How To Apply Wonder Under // Clear and Simple Tips & Tricks

wonder under

Wonder Under is a great little product that comes in handy for many sewing and crafting projects.

In this post, I’m going to show you some simple tips & tricks on how to use this fusible webbing that you might find helpful. I’ll show you the basic application, which is super easy.

wonder under fusible paper

What is Wonder Under?

You may not have even heard about Wonder under or fusible webbing. It’s basically a thin webbed piece of glue that has a paper backing. It’s used to adhere one piece of material, like fabric, to another material.

You can wash whatever you put it on and it will stay on there. There are a couple of different brands and types of fusible webbing. I really like this Pellon brand. It also comes in a brand called Heat n Bond that works well too.

You can get it in a lightweight and ultra hold that works for something that you’re maybe going to be washing all the time. It comes in the store by the yard or in packages, and can also be found online.

Projects To Use Wonder Under ON

You can even use this Wonder Under on wood and paper.

Wonder Under Application Materials & Items Needed

How To Apply Wonder Under

Decide what shape, fabric design, or letter you want to use as a cutout iron-on.

****NOTE: Whatever you are cutting out will be “MIRROR IMAGED” when ironing it on. For example, the letter “J” needs to be cut out backward, whereas a symmetrical shape like a heart would not.

1- Cut out a piece of fabric a little bigger than the shape you will be cutting out.

Place the fabric RIGHT SIDE FACING DOWN. Then cut out a piece of Wonder Under the same size. 

Set the fusible sheet aside for now.

2 – Tracing the design

Trace the design onto a regular sheet of paper. If you have a lightbox use that. However, if you don’t, no worries, just go to a window and tape the paper to the window and place the Wonder Under paper over the top and trace away.

Once you have your letter traced, put the Wonder Under paper over the reversed letter and trace it.

3 – Wonder Under application

wonder under ironSet your iron on the high setting and make sure the steam is off. You’ll use a dry iron.

DIY Ironing Board CoverI love using this table ironing board for small projects like this.

Take the webbing sheet and place it down on top of the fabric. Then place the backward “J” paper on top of the webbing. The traced paper needs to be bigger than the webbing!

If the webbing is sticking out at all, and you press it, you’ll have a BIG MESS on your iron and you don’t want that. Then the next thing you press will have goobers on it. (See my hack for getting that muck off your iron).

wonder under cutting outWhen all the layers are in place, simply press it for about 10 to 15 seconds you don’t want to overdo it because you’ll burn the glue. Let it cool and then cut around your shape.

4 – Peel off the paper backing

The next thing you’re going to do is peel off the paper backing.

wonder under janni tip

This can be a REAL CHALLENGE sometimes because it’s hard to separate the paper from the fabric. BUT NO WORRIES. I have a simple hack that is a LIFE SAVE! (For those of you who have struggled with this, you’re going to love this)!

Take a simple pin and make a little X in the middle of your shape somewhere. Score the paper and the paper will pop out a bit and it will give you something to grab and pull, which is a heck of a lot easier.

The back side of the fabric will have a little rubbery plastic texture now.

If the webbing is sticking out at all, and you press it, you’ll have a BIG MESS on your iron and you don’t want that. Then the next thing you press will have goobers on it. (See my hack for getting that muck off your iron).

wonder under letter j

5 – Applying the shape

Take your letter or shape and place it right side facing up and press in place.

wonder under applique

Applique Stitching

If you have an item that is going to be washed a lot, you may want to do some satin stitching (applique) which is basically a very short-length zigzag stitch around that item. This will help it so it doesn’t come off.

wonder under sewing applique

Set your sewing machine to a zigzag stitch, the width at 4 and the length at 0.5 to 0.7.

I recommend testing the stitch on a scrap piece so you can see if you like the stitch. You want to have the outside of the zigzag stitch be right on the outer edge of the applique.

Take the hand wheel of your sewing machine and turn it towards you to bring the needle down so you can see where the stitching is going to be.

Sew around the shape, taking your time around corners and curves. You may need to stop and lift up the presser foot to adjust around corners.

That’s it. Now you have an applique that is secure and won’t fall off after washing.

I hope you found this helpful.

Here are a few projects I’ve used Wonder Under.

PJ PANTS VIDEO TUTORIAL & PDF PATTERN

DIY GIFT BAGS

Have fun crafting with WONDER UNDER!

jan3

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Jan Howell

Jan Howell

Whether it’s a new recipe, a fun craft, or some handy tips for your garden and home, I hope to empower and inspire you with skills that you can use to create joy, improved health, and to do it in a simple way.

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How To Make a Fabric Bag // Beginner Sewing Tutorial

fabric bag material items

Oh boy do I have a fun beginner sewing project for you. I’m going to show you how to make a fabric bag. They are so fun and quick to sew and you can use them for so many things.

