How to Prepare Patch for Applique

Whether you want to do your appliques by hand or by machine, it's a good idea to properly prepare the patch for sewing. Good applique patterns are simple and don't have a lot of detail. In many cases, finding the right applique patterns for your projects may be the most difficult aspect of applique work.

Things You'll Need

• Background fabric
• Applique fabric
• Scissors
• Needle and thread
• Fabric pencil

Instructions

1. Draw your applique on paper first. If you are not very artistic, you can use clip art to trace for applique patterns. Drawing on paper allows you to make mistakes. After you've drawn the outline, cut it out.

2. Trace the applique onto the background fabric using a fabric pencil. You should draw the picture on the back side of the fabric, so that people cannot see it when you finish the product.

3. Place the applique fabric on top of the background fabric. Check the drawing on the back to make sure that the applique fabric covers all of the drawing. Pin the four corners of this fabric to hold it in place.

4. Sew the two pieces of fabric together using a basting stitch. Follow the line you drew on the back. Try to keep the stitches fairly close together, around seven stitches per inch. Tie off the end.

5. Follow the basting stitch to trim the extra applique fabric. Leave about an eighth of an inch to fold under when doing the applique sewing.

Tips & Warnings

• Have one pair of scissors that you only use for fabric. Cutting paper can dull scissors, making it harder to cut some fabrics.