Embroidery Made Easy | Tips for Getting Started in 2024

Embroidering is easier than you think, we will share some

tips

to get you

started

and be able to embroider like a professional. All you need to get

started

is your

embroidery

machine, your favorite color thread, and some fabric. In today's video we will talk about the machine. We embroider and use baby lock array, which is a multi-needle machine, but the

tips

we will share today will apply to all machine

embroidery

. We'll also cover some of the best places to buy your supplies so you can save. some money in the way now let's address the elephant in the room embroidery is expensive and unfortunately is probably the biggest barrier to

getting

started with machine embroidery the machine is the biggest investment a reliable single needle machine can start around $500 and get up to thousands of dollars for a multi-needle machine, but don't worry, we're here with some helpful tips to help you save some money along the way, so let's talk about the supplies you'll need.

A total of five supplies to get started with an embroidery project. Later we will share some interesting articles that have

made

our lives much easier, but for now we will just start with the essentials. Well, let's talk about the stabilizers that exist. a few different options, each of which has its own purpose. The first will be your trimmed stabilizer and this stabilizer is used for flimsier, softer fabrics, like crew necks, which will need more stability to keep those threads in place. Your next stabilizer is the Tearaway stabilizer and this is used for fabrics that are already a little stiffer, like a jean jacket, a water soluble stabilizer is used for things like tea towels or hats where just a little bit of support is needed to not have them.

The stitches sink through the fabric. The titles of these stabilizers help you remember how to remove them in order to cut. You will need scissors to cut off the excess stabilizer. You can use your hands to remove it and it is soluble in water. Use water. to dissolve the stabilizer, well, let's talk about embroidery thread and just like the stabilizer, there are several options available that will each give you a different finish. Some of the options that are available are polyester threads, metallic rayon, and cotton threads. Okay, so your polyester thread. It will be the one that is a little more durable, the color will adhere to the thread for longer, so it will be more durable.

Rayon yarn is similar but not as sturdy as polyester. Your rayon thread will be a little more vibrant. and give a more elegant finish to your product, the cotton thread will give it that matte finish, ideal for some of those rustic projects. It is not as strong as polyester or rayon thread, so you may have a little more thread brakes and will have to work a lot with the tension. The metallic thread is a little more luxurious but more delicate to play with when starting out. It's a good idea to play with some of these different options so you can figure out which one works best.

Now let's talk about the bobbin thread. Bobbin thread is just as important as embroidery thread as it provides stability at the bottom of the project. When choosing bobbin thread, it is important that you specifically purchase a bobbin thread that is specific to machine embroidery as it is designed to withstand the high speeds of the sewing process. The last two items you will definitely need are some sharp scissors and some high-quality embroidery machine oil. Well, let's talk about saving money because machine embroidery is expensive, so there are some ways to save money. Along the way, one of the ways you can save some money is to order in bulk.

If you're committed to machine embroidery and know you'll be doing quite a bit of this project, then it's a good idea to consider ordering some of those supplies. that you'll use regularly for wholesale and wholesale purchases, although plenty up front saves you money down the road. The stabilizer is one of those supplies that you should consider ordering in bulk if you are working on a variety of different sized projects, this gives you the flexibility to cut the stabilizer into the sizes you need; Otherwise, if you buy the stabilizer sheets pre-cut, you limit it to the projects you are working on, since the disadvantage of ordering in bulk is that the stabilizer comes on a roll, which means you have to cut it yourself. same, but it's actually not that difficult to cut the stabilizer.

All you need is a cutting mat, a ruler as a guide, and a rotary cutting tool, or if you really need it, you can do it yourself. use those sharp scissors that you already have, so bob and thread is something you really want to have because it's necessary for all embroidery projects. The bobbin thread we have been using is Magna Glide prewound bobbin thread in white. Coming in a $100 box for about $40, these are our favorites for two reasons: The high quality of the bobbin thread itself and the magnet in each bobbin makes it

easy

to replace the bobbin thread with a satisfying click.

We will have links. Check out these supplies in the description below, in case you are interested, you may also save some money on your embroidery floss. The larger the spool, the more savings per yard you will likely be using the smaller threads when you start. Trying to figure out the different colors and how they will look on your garment and also while trying out the different types of thread, a pro tip is that with larger spools you won't have to change the thread on your machine as often. Often now this is not sponsored, but for most of our embroidery needs, like stabilizer and thread, we go to all Stitch and they offer a variety of colors and brands for us to use.

Let's talk about the embroidery machine. There are many brands to choose from. and it can be very overwhelming to make a decision, so here are some things to keep in mind to help you narrow down your search: Complexity and size of project number one. First consider the complexity and size of the embroidery projects you will be doing with a single-needle machine. They will be ideal for simpler projects, such as projects that have little or only one color, and these machines are generally better for people who are just starting out, on the other hand, if you are working with more complex or larger designs and are doing it for a business then a multi-needle machine will probably be a better option for you a multi-needle machine will allow you to work with more complex or larger projects that have more colors and this way with the multiple needles and threads you won't need to change colors as this will reduce your overall production time, saving time and money along the way.

Number two: budget and space limitations. A single-needle machine is generally more compact and cheaper, which is an

easy

way to get started. The embroidery and of course the multi-needle machine are larger units that will take up and need much more space; However, if you have the space and budget is not an issue, a multi-needle machine will offer more long-term value and productivity benefits. especially if you are trying to expand your embroidery business or take on larger projects so you have your supplies and your machine ready to go. Whats Next? You need a design. This can be another trouble spot in embroidery, but there is an easy solution you can access. downloads from marketplaces like Etsy or Creative Fabrica, but you have to be careful with one thing, which is commercial licenses.

If you plan to sell your designs or your finished products, you need to make sure you have permission to do this and have that commercial. license, check the description of those downloads to specifically state that you can do so. If you want to be more self-sufficient, it may be worth looking into scanning software and watching YouTube videos to learn how to use it. software so you can make designs on your own. In fact, we have started it ourselves, but we have learned that it is quite time-consuming. However, it is very rewarding to see our designs come to life.

The third option is to hire someone to digitize the design for you. This is very useful if you don't have time to learn how to digitize and if your time is better spent creating the artwork or design yourself in programs like Procreate Doe Illustrator or Photoshop, although we haven't chosen this route, I often hear recommendations to use Fiverr or upwork to find talented digitizers before we start showing you our embroidery process, let's review some elements that have

made

our embroidery process much more efficient and fun, one of the biggest problems we faced when we started. our embroidery journey was a constant thread brake, we couldn't really understand what was going on, we tried to adjust the bobbin thread tension according to the instructions in the manual, we also looked up tutorials on how to fix this problem and even tried different embroideries.

Thread, while some of these tips helped, they didn't completely fix the problem and we still had multiple brakes on the thread during our projects. After a lot of research, we finally realized what we were missing and that was a proper way to measure thread tension. bobbin and embroidery thread. This thread tension gauge is extremely useful for marking both embroidery thread tension and bobbin thread tension. Once we measure and reset all the threads to the same tension, we no longer have thread brakes. Now one of the most time-consuming aspects of embroidery is hooping your design. We really struggled with hooping our designs and making sure they were straight and centered on the garment.

We turned to YouTube for tips and tricks, but these tips were not helpful in the long run in making our small business efficient, we finally came across Mighty Hoops and their Hoop Master station again. This video is not sponsored by any of these companies, but we highly recommend

getting

into these Mighty Hoops as soon as possible, especially if you use your embroidery machine frequently. You will save a lot of time and headaches with this system when it comes to aligning and positioning your garment. The last thing that is good to have is simple but key to a professional finish on your embroidery.

A string burner or, better yet, a small torch will help you make sure. Any way of tying at the bottom of the fabric won't come loose or tear off, not to mention they are very satisfying to use now that we've gotten all that out of the way. Here is a step by step process. how we embroidered a crew neck for our small business now, first, I am going to transfer the embroidery file to our embroidery machine and we have been using the Hatch Sewing 3 software. There are many YouTube videos on how to use it. and it's been a lot of fun to use and now that I have the file I'm going to create the center line on the fabric.

First folding it in half to create that center line on the crew neck. I'm going to use a ruler and some chalk, um, this is a really good option because it gives you a variety of colors depending on the color of the fabric, so I'm going to use it to create some dotted lines in the center using the ruler, not like a straight edge for um. create that line, but as a way to push down and create that center seam, so I'm going to start here at the top and work my way down creating some lines in the center, so at this point I have several lines to guide me. down the center of the garment and to start we'll flip these hinge magnets up to hold the stabilizer in place.

The hoop I am using is the size 6 and 1/4 by 8 and 1/4 and the stabilizer that fits this. The size is 9 by 11 and once I put the stabilizer in there, I can secure it in place with those magnetic hinges and again I'll use the lines that I created with the chalk to align with that center line on the station. here I'm making sure there are no wrinkles on the crew neck and that the seams are lined up nicely in the shoulder area of ​​the frame and now for the magic all you have to do is push down and the magnets do the magic and this will give you a perfect location now let's move on to the EMB embroidery machine.

I'm going to place the frame in the machine and check to make sure the fabric doesn't get caught in the bottom or arm of the machine before I start embroidering. I will make sure that the design fits on the hoop and this is very important especially when you use aftermarket hoops, in this case using the power hoop with the baby lock set and here you can see that the Center line that we drew with the chalk aligned perfectly with the laser and now I'm checking that the spool of the embroidery machine matches the color I need for the design and now we hit start and let the machine do its job.

The best thing about the baby lock machine is that you have access to the IQ intuition monitoring app, which means you can step away from the project and keep an eye on where it is, how much time is left, what color thread it is on and we will notify you if it has there was an error, so I hope you have the peace of mind that you can walk away from the embroidery machine once it starts up because you have done all the work beforehand toMake sure it will now be sewn correctly. This is a very simple embroidery project, it is single color and it is text, so you won't be making any thread or color changes to this design and it should be pretty quick.

This round neck is one of our women's four. empowerment collection this collection is available in our store and you can see the behind the scenes of how to make these raw collars by following us on social media and voila i get that notification that the embroidery machine finished the project and now we will return. to our workstation where we will develop the design and prepare it for shipping, don't worry because the chalk left here on the crew neck will wash off quite easily with a little water before cutting off the excess stabilizer. I'm going to use a blowtorch to burn off the ends of the thread for this embroidery project, so I just run a little bit of that flame over the top of the design here and we should be good, now we're ready to cut off the excess stabilizer with your sharp scissors .

I'm going to start by making sure that the stabilizer is lined up and touching the scissors and I'm just going to apply a little bit of force to slide the scissors across the project and again, if they're very sharp, you won't need to tighten those scissors. By squeezing those scissors you're going to increase the risk of potentially cutting the fabric and we don't want when you trim off the excess stabilizer to want to get too close to the design so that you don't end up with excess stabilizer that can be a little irritating to the skin, so here I go I slide following the project design and I'm going to arrange these corners.

There's a little bit of extra stabilizer here on these two sections so I like to do a little bit of rounding to make it a little bit softer and not a hard edge and here's the final look and I'm going to quickly fold this crew neck using this folding guide and the final touch is to add a tag to our crewneck and our tags provide some care instructions. on the back and is a quick reminder of how to care for a new embroidered crewneck and with that your crewneck is ready to be shipped, place it in a bag to protect it from the elements.

We hope you found these tips helpful. helpful as you begin or continue your embroidery journey, if you did, please click the like button and subscribe will help others find this video too. If you want tips on how to prepare for your next or first pitch, watch this video. Here's hoping to see you in the next video. Embroidery is easier than you think. Here are some tips to help you embroider like a pro. You already had it. Here we go again. Machine embroidery. Oops, stary! That's a tough word, one of those, oh God, what word am I? looking for supplies, it's okay now, oh dear, it's okay