If you’re new to sewing, this is a great beginner sewing project. These fabric bags can be made in any size. They make really cute gift bags, or you can use them to store almost anything. I’m going to make up a bunch of medium-sized bags out of muslin to store my onions and garlic to put in my pantry.

The little bags work well for candy treats or small items that you want to keep together.

Materials & Items Needed

  • sewing machine
  • some fabrics (quilters cotton, flannel, canvas, muslin, and even sheer and knit fabrics can be used)
  • scissors/rotary cutter mat (optional)
  • pins/wonder clips (optional)
  • measuring tape/Hot hemmer/seam gauge
  • iron
  • pencil or disappearing ink pen
  • turning stick, or the eraser end of a pencil
  • seam ripper
  • drawstring (upcycled t-shirt yarn, ribbon, bakers twine, jute, seam tape, recycled drawstrings from upcycled clothing)
  • optional embellishments (applique, whatever else you want to put on the bag)
  • optional tag/label
  • Wonder Under (optional)

 

Fabric Bag Instructions

Cutting Out

You can make these any size but some recommended basic sizes are:

Finished Size:

  • 4.5 x 5.25” / 11.5 x 13 cm
  • 8 x 9” / 21 x 23 cm
  • 13 x 12 25 inches (33 x 31cm) finished
sewing tips rotary cutters

I like cutting my fabric, especially squares and straight cuts with a rotary cutter, ruler, and mat, but you can always use regular scissors if you want to.

1- Decide how big you want the bag to be.

Seam allowance is ¼ – 3/8 inch and you’ll be folding the top of the bag down 1 ¼ inch to make a casing. You can make this casing larger or smaller if you wish.

For a medium size bag that has a finished measurement of 8 x 9, you’ll cut a piece of fabric 9 x 11 inches / 23 x 28cm.

2- Pre-pressing

Taking the time to pre-press your casing will save time and frustration. I LOVE using this Hot Hemmer. It makes hemming and pressing so much easier. I would definitely recommend investing in this little gadget and adding it to your sewing tool collection.

 

Fold the top edge under a ¼ inch and press all the way across. Do that on both pieces. Then fold over again 1 inch and press.

fabric bag seam

Unfold the hem you just pressed and place the right sides lining up the edges and the creases you just made.

Sew along the side, across the bottom, and back up the other side using a 3/8 inch seam allowance, or just the edge of your presser foot to make it easy. Backstitch at the beginning and the end of your stitching.

3- Fabric Bag Drawstring Casing

Measure down 2.5 inches from the top edge and mark that point on both sides.

4- Finishing the seam allowance.

You are going to want to finish the seams so the fabric does not fray. There are several methods you can use or you can cut the fabric with pinking shears. However, a simple zigzag stitch works great.

Zigzag stitch settings: Width 4 / Length 2

Start at that 2 ½ inch point you just marked and start sewing all the way around, with the right edge of the zigzag close to the fabric edge.

Open up the bag so that you can finger-press the seam allowance open where you didn’t finish the seam. You can use an iron if you want but I find a good finger press is sufficient. Press down firmly and slide your finger down and that will press it open.

fabric bag seam allowance
fabric bag

To reinforce the drawstring opening, sew around the unfinished seam making a little box area. Sew about 1/8 inch from the center seam.

fabric bag folded casing

Now, this is where that pre-pressing comes in handy! Fold the top of the fabric bag down where you pressed, ¼ inch and then 1 inch. Pin it in place.

Topstitch all the way around about 1/8 inch from the edge of that fold. If you have a sewing machine where you can remove the arm piece so you can slide your bag around the arm of the sewing machine.

However, if you don’t have that option, turn the fabric bag RIGHT SIDE FACING OUT and sew inside the tube. (I hope that makes sense).

Janni Tip: Here is a great tip so that you don’t get those little bunched-up threads on the underside of your fabric where you start sewing:  When you start sewing, grab the needle and bobbin threads and hold them for the first couple of stitches then let go. There isn’t anything functionally wrong with the bunched-up threads, it’s just not very attractive.

Flip it right side facing out and take your turning stick and poke out the corners. 

To reinforce the top of the drawstring holes, take a few stitches about 1/8 inch from the top and only about an inch long.

This is where you’ll need the seam ripper. Pull the seam apart where you reinforced the hole so that you can see the stitches and just grab one of the stitches and cut it. Make sure you’re not cutting the fabric.

Start pulling the threads and cut as needed with the seam ripper to open that section up. Don’t worry, the seam will not come undone further than that because you have reinforced the seam.

