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When is a doily not a doily? When you make it into a bowl!

Start with the Lace Doily collection from Dakota Collectibles.

http://www.annthegran.com/Product.aspx?t=1&i=42329

First, create the butterfly doily shown here as a bowl. It's pretty neat the way this in-the-hoop project goes together. First, you hoop two layers of water-soluble mesh stabilizer in a 5" x 7" hoop. Then embroider the first section of the doily.

Remove the stabilizer from the hoop. Trim away the stabilizer, close to the stitching as shown.

Hoop more soluble stabilizer and stitch the placement stitches. This is where you will lay the previously completed section. Place the trimmed section on the placement line and tape in place. You will be creating the next section of the doily and attaching it to the first one as you stitch.

Continue stitching in this way until all of the sections are completed.

When all sections of the doily are complete, dip the entire doily in a bowl of water and swish around gently to dissolve the stabilizer. Then, find a bowl of suitable size and lay the wet doily over it, When it dries, it will have taken on the shape of the bowl, and can be used as a decorative item or to hold lightweight objects. But mostly, it will be used to impress your friends and family - it's Amazing Lace!

May embroidery always bring you joy,

Deborah Jones

www.myembroiderymentor.com

All Water-Soluble Stabilizers are Not Created Equal

That’s right – there are three main varieties:

Lightweight (about 20 microns) – used for topping on lightly textured fabrics

Mid-weight (about 35 microns) – used a topping on more deeply textured or plush fabrics, and as a backing for sheer fabrics

Heavyweight (about 80 microns) – used a base for making lace and other specialty embroidery

Non-woven – Usually used as a base or backing rather than a topping

Be sure that you use the best weight for your purpose. I use mid-weight quite frequently because it doesn’t break down as quickly as lightweight water-soluble.

If you are in the middle of a project and think you would like to try a heavier weight of water-soluble, you can make your own by ironing layers of lightweight together. You can also patch used water soluble pieces together by overlapping them and ironing them together. Here’s how to do it.

Place a plain brown paper bag on your ironing board. Layer your water-soluble stabilizer and place a second brown paper bag over the top and press with your household iron on a low heat setting. The layers will be bonded together. You can also use Teflon sheets, but paper bags work just great!

Working with small letters can be frustrating. Chances are that you think your small lettering looks distorted, bunchy or just plain amateurish. The truth is, is probably not your fault. That’s right. Your good technique can only go as far as the data allows. In other words, if the font isn’t suitable for the size, probably nothing you do can make it look great.

Small lettering should be digitized to minimize bulk in corners and with a certain flow to allow the stitches to be laid in smoothly and cleanly. A font that will stitch well in very small sizes usually indicates this quality in its name. For example, you may have fonts in your software with a name that indicates they were designed for a small letter size, such as “Small Century” or “5mm Block”.

In this example we have two digitized letters created in a popular home embroidery software program.

The top letter, labeled  “Century_Sm”,  was made for small letter sizes. Notice that the extensions, called “serifs”, are stitched in the same direction as the body of the letter.

The bottom letter, labeled “Century” was made from a font digitized for larger letter sizes. In this letter, the serifs are stitched in a vertical direction because the stitch would become too long if stitched in the same direction as the body, resulting in a loose, sloppy serif.

Look in your software and see if you can identify some fonts made for specific sizes or size ranges. Even if they aren’t your favorites, you could see a big difference in quality in your small lettering.

This wedding handkerchief is a fine example of high quality small script lettering. This version of the Diana font doesn't close up on the in the centers of letters. The lettering was also created with a .50 density - light but appropriate for this small 10mm letter size.

There are a few sets of the Wedding Handkerchief kit available from my web site, complete with 2 handkerchiefs and the bonus Diana font shown here in addition to the digitized poems. See it at my site,

http://www.myembroiderymentor.com/weddingHankie.php

May embroidery always bring you joy,

Deborah Jones

I just want to pass on the latest trend in stabilizers that is actually a blast from the past!

The new thin and stretchy performance knits with brand names like Under Armor and DriWick have given commercial embroiderers fits. After trying all available sources, they have turned to an “old school” solution that really works.

