : every 15 seconds, lift it and put it down on the adjacent portion.

Notice:

The 2 Pieces are in the one package.

What is fusible interfacing?

Fusible interfacing is a very interesting material used for sewing, quilting and craft projects with all kinds of fabric. You fuse it to the wrong (unseen) side of the fabric to give it additional strength, support or required shape. It’s commonly used to stiffen collars and cuffs, reinforce facings and buttonholes, strengthen waistbands in garment construction. It’s widely used in sewing bags and purses, it’s also essential for quilters, it can be used for preventing fabric fraying, etc.

Types of fusible interfacing

All types of fusible interfacing have a heat activated adhesive material on one side or on both sides which bonds to the fabric when ironed. Fusible interfacing can have different structure and thickness in order to be used with different fabrics.

1. Non-woven fusible interfacing is the most common type everybody uses. It’s a pure product of the chemical industry – it’s not fabric, it will not unravel. Usually, it has no grain, and because of this, it can be cut in any direction, which is great because you can use every bit of it in a very economical way. But sometimes it has the grain though and then manufacturers advise cutting it according to the grain line. It doesn’t have any stretch, and can be used with any woven fabric. I don’t recommend using it for knit fabric unless you want to reduce fabric stretch.

2. Woven fusible interfacing is a kind of fabric – it has a lengthwise and crosswise grain. It’s made from warp and weft fibers interwoven together. It’s not widely used in home sewing. Most of the time they make it not stretchy,, but sometimes it can have some stretch property also. This type works well with woven fabric.

3. All the above types of fusible interfacing can be further classified as lightweight, medium weight and heavyweight.

Lightweight is used with lightweight, delicate fabrics to add strength and durability.

Medium weight works for a wide variety of fabrics, and heavyweight is great for adding structure to purses or brims of hats.

Generally, the heavier the fabric you are using, the heavier the interfacing you need. However, your interfacing should be slightly lighter weight than the fabric you are using.

Is fusible fleece the same as interfacing?

Yes, fusible fleece is another type of interfacing. It’s quite thick, thicker than regular fusible interfacing, 100% polyester fleece with adhesive on one side. It’s used for the fabric to hold a specific shape. It easily adheres to fabric.