Knit Appliques Are Easy

I made this shirt for my Little Dude today. The Jolly Roger on the front is an applique I found at Crap I've Made. Don't be fooled by the blog name, there is a lot of inspiration over there. Check it out!

It's true, I have an embroidery machine and most times if I'm going to do an applique I find one that my machine will stitch out. Sometimes though, it is even easier to do one on the regular machine, and quicker too!

Knit fabrics, otherwise known as the fabrics that are used in T shirts etc. are the easiest fabrics to applique. They don't fray so there is no need to finish your edges. Read on, I'll show you how easy it is. I think this applique probably took 15 mins from start to finish.

What you will need:
- Knit scraps
- Medium weight fusible interfacing
- Fabric adhesive or glue stick
- Scissors and a marker
- T shirt or something to put your applique on

The first thing you need to so is trace your design onto your interfacing. You can do the opposite and trace it to your fabric, but that just isn't as easy! It doesn't matter what side of the interfacing you trace onto. You will want to make sure that if you have a directional design it isn't going to be backwards when you fuse it to your fabric. Now, fuse your interfacing to the wrong side of your fabric. I just used one of my kids' washable markers to trace.

Cut out your pieces.

Now, you can buy something by the name of Wonder Under that is fusible on both sides. I can't get that unless I go to the closest city which is almost 3 hrs away, so I just use regular interfacing. If you use regular interfacing you will also need some type of fabric adhesive. This is what I use. You can also just use your child's glue stick. It works!

Spray the back sides of your applique pieces and place them where you would like them on your shirt. The adhesive helps them stick to your fabric so that they are easier to sew without moving around. You can still peel them off and move them around if you decide you want your applique in another spot. I suggest if you are making a shirt from scratch like I am to put your applique on before sewing your shirt together. It is really sad if you spend time making the shirt and then mess it up with your applique. Much easier to just cut a new front piece!

If I'm doing a large applique I leave my stitch length to what it is normally. If the applique is small like this one I adjust my stitch length a little smaller. Sew around your applique close the the edge. If you have a lot of little curves like this design, you will need to raise your presser foot here and there and adjust your fabric to navigate the small turns. Because this is a knit fabric it will not fray in the wash so just putting your applique on with a straight stitch is just fine!

Go and practice an easy knit applique like this one because in the coming weeks I have a really neat Mother's Day project to show you that also uses appliques.
You could add your child's name or initial to a shirt or blanket, trace a picture of their favorite cartoon character... there are so many things you can do! Let me know what you come up with! :)

The shirt pattern I used here is Carla C's All The Rage Raglan Pattern which can be purchased at youcanmakethis.com.