Before we had highly engineered non-woven stabilizers, we often used lightweight woven fabrics to stabilize knits and other unstable materials. Some astute industry suppliers are now offering woven polyester and polyester blends to production shops to relieve headaches caused by these stretchy knits that frequently are super thin as well.

I can tell you that even though no one is currently offering these stabilizers to home embroiderers, you can use a home remedy in the meantime. Old bedsheets will do the trick! Just one sheet will go a long way, and you can buy a big supply at the thrift store. It might sound weird, but you can't argue with the results!

On a different subject,is everyone else noticing what I’m noticing? Suddenly it seems that embroidery is even more high profile than usual. It’s in the news, and featured prominently in advertising – both print and on-screen. Lots of companies are showing embroidered versions of their logos in their advertising. At the airport this week, an embroidered version of the ESPN logo graced the cover of the current issue of ESPN magazine.

The list goes on and on. Walgreen’s features their embroidered logo prominently in their television ads. Target stores do a pseudo stitch-out of their logo in their TV ad. A regional grocery store here in my area – Kroger – shows employees wearing vests with “Customer Service #1” embroidered in huge letters.

I’m not sure of the reason for the sudden flood of embroidered logos in ads, but I like to think that it’s because these companies recognize the upscale image that is instantly conveyed by the rich medium of embroidery.

Just last night I heard that Queen Elizabeth recently received an expensive embroidered pillow from Prince Charles for her birthday. And do you recall that Simon Cowell received a monogrammed scarf as a farewell gift from American Idol? I have always taken note of embroidery in the news, but it seems that embroidery is becoming even more high profile than ever. I have a fun idea - let’s keep track of it! Send information about your news or advertising sightings to me – I want to know how many times you see embroidery used in ads or in news stories. Maybe there are some regional examples that I wouldn’t see here in Texas. I’m looking forward to hearing about your embroidery sightings…

 May embroidery always bring you joy,

Deborah Jones

djones@myembroiderymentor

www.myembroiderymentor.com

Have you ever wondered whether it matters if you first trim the top or the bottom of your machine embroidery work?

It’s best to trim the top first, so that when you trim the back, you can gently pull on the bobbin tails to secure the trimmed thread end inside the fabric for a neater appearance. Incidentally, this is one of the advantages of automatic trimmers on multi-needle machines. The trimming is actually done by blades that are beneath the needle plate, accomplishing the trimming from below. The mechanism that you see on top isn't cutting, rather it is pulling the trimmed thread into a holder.

If you used topping, resist the temptation to rip away the topping material as soon as you remove the hoop from the machine. The topping is still doing its job. When you are trimming jump stitches, the topping acts as a buffer to protect delicate fabrics from being nicked by your trimming scissors.

Trimming the Back

Long jump stitches over 1/2" between letters and design elements should be trimmed to prevent them becoming snagged.

 It also prevents the wearer from wondering if they should trim these stitches or worrying about snagging them.

The stabilizer should be trimmed about 1/8 to 1/4" away from the embroidery. Leaving more can create an outline of backing that is visible through the fabric. Leaving less can cause the embroidery to have a sunken apperarance.

To avoid nicking the fabric while removing cutaway stabilizer, keep the fabric visible at all times during backing removal. Some people accomplish this by holding the item by the stabilizer, allowing the item to "hang" during trimming. I also suggest using short blade (5 inch) embroidery sicssors rather than larger shears.

If the item will be worn by an infant or child, contains metallic thread or has threads that aren't completely secured, seal the embroidery on the back with a soft, permanent fusible covering like TenderTouch by Sulky.

Working with Metallic Thread

At this time of year, we seem to have more need to use metallic thread than any other time. If you find that you struggle with this thread type, try some of these solutions. When shopping for metallic thread, buy the largest spool you can afford. The larger the spool diameter, the better it will come off the spool, with fewer kinks and twists.

Things to try at the machine:

• Thread a needle with the metallic thread and pass the needle and thread through a styrofoam packing peanut. Place the peanut in the thread path, before the thread enters the tensioners. This removes all of the twists and makes the metallic thread performance improve almost magically!
• Use a needle that is specially designed for metallic threads. SulkyÒ suggests that a size 90/14 top stitch needle makes a good substitute if you do not have a metallic needle on hand. a top stitch needle also has a larger eye and deeper groove and could make a suitable substitute.