5 – Drawstring Application

Measure out your drawstring material: take the width of the bag and double that, then add 4 inches. For this 9 x 11 inch bag, I’m going to cut two strips 25 inches.

Attach the safety pin to the end of the twine. If the twine or string you are using has ends that will fray, make a knot on the end before attaching the safety pin.

fabric bag cinched

That’s it! Pull the drawstrings and see how nicely it cinches together. Yay!

Fabric Bag Embellishments

You can embellish the bag with a tag, or an applique.

I have added a cute star and some flowers using “Wonder Under” fabric adhesive. This is great stuff. Stay tuned for a tutorial on how to use it.

Fabric Gift Bag Idea

I made some PJ pants and bought a t-shirt to match, then added a cute flower applique that I made from the fabric I used for the pants. Put them in a bag with matching applique and there you have an adorable, homemade gift bag. So cute.

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Jan Howell

Jan Howell

Whether it’s a new recipe, a fun craft, or some handy tips for your garden and home, I hope to empower and inspire you with skills that you can use to create joy, improved health, and to do it in a simple way.

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How To Make the Best Window Cleaner // the Non-Toxic Way

window cleaner

This DIY window cleaner is the best window cleaner recipe I’ve found. It’s inexpensive, gives streak-free results, and is super fast to make.

If you’ve been following me long enough, I’m sure you know I’m all about using non-toxic cleaners and that I love DO-IT-YOURSELF products that work and save money! I’ve tried several other recipes, but this one seems to work the best and is the easiest to make.

Why in the world would you want to make your own window cleaner?

When using most store-bought brands, you almost get asphyxiated while cleaning. The fumes can be really strong and you gotta know there are some serious chemicals in there. Well, according to EWG’s guide, Windex gets a score of “D”. The number one ingredient is AMMONIUM HYDROXIDE which has some major concerns. That one ingredient alone is enough for me to use something else.

If you don’t want to make your own, you can find some brands that are non-toxic and that work. This particular window cleaner has good reviews and it gets a score of “A” on EWG.

I like to save money and get good results, so this window cleaner recipe is a win, win!

Window Cleaner Ingredients

  • 3 TB rubbing alcohol
  • ¼ cup white vinegar
  • 1 tsp cornstarch or arrowroot powder
  • ¾ cup distilled water
WINDOW CLEANER BOTTLES

I really like these glass spray bottles and use them for my other DIY cleaners. 

window cleaner bottle

Window Cleaner Instructions

1- Simply pour all the ingredients into a glass spray bottle

2- Shake well to mix.

WINDOW CLEANER TAPE LABELMake sure to label your bottle! There have been so many times that I mix up some brew and forget what is in the bottle. 

You can use something as simple as masking or painter’s tape, or you can create your own labels. 

WINDOW CLEANER LABELSI have these labels available in my shop if you want to buy them already made and printed on weatherproof paper.

GET THE FREE WINDOW CLEANER PDF LABEL HERE 

Tips for Using DIY Window Cleaner

1- Use a lint-free cloth. Some folks think that microfiber cloths work best, but I don’t really notice a big difference and feel I get just as good results with a good old cotton cloth.

window cleaner cloths2- When my washcloths and hand towels get old and ratty, I repurpose them as cleaning cloths. If you want to get really organized, you can buy a set of inexpensive washcloths at Walmart that are all the same color. That way you know what are cleaning clothes and which ones you’ll be using on your face.

3- When cleaning windows, shower doors, mirrors, and other glass surfaces work from top to bottom.

4- If you have severe hard water stains on your shower doors, try spraying a 50/50 mix of vinegar and water on the area and let it soak for a good 15 minutes before wiping. You can also use the ingredients in the cleaning solution I use on my shower tile. You can get all the information and watch the video here.

I hope you enjoy this window-cleaner recipe as much as I do.

You may find this CLEANING SYSTEM helpful if you are overwhelmed with everything it takes to keep your house clean.  This is a fun way to spread out all the tasks so they are doable.

How To Make the Best Window Cleaner // the Non-Toxic Way

window cleaner

This DIY window cleaner is the best window cleaner recipe I’ve found. It’s inexpensive, gives streak-free results, and is super fast to make.

  • Prep Time5 min
  • Total Time5 min

    Ingredients

    Cake

      • 3 TB rubbing alcohol
      • ¼ cup white vinegar
      • 1 tsp cornstarch or arrowroot powder
      • ¾ cup distilled water

    Instructions

    1

    1- Simply pour all the ingredients into a glass spray bottle

    2- Shake well to mix.

     

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    Jan Howell

    Jan Howell

    Whether it’s a new recipe, a fun craft, or some handy tips for your garden and home, I hope to empower and inspire you with skills that you can use to create joy, improved health, and to do it in a simple way.

    Read More