Elmers Washable School Glue

[rubywishes]

I have had trouble in the past using 505 basting spray....it never seems to stick or hold very well and I struggle with shift during my quilting. And yes, I follow the directions, and yes, I've watched all the you tubes etc. I have come to the conclusion that perhaps 505 just doesn't work well with my type of batting...perhaps the batting absorbs it.... I just don't know but I'm done perservering with it. So, it's either back to pins or.........Elmers Washable School Glue......lots of people on other quilting forums use it with great success so I'm going to give it a bash with one of  the batik tops I've just finished.

So has anyone got any opinions or experience with it? I'm going to dive in and incorporate it with the board basting method and fervently hoping it will be the saviour of all my basting woes.  Whatcha reckon huh???

[StitchinTime]

I'll be interested to see how this works. I have tried Elmers for piecing and binding, but not for basting. How do you apply it for such a large area?

[Ploshkin]

Can't help there, I've never heard of Elmers school glue (possibly not a UK thing) - is it a pva glue?  Do you water it down and spray it?.
Actually, I was just thinking yesterday how well a scant spray of 505 (I had 2 cans that were nearly finished) was holding my quilt together right out to the borders.  There was no shift at all when I was quilting.  It's got polyester batting and I think some people say that it doesn't work well on polyester.

[rubywishes]

StitchinTime, I've read that you just squeeze a light drizzle/squiggle across the surface and smooth out any blobs with a brush or such. Ploshkin, mixed reviews from people who have tried it watered down and sprayed...seems to not hold so well. Yes, I think it does stem from the USA although it is used here quite a bit for piecing tricky bits and also for holding bindings in place. There are several different types of Elmers Glue and you do have to be careful which one you use as the others don't wash out like this one does....supposedly!!

 it will be interesting to see how it goes...I shall report back

[b15erk]

I've only used it for binding, and holding very narrow seams in place, it works well for those.  Never thought to use it for large areas.  It will be interesting to see how you get on Rubes.

Jessie

[Kenora]

I've used 505 successfully for basting on both polyester and cotton batting. I also use a glue pen for matching tricky points when piecing but I've never tried Elmer's glue. Have often thought about doing so though, so would be interested to see how you get on.

[rubywishes]

Okie dokie...I'll be the guinea pig then! I'll let you know how it all went but it wont be for about a week as I have more babysitting and temp work lined up than I can wave a stick at over the next 7 days!!

[Hachi]

Can't help there, I've never heard of Elmers school glue (possibly not a UK thing) - is it a pva glue?

Yup, it's just the most popular and well known PVA glue in the US.

[BrendaP]

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Elmers-E304-118-2-Washable-School/dp/B000Q3KHCM

I don't know what 505 spray is - I've had a look at my tin and it doesn't say what it is!  Just that it's temporary, repositionable and the application lasts for a few months

Elmer's is a PVA glue.
Washable means that it will survive being washed, not that it washes out.

[StitchinTime]

I think many people have taken "washable" to mean "washes out" (I had  ).

In the FAQs on the Elmer's site on how to remove the glue they mention that ironing the glue can create a permanent bond, something to consider if using it to hold tricky seams in place.
http://www.elmers.com/about/faqs/clean-up-solutions

[BrendaP]

My understanding is that pva glue is very similar to the pva/acrylic binders in acrylic paints and houshold emulsion paint.  Water soluable until it dries but then waterproof/washable and pretty permanent once it has dried. 

Not the sort of stuff you would want in a regular quilt but it could have a place in a painted art textile piece.

[Deafoldbat]

I've never felt the need to spray baste a quilt. The nearest I've come was sticky iron on wadding that I tried once, and it wasn't that great - it tended to peel off with handling, though it would probably be okay for (very) small things. Safety pins work fine.

[rubywishes]

According to other quilting forums, they reckon the "washable" is wash out....other types of Elmers glue don't wash out but this one does?  Lordy, now I have the fear of the Gods in me........what do I believe?? Might just have to do a test sandwich and see.

[Lowena]

Washable usually means you can wash it without it deteriorating 

[b15erk]

A test sandwich sounds like the answer Rubes.  I too thought 'washable' meant that it would wash out....

Jessie