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    An interesting variation of a twisted thread for machine embroidery

    By Irina, in Machine embroidery materials and technology, , 1 comment, 3,967 views
    Original text by Marina Belova 
    Some time ago I encountered an interesting type of threads, which I had never previously seen on the market or in use at all. It is called Lame Stylo. 

    It is produced by an American manufacturer TEXMAC, under control of Japanese from ITOCHU Corporation. This is a twisted thread, which means that it was made of several strands, twisted together, one of the strand being metallic. I've already written about semi-metallic threads, drawing examples from my own practice and describing the basic principles of working with them. 
    But this brand turned out to be special, nothing I've seen before – I've encountered no problems during the embroidery. I didn't even have to use special needles and embroidered with those ones found on my machine. I even got the impression that this thread was better for the embroidery than the rayon one – no breakage, twisting and other mess. And the most intriguing aspect is that I didn't have to digitize in a specific way. I didn't have time to do the tests, so I embroidered right on the item with a design made for the ordinary #40 threads.
    This thread is as thin as rayon and polyester, although a bit hairy. The twist is not tight but rather loose, I would say. As it turned out, neither of these factors is an obstacle. 
    See the comparison in the photo below: standard #30 twisted thread on the top, Lame thread in the center and an ordinary metallic thread at the bottom: 

    If one compares this thread with #40 metallic one and common #30 twisted thread, it is very soft, which is only favorable to the embroidery.
    Perhaps this is the key factor of how easy is to embroider with these threads. 
    This is my first embroidery with this type of twisted thread. The height of the lower-case letters (which is definitive for the embroidery) is 9 mm and the font is not too complex: 

    Then they became even smaller. In this case, the height of the lower-case letters was 6.5 mm: 

    And here only 5 mm – so small. The font is not too bold and the letters are low-case: 

    I didn't have to redo anything; everything was perfect from the beginning. 
    I was also glad to find that the color range of this thread is vast – from black to white through the most bright and vibrant colors: 

    Here's the label enlarged, in case anybody is interested. 

    As for the price, it is high, of course, but, judging from my experience, this thread is worth it because it's easier to embroider with it than with metallic threads, and you need to buy #50 for small letters anyway. And it is as much joy for the eye as metallic threads. 

    Working with Supertwist threads

    By Irina, in Machine embroidery materials and technology, , 1 comment, 3,481 views
    Original text by Marina Belova 
    Nowadays you can buy Supertwist threads made by a variety of manufacturers. But, if I'm not mistaken, Madeira was the one that started making them. 
    The textured threads give the embroidery a very effective outer look and are capable of enriching even the most simple design. 
    I first encountered them about 4 years ago, and I had to find a way of working with them by myself. Today there is a variety of materials on the subject on the Web. The only thing you need to do is to put it into use. 

    This thread is composed of 30% metallic polyester and 70% of polymeric amide, therefore, the items embroidered with it can be washed at 60°.
    These threads come in two numbers: #30 and #12. This means that the embroidery will be denser and coarser even if you reduce the density of the design. 
    I've seen different recommendations on how to decrease density. For example, #30 Supertwist requires 10-20% less density than usual. That is, if your usual density value is 0.4 mm, you should set it at 0.44-0.48 mm for these threads. And if you cannot reduce density, as in a machine-created file, you can increase the size of a design by 10% instead. For #12 Supertwist, you need to reduce density ~ by 50%. 
    It's better to use over 3-4 mm long stitches both in running stitches and in fills. Understitching should be kept to a minimum so that not to pose problems during the embroidery process. 
    To embroider with Supertwist threads, you need to prepare your machine first: Change needles – you should use #90 for #30 Supertwist and #100 for #12 Supertwist. Besides that, you need to readjust your tension: loosen up the upper thread a bit. But don't loosen it too much so that not to get loops on the right side of the fabric and "birds nests" on the wrong side. Change bobbin thread for a thinner one. As for the machine speed, Madeira recommends to lower it to 650-700 rpm. 
    No extra stabilization is needed. When choosing a stabilizer one should pay attention to the type of fabric, as usual. 
    Nothing difficult, as you can see. 
    I've covered an interesting variety of these twisted threads, convenient in both digitizing and embroidery, in this article. 

    Cording, part 2

    By Irina, in Machine embroidery materials and technology, , 0 comments, 5,792 views
    Original text by Marina Belova 
    I decided to try cord embroidery and digitizing for it on my embroidery machine. I have a cording device but has so far been standing idle; I should start using it. The only thing I lack to begin practicing is the cord winded on plastic spools. But I just looked it up on the internet – it won't be hard to purchase one. When I buy it, I'll write a separate article on how to use cord in the field, so to speak. 
    As for today, I decided to sift through the mass of material on cording and digitizing designs with a cord that has accumulated in the course of time. The big plus of cord embroidery is high productivity level. Also, if one uses imagination, amazing designs can be created by combining traditional embroidery techniques with cording. I saw some examples in Bonnie Nielsen's book Punch and also in the photos on the Internet. 
    The cord is commonly used for creating lines and rarely for the fills. Classically, cord is used in flowers, spirals, and alphabets. The outer look of the embroidery with a cord has a splendid 3D effect to it. 
    I've tried cord embroidery once 5 years ago. Then I was inventing the wheel and made quite a few of test pieces. 

    The biggest problem was to buy a right kind of cord. Therefore, I had to buy various threads in a shop that sold knitting paraphernalia, rewind them manually and combine them with various machine settings. This method is only good for those who have a lot of spare time and enthusiasm. That's because it's full of riddles and puzzles. In those days there was no knowledge on how to work with all that. 
    As it turned out later, cord embroidery is simple: 
    Insert the cord into a special device on your embroidery machine (the way of doing so depends on the machine's brand).  Position the foot.  Embroider the design.  I've seen contradictory recommendations on the machine's speed – some people think that it should be lowered to almost 400 rpm, and some believe that you can work at the usual speed. If I'm not mistaken, the speed depends on the embroidery machine.  In the end of the embroidery, the cord is cut by hand.  Ways of finishing the cord ends: 
    Tuck the ends of the cord to the wrong side so that they don't stick out. 
    They can be hidden under the embroidery. 
    The cord ends also can be secured with a zigzag or satins. 
    There are numerous types of cords in use. Braided cords embroider well, as do the twisted ones. But where the cord bends to a small radius, the yarns may unravel. 
    A cording device can be configured to do loop embroidery, which creates a wonderful 3D effect, especially in large areas. Loop embroidery of an area of an equal size consumes much less time. This method of cording is often used for hair, fur, leaves and so on imitation. With some practice, loop embroidery with a cord on an ordinary embroidery machine can be as effective on one of special loop stitch devices. Hence, there is a room for improvement. 
    A monofilament yarn (fishing twine) is commonly used because it is transparent and will suit any cord. But, in my opinion, an ordinary polyester embroidery thread can be used for soft cords. 
    Digitizing for cord embroidery is not difficult either. But choosing of the design is a task that requires diligence. 
    The entire design is digitized with running stitches. The recommended stitch length is 1–2 mm. Reduce the stitch length on bends in order for them to fit the curve. 
    The design should have 1 start and 1 end point and no trims. You should get a line, drawn as if in one stroke on a pen. 
    Get rid of the tie-offs. 
    Avoid sharp angles, repeats, superimposition, sharp turns – everything should be smooth and flowing. Although, now, after having practiced cording embroidery, I would call that last one quite a disputable statement. 
    The machine should make a stop before and after cord embroidery as the cording device is adjusted, prepared and removed manually. 
    P.S. I already posted an article about me practicing cord embroidery. 

    Understanding fleece

    By Irina, in Machine embroidery materials and technology, , 0 comments, 3,591 views
    Original text by Marina Belova 
    Fleece is considered a dense pile knitwear fabric, and that makes a certain impact on digitizing and embroidery processes. Fleece differs in density, quality and pile height. But, in any case, it's very stretchy. On that basis, you need to have individual settings in every particular case.

    Nevertheless, there are some general recommendations on digitizing and embroidery. 
    The embroidery process is the most ordinary one: 
    If you want to avoid any unforeseen defects, hoop the fabric together with the stabilizer. To prevent fabric from shifting during the embroidery, you can additionally sprinkle the stabilizer with temporary spray adhesive. I've seen the whole series of recommendations on stabilizers:  For the items in which the wrong side is visible, use a water-soluble film or 2–3 layers of tear-away stabilizer.  Otherwise, a cut-away stabilizer is the optimal choice. Not only will it secure the fabric in the course of embroidery, but also won't allow it to lose its shape during washing or cleaning.  Of all the hoops that suit the size of the embroidery, use the smallest one. Keep an eye on the fabric during the hooping so that it doesn't sag down. It is very easy to do: slide 2 of your fingers over the fabric surface. If there is a hump, the fabric is too loose, so you need to rehoop. But don't stretch the fabric too tight or the embroidery will become distorted after unhooping. You should pull fleece only in the direction in which it is the least stretchy in order not to damage the structure.  As any pile fabric, fleece is notorious for hoop marks. In order to prevent their appearance, it is advisable to put a piece of paper between the fabric and the hoop. 
    In essence, you need practice for everything.  If the pile is high, you may cover it with a thin water-soluble film that will help to trample the pile and to avoid stitches sinking into it.  Set the appropriate needles: 70/10 or 75/11 with a ball point.  Use the ordinary #40 embroidery threads. For small details, #50 or 60 can be used.  The embroidery speed should be standard.  Adjust your thread tension so that the upper thread doesn't form loops.  General recommendations on digitizing for fleece, which will define the quality of the future embroidery:  The design should be either created by you or, in case you have a ready one, modified according to fleece particularities. You should pay attention to the following aspects:  Understitching:  Under the satins, an outline along the perimeter, made with short stitches (2–2.5 mm), low-dense zigzags or double zigzags (3 mm) and up to 3.5 mm stitch length. That depends on the satin width and pile height.  Under the filled areas, a Tatami fill of a very low density – a 2–4 mm dense full grid. This will help to stabilize the fabric and reduce the density of the outer layer of stitches.  For such a stretchy material, it's better to set your density at a slightly lower value than for the ordinary fabrics.  You need to increase pull compensation so that it comprises 10% of the column width, especially if a satin column is narrow.  Avoid less than 1 mm wide satins.  All the small elements that will be embroidered with running stitches, should be repeated 3 times. For this purpose, bean stitches, and not the triple running stitches, should be used. I wrote about it in my article on decorative running stitches.  Substitute as much running stitches for satins as possible.  Avoid stitch direction that is parallel to the grain line. It is usually vertical on items.  Borders should be approximately 3 mm wide.  Try to plan your embroidery sequence in such a way so that overlapping of the segments of one object is kept to a minimum, to prevent the appearance of gaps.  And one last thing, plan your embroidery sequence from the center of the hoop toward its edge. 
    In theory, many machine embroidery editors have preset parameters that can be used as a starting board. But in machine embroidery, one should never take anything for granted. Every little thing needs to be tested and retested. 
    See how I used fleece to create a bag for paper tissues and a heart for sweets (both step-by-step master-classes with photos). 

    2 more methods of color blending

    By Irina, in Machine embroidery materials and technology, , 1 comment, 3,939 views
    Original text by Marina Belova 
    Recently I came across some more methods of color blending in machine embroidery on the Web. Theoretically, all of them have the same basic principles, but the technique varies a bit. The designs in one of the online shops that had been made in a similar way instantly sprang to my mind.
    But then I didn't give the matter much thought. 
    Just to refresh your memory, all basic color blending techniques in machine embroidery are based on the notion that the stitch direction is the same in all layers. It is precisely this condition that will allow the stitches of the outer level to sink into the ones below and to create tonal gradation. 
    The methods described below are somewhat different in that the stitch direction varies in the filled area of all layers. I suppose, the result is not so much a color blend but more a moire pattern. That is, some colors are visible through the others due to the reduced density of the upper layers and to each next layer rising slightly above the previous one. 
    I haven't yet tried these methods myself, but I definitely will when I find a proper design, and I'll publish the results. 
    Blending 2 colors 
    This method is very easy to put into practice. It works best for colors that are similar to each other: red + orange or yellow + orange. Something like that. 
    You should do as follows: pick 2 objects of the same shape (copies, in fact) and place one on top of the other. 
    The first one will be our background. Fill it with an ordinary flat pattern. Set the density at an ordinary level or slightly lower. I don't mention numbers here because everyone has their preferred density: some like it higher, some lower. 

    The second object will work as shading. But the stitches should lie not in the same direction as the ones in the background layer but completely at random. This is achieved by arranging the stitches in the upper layer in a circle. Also, you should find a suitable density value, and don't forget about stitch shortening or you'll sure get a hole in the center. 
    You can do it manually in any embroidery editor, and in Tajima, there is a Radial fill tool. At a final stage it should look somewhat like this: 

    The center of the circle needn't be placed exactly in the middle of a shape you're filling. This matter should be individually decided in every particular case. 
    Blending 3 colors 
    This method is real easy as well. It can be done in any machine embroidery editor. 
    Pick an object, copy it and place the copies on top of each other. You'll have 3 layers as the result. Set a different stitch direction in every layer and add gradient density. Set your density at half of the standard value or less. I got these pictures: 
    1st layer 

    2nd layer 

    3rd layer 

    The final look: 

    Of course, you need to experiment and see what can be achieved as the result. 
    Playing around with stitch direction, density, and effects, you can achieve an interesting outer look without using any tricks or advanced embroidery software. 
    I think that these methods can be used to blend more than 2 or 3 colors. The main thing is to find a right density value for each layer and stick to the rules of working with colors. 

    Long-and-short stitch in machine embroidery

    By Irina, in Machine embroidery materials and technology, , 0 comments, 3,890 views
    Original text by Marina Belova 
    There is a hand embroidery technique called long-and-short stitch, which consists of double or cross back stitch. The point of it is that the threads crossed on the wrong side are visible through a semi-transparent fabric (muslin, batiste or linen) and on the right side only the running stitches can be seen. It is commonly used for the embroidery on table or bed linen, handkerchiefs and, of course, clothing. It should look like the petals in the photo below: 

    One day a long time ago I came across a couple of articles describing the way of imitating this technique on the embroidery machine. This method was patented by Suzanne Hinshaw in USA in 2000. Therefore, I don't know if this method can be used for commercial purposes without raising any issues with the author. 
    The embroidery technique is the simple stroke of genius: 
    Hoop the water-soluble stabilizer.  Embroider the first part of your design, which will be visible through the fabric. Here the machine stops.  With the help of temporary spray adhesive or a double-sided adhesive tape place a piece of fabric on top of the embroidery.  Embroider the second part of the design – the borders and the rest of it.  Wash away the stabilizer and iron the item.  The resulting look of the embroidery will be something like this: 

    Digitizing long-and-short stitch design: 
    First, create the bottom layer of the embroidery. This is