All Water-Soluble Stabilizers are Not Created Equal

That’s right – there are three main varieties:

Lightweight (about 20 microns) – used for topping on lightly textured fabrics

Mid-weight (about 35 microns) – used a topping on more deeply textured or plush fabrics, and as a backing for sheer fabrics

Heavyweight (about 80 microns) – used a base for making lace and other specialty embroidery

Non-woven – Usually used as a base or backing rather than a topping

Be sure that you use the best weight for your purpose. I use mid-weight quite frequently because it doesn’t break down as quickly as lightweight water-soluble.

If you are in the middle of a project and think you would like to try a heavier weight of water-soluble, you can make your own by ironing layers of lightweight together. You can also patch used water soluble pieces together by overlapping them and ironing them together. Here’s how to do it.

Place a plain brown paper bag on your ironing board. Layer your water-soluble stabilizer and place a second brown paper bag over the top and press with your household iron on a low heat setting. The layers will be bonded together. You can also use Teflon sheets, but paper bags work just great!