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How to sew on patches.
The best way to attach a patch or a badge is to break out a needle, hand or machine, and sew it on. Affixing a decorative patch on with stitches makes the patch stay in place AND allows the patch to be removed should one be stripped of their rank or shifts their preferences from heart patches to soccer ball patches.
Patches With a Bound Edge
Many commercially produced patches’ edges are bound in tight stitches. These are a pain to sew through especially by hand. Which leaves sewing over the edges or right up next to the edges.
If you’re sewing by hand sew over the bound edge with a whip stitch. If your sewing machine can reach the area of the garment you’re sewing the patch onto, use a zig-zag stitch and thread to
match the bound edge. Set the zig-zag width so the needle lands just on the outside of both sides of the binding stitches on the patch. Set the stitch length to a medium length. You could also use a straight stitch on your machine and stitch right up next to the inside edge of the binding stitches. The thread could match either the patch background or the thread used to bind the edges.
A Patch on a Pocket
If you ever want to use that pocket you’re going to have to hand stitch that patch onto it. The quickest whip stitch with matching thread or contrasting thread.
A Simple Applique
Simple decorative patches made from cutting quilting cottons should be fused down (assuming you applied the Heat-n-Bond to the patch fabric before you cut it out). The attaching
process might end there but if you’re going to launder that apron, t-shirt, onesie work a running stitch (by hand) or a straight stitch or a narrow zig-zag stitch along the outline of the patch. You could attach a simple cut out patch with out any fusing this way as well but the edges may fray up to your stitch line if using a running or straight stitch.
Patches With a Bound Edge
Many commercially produced patches’ edges are bound in tight stitches. These are a pain to sew through especially by hand. Which leaves sewing over the edges or right up next to the edges.
If you’re sewing by hand sew over the bound edge with a whip stitch. If your sewing machine can reach the area of the garment you’re sewing the patch onto, use a zig-zag stitch and thread to
match the bound edge. Set the zig-zag width so the needle lands just on the outside of both sides of the binding stitches on the patch. Set the stitch length to a medium length. You could also use a straight stitch on your machine and stitch right up next to the inside edge of the binding stitches. The thread could match either the patch background or the thread used to bind the edges.
A Patch on a Pocket
If you ever want to use that pocket you’re going to have to hand stitch that patch onto it. The quickest whip stitch with matching thread or contrasting thread.
A Simple Applique
Simple decorative patches made from cutting quilting cottons should be fused down (assuming you applied the Heat-n-Bond to the patch fabric before you cut it out). The attaching
process might end there but if you’re going to launder that apron, t-shirt, onesie work a running stitch (by hand) or a straight stitch or a narrow zig-zag stitch along the outline of the patch. You could attach a simple cut out patch with out any fusing this way as well but the edges may fray up to your stitch line if using a running or straight stitch.