• Place the thread spool on the vertical spool holder that is some distance from the machine to allow the twists and kinks to be reduced before entering the thread path. Another option is a spool holder that allows the thread to come from the spool in the same way as line from a fishing reel. This helps reduce kinks or twists.

• For best results, avoid designs with very short stitches, or a lot of tiny twists and turns. Metallic thread is a stiffer thread type and doesn't bend as easily as regular embroidery thread.

• Loosen your top tension, if necessary, to reduce thread breaks or shredding. If thread breaks persist, examine the thread path for rough spots. Be sure to inspect the presser foot and throat plate. Use moderate machine speed, if adjustable.
• Use only enough stabilizer to support your project.  Forcing this delicate thread through unnecessary layers of stabilizer could contribute to friction thread breaks or shredding. Avoid the use of adhesives in the embroidery process if possible.

Best of luck with your sparkly holiday projects! Please visit me at

www.myembroiderymentor.com

or find more tips in the tips section at

www.myembroiderymentor.ning.com

Do you ever embroider small lettering that seems to disappear completely in to the fabric? Sometimes it seems that there is more thread on the underside of the material than on the top!

There are some simple things you can do to make sure that your small lettering and designs come out looking as crisp and clear as any of your creations. Here are some tips to keep your small embroidery looking its best!

Note: The lettering on the bear is very small. The capital letter on the script name is only 1/4" tall! The lower case letters are only 3/16" tall. Yest they are very clean and readable.

1. Choose simple lettering styles.

Try to avoid extra fancy script or serif block styles. Serifs are the extensions and "feet" on the bottoms and tops of letters.

2. Check to see if your software has lettering styles that have been created especially for small sizes.

These commonly state the size they were created for right in the name such as 1/4" block, 5mm block or small block. These have been digitized using special construction techniques that avoid bulk and add width.

3. If you are familiar with your software, adjust density and pull compensation.

Use lighter density settings that place fewer stitches into your small lettering and designs. Also, add pull compensation at 10% to 20% to make your small lettering "chunkier" and help avoid the disappearing act.

4. Use toppings on unstable fabrics.

Use a water-soluble topping on fabrics that you might not use toppings on. For example, unstable T-shirt knots will benefit from a topping. This helps minimize the effect of the ribs in the knit, and also eliminates the tendency of the presser foot to push the unstable material around during stitching. I used a topping on the smooth knit in this photo.

5. Use a small needle size, such as a 70/10 0r 65/9.

6. Use the smaller size 60 weight thread available now. Madeira and Sulky both offer this thread type that makes your smaller embroidery much cleaner.

You can get small designs like the megaphone in the picture at my web site

www.myembroiderymentor.ning.com

There are many kinds of bobbins available to us for embroidery, but and there is no single answer to the best bobbin type for every embroiderer or every machine.

There are metal,

plastic  disposable, plastic reusable, 

cardboard

and sideless.

Bobbins also come in colors. Colored bobbins are nice for aesthetic purposes. For example you may want your bobbin thread to match your top thread on items like afghans or baby blankets where the reverse side is likely to show at times.

Regardless what kind of bobbin shell you use, the most important characteristic of your bobbin is the type of thread that is on it. My favorite type of bobbin is spun polyester. Some prefer the continuous filament polyester, which is thinner and smoother. In my opinion, this thinner, smoother thread is more difficult to control in the bobbin case, making it more difficult to get consistent tension. I like the texture of the spun polyester, because it gives a wide range of adjustability. It stitches with similar tension as a friendly cotton bobbin thread, but without the lint associated with cotton.

Check out the difference in their appearance here.

I think you can easily see how differently they react in the machine. If you haven't tried spun polyester bobbins, I suggest that you do - and post here to let me know how you liked them. Or e-mail me at djones@myembroiderymentor.com

This fall, you will be seeing lots of thicker threads – yarn-like in appearance – in retail stores. On my current trip East, I have seen tons of this decorating method on everything from sweatshirts to bags and even on the back of woven menswear shirts.    

Industry supplier Madieria offers Burmilana, YLI has Monet and Gunold has Filaine. In working with Filaine, I learned a lot about the wonderful aspects of this thread.

First, it works great with your redwork design library. You can enlarge the designs and still get great bold looks.                                                                                                                                        

To use it, stitch with needle sizes from 80 to 100. To thread it in a needle smaller than a 100, I tied it on to the smaller thread that is still through the needle and pull it through. You may also want to keep some beeswax on hand to smooth the threading end of this fuzzy thread.

Slow the stitching speed slightly and you may want to turn off trimmers if you machine is equipped with trimmers.  The trimmers will trim, but you could experience thread pull-outs at trims with this thread type.

You can also vary your densities from a hand-embroidered look to a lush, full coverage style. Using a redwork design and keyboard lettering, I did a full 7-1/2” design with fewer than 5,000 stitches!

Have fun, And join in this stitch saving trend.            

You don't need a $100,000 embroidery/laser cutting combo machine to create the reverse applique look that's so hot in retail stores right now. And it's the perfect time of year to put this impressive technique on sweatshirts. You can put this technique on lots of fabrics, but I particularly like the look it has on fleece sweatshirts. It just looks like it belongs there!

Here's how to get started. You'll need a font like you could use for applique, about two inches in height. You can use the complete font including satin stitch border, but in this example I used only the running stitches and omitted the satin stitches for a faster running time and a different look.

 Next, stitch out one of the letters and cut inside the stitching line. Place the opening over various patterned fabric to find one that has a pattern in a scale that looks good through the opening. This is called "auditioning" the fabric.

Now, hoop the fabric behind the sweatshirt, just as you would hoop a stabilizer.

Stitch the outline of the font. Now you are ready to unhoop and cut.

Leave the sweatshirt fabric in the "openings" of the letters as shown here.

Cut away excess fabric from the back and your reverse applique creation is complete. Now wasn't that easy?

May embroidery always bring you joy,

Deborah Jones

www.myembroiderymentor.com

Fortunately, manufacturers have developed wonderful, lightweight, moisture-wicking materials to keep us dry and comfortable in this record-setting heat. Unfortunately, stabilizing these materials is not as simple as other knits. In addition to being very thin, they also have more stretch than typical shirt-weight knit fabrics.

There are a couple of secrets that I can share with you. One is the best stabilizer to use and the other is about hooping technique for these fabrics.

The manufacturers of these fabrics, such as Under Armor, use heavy cutaway stabilizer to control these materials. Check out the embroidery done by the manufacturers on their own shirts and you are likely to see multiple layers of heavy cutaway. While the embroidery does look good, the downside of this approach is that it is incompatible with the weight and intended comfort factor of these lightweight fabrics.

I have had success using the No-Show Polymesh type stabilizer with these fabrics, but I recently became aware of another solution that I like a lot. Bedsheets! That's right - old bedsheets make great stabilizer for this fabric type. Woven stabilizers have always had wonderful stabilizing properties but they fell out of favor many years ago, manily for reasons of cost when nonwoven products became widely available.

 Some large manufacturers are now using woven poly/cotton type stabilizers for this type of fabric, although they aren't using bedsheets. But if you have a set of sheets that's seen its better days, go ahead and give this option a try. It works well with many unstable materials, but it just could be the magic bullet for some of your most troublesome embroidery materials.

Next is the issue of hooping technique. Spray the woven stabilizer (the bedsheet) with a light mist of embroidery spray adhesive. Then, let the technical fabric "settle" over the sprayed backing. Gently finger press the fabric to adhere it to the stabilizer. Then hoop, without recessing the inner hoop. Normally, it's desirable to push the inner ring through the outer ring to place the fabric close to the machine bed and to gain good fabric tension. In this instance however, recessing the inner ring only serves to stretch this lightweight material.

As long as you have appropriate design data, your embroidery on this difficult material should be beautiful.

For ideas for dealing with other difficult materials, visit my web site to get my book, Machine Embroidery on Difficult Materials".

www.myembroiderymentor.com

May embroidery always bring you joy -

Deborah Jones

   Wouldn't it be great if you could turn your sew-outs into a well-presented sample book? One that you could use to seel from, or just to show off your workmanship? You can!

It's easy, inexpensive and quick to use some of your existing stitch-outs that had been relegated to the rag bag for this project. If the stitching looks good on some of the samples, they could be candidates for your sample book. The fabric type isn't important as long as it is clean and unwrinkled. The edges will be covered.

In the examples on this page, the frames used are scrapbook frames. They can be purchased at scrapbook specialty stores or in the scrapbook section of larger craft stores. They come in many shapes, colors and sizes - and you can buy them in assortment packs. There is one that will be suitable for almost any embroidery that you want to show off!

I print descriptions on plain paper or cardstock and then glue the embroidery and frame to the paper. Slip the whole thing inside a high-quality sheet protector punched for a three-hole binder. Make several pages and load them into an appropriate binder that suits your style.

I even made a page with a sample shirt cuff! This is a good way to show your lettering font styles, as well as your showpiece embroideries. They stay clean, and it's a portable way to show people yor best work. Keep a sample book in your car - you never know when you might need it.

Slippage and marring are the two biggest challenges when hooping satin. Because of its soft hand, it is necessary to hold it securely without damaging the delicate surface yarns. Hoops may have nicks, splinters or burrs that can catch and damage these long delicate warp threads. I prefer that the hoop does not contact the satin directly. There are two methods that I use to create a buffer between the hoop and the fabric.

You can wrap the hoop with cohesive or self-adherent wrap. This special wrap is available at the drug store or large pet supply stores. Two brands that I have purchased are Vet Wrap and Pet Wrap. They are widely used in veterinary practices because they do not stick to animals' fur. In fact, this unique material sticks only to itself. For this reason it will not leave a residue on the fabric.

Identify your pet and add fun sayings to pet bandanas. Make a patriotic one for the 4th of July - and then keep it rolling, making a new one for each holiday or mood. Rather than regular tie-style bandanas, you might want to make a slip-ver-the-collar bandana. This type of bandana has an open pocket that slips over a collar. See this style of bandana at http://www.hotdogcollars.com. They require wholesale orders over $150, but this style of bandana would be simple to make. 

If you would like to sell your personalized pet bandanas, you can offer items at online groups such as http://pets.groups.yahoo.com/group/Dogshow-services-K9Crafts/ .

This particular group is made up of canine enthusiasts who offer craft items member-to-member. Search for similar groups for other www.yahoogroups.com .

Embroidery Tips for Pet Products

• Use polyester embroidery thread for pet products because it stands up best to laundering and outdoor conditions.
• You may need to loosen bobbin tension to embroider nylon webbing.
• Use a product such as Cover-the-Back from Gunold or fusible tricot to make your embroidery more long-lasting and avoid excessive wear from the dog’s hair.

My favorite saying for a Bandana? Warning - Dog can't hold his Licker

Resources for Pet Product Blanks

http://www.annthegran.com/Search.aspx?q=petwear

www.whatzupwiththat.com

http://ssactivewear.com/

http://latsportswear.com/

http://www.dogcoat.com/

www.virginiats.com/

http://www.blankdogtees.com/

http://www.hotdogcollars.com/

Because quilt fabric is usually lightweight, embroidered quilt squares are often puckered. To avoid puckers on your squares, fuse a piece of ShirtTailorÒ by PellonÒ to cover the entire back of your square. It will not be removed after embroidery. Rather, it adds body to the quilt square for the life of the quilt. Then, embroider using one or more layers of crisp tear-away stabilizer hooped in with the square. When you remove it from the hoop, remove the tearaway one layer at a time and your square is ready for use.

But what is crisp tearaway? Simply put, it's the kind that is very easily removed. Soft tearaway is useful for some purposes, but it is the kind that I hear people refer to as being harder to remove. That's because it's made of both long and short fibers.

Crisp tearaway is made of only shirt fibers and tears more like paper.

You can also use a sharp needle in your machine when embroidering quilt squares. Most of us use light ball-point needles most of the time. Even though light ball point needles are considered "universal" and can be used on a variety of fabric types, sharps penetrate woven materials more cleanly. Also, use a small blade size, such as a size 70/11 when embroidering quilt squares.

If you follow these steps, I think you will be very pleased with your pucker-free quilt squares!