Intensifying fiber art magic using leftover Sulky Solvy stabilizer

Yesterday, I showed you how to use Sulky Solvy Water Soluble Stabilizer to create a small landscape scene. Today, I’ll show you how to use some yarn to create new fabric for another little landscape piece and also how to use those little leftover bits of Sulky Solvy.

Gather up some scraps of wool yarn and lay them on the bottom half of a 10″ x 12″ Solvy rectangle. You can arrange them randomly or place them in a specific design.

Fold the other half of the Solvy rectangle over the yarn and pin in place. You now have Solvy on both sides of the yarn.

Stitch across the Solvy “sandwich”. I used a straight stitch with invisible thread on top and a neutral-colored light-weight thread in the bobbin. Stitching lines are about ⅛” apart. If there is any extra unstitched Solvy at the top or on the sides, be sure to cut it off and save it in a little jar.

Following the instructions on the package, soak the Solvy “sandwich” in water until all the stabilizer has dissolved. Lay flat to dry. Now you have a new piece of “fabric” that can be used as desired! My piece is going to be used for the water in my little appliqué scene.

I used the same technique to create “fabric” for 2 little houses.

My background fabric is a 6″ x 8″ square of hand-dyed wool, so the houses are quite small. Cut the house fabric into 1 – 2″ square and 1 – 3″ square. From wool or fabric, cut the roofs to fit the houses. You are creating as you go here, so there are no hard and fast rules for cutting the house and roof pieces.

Arrange the water and house shapes as desired on the background fabric.

Appliqué them in place. I used a straight stitch for the water and houses and a blanket stitch for the roofs, but you can use different stitches if you wish.

Then I appliqued a couple of green pieces of wool for the “ground” in front of the houses.

The next step is to add some embellishments. Embroider some door and window shapes and add small shapes in the “sky”.

Now let’s use some of those little scraps of Sulky Solvy Water Soluble Stabilizer or Sulky Super Solvy water soluble stabilizer that you’ve been saving in a jar. It can be used as a type of matte medium for paper craft work.

This video gives lots of good general information about several different Sulky stabilizers. It also shows you techniques for layering paper shapes which can then be stitched and embellished and used for an album cover or a framed art piece.

This video gives you a good demonstration of how to use leftover Solvy to make liquid Solvy that can be used in a spray bottle. This liquid can be used to help stiffen lightweight fabrics for decorative stitching, thread painting or embroidery. You can also watch this short video that shows the method.

Here’s how to do it: Place scraps of Sulky Solvy or Super Solvy in a small amount of water. Add 1 tsp rubbing alcohol to prevent mold. Then place the Solvy/water/alcohol mixture in a spray bottle. Itʼs a bit of a trial-and-error method to determine how much Solvy to add to how much water, so just add a little water at a time until you reach the desired consistency. Remember, it must go through the nozzle on the spray bottle, so you don’t want it too thick.

I still had a few scraps of wool roving left so I decided to make some little containers that can hold a battery-operated candle or tea light, or a small vase of flowers. I started by making a sandwich of Super Solvy and wool roving and then stitching across it.

Wrap a small glass or plastic container with plastic wrap.

Place the stitched Super Solvy/wool roving sandwich in water. Don᾽t leave it too long. You want the Solvy to dissolve but still have some stickiness left.

Wrap the wet wool roving around the jar, overlapping the sections as needed. Secure with an elastic if necessary.

Let it dry completely.

Carefully remove the wool roving from the jar and now you an artistic-looking container that can have many uses. You can use any small size or shape of plastic or glass jar for these containers.

I hope you’ve enjoyed learning about a few of the many Sulky stabilizers this week. As you can see, there are endless opportunities for creative work with these wonderful products!

This is part 5 of 5 in this series

Go back to part 4: The magic of Sulky Solvy in the world of fibre art