• Introduction
• Heat-Moldable Stabilizer Test

Heat-Moldable Stabilizer Test

Heat Moldable Stabilizer from Bosal.

The Holly Bowl in Quilter's World December 2012 issue.

This is my stash in Indiana. I won't show you my Michigan stash.

Here are the first three bowls.

Like most quilters I know, I, too, have a lot of scraps and stash. It's the byproduct of a creative mind. I save my scraps because I know that the minute I throw them out or give them away, I will find the perfect project and no longer have that perfect fabric. I save all those pieces because I know each piece has the potential to be something awesome.

I not only save tiny tidbits, I also save some substantial-size pieces, not to mention fat quarters, 1/2-yard cuts, and well, I guess I should confess I have tons in all sizes. My stash and scraps are out of control. That's why I am always looking for new ideas.

Our catalog buyer recently asked me to test a product, Bosal Heat Moldable Stablizer #490. I had used a similar product from another manufacturer in our Quilter's World December 2012 issue, the Holly Bowl, and I found it to be a lot of fun, so I was up for the challenge.

I started to sketch, which is always my first step when planning a project. One idea leads to another and another. Before I knew it I had several ideas to try.

With my ideas fresh in my mind and on my sketch pad, I opened the closet door that houses the majority of my small pieces of fabric and scraps, in search of just the right colors and sizes to make my projects. Selecting the colors and textures is the part I love the most.

After carefully reading the instructions and choosing my fabrics, with sketches and freezer paper in hand, I began. I had a plan, and I was on a mission. I fused the fabrics to the stabilizer -- both sides -- and headed to my machine.

I wasn't sure how it would work, but I found it to be very easy to use, and my sewing machine loved it. I enjoyed playing with the stabilizer, and the more I worked on it, the more ideas I got. This was not going to be a simple "test it and report." What was going to be one simple bowl turned into three.

The moldable stabilizer was so easy to work with. I found that it formed easily and kept its shape. As with any project I undertake, I start thinking about other ways to use the products or other variations. Well, this time was no different.

After completing the first bowl, I made a couple of smaller ones to sort of match the larger. Then I had an idea for the odd pieces I cut away while making the bowls. I guess it never ends. If you would like to purchase Bosal Heat Moldable Stabilizer, it is available at Clotilde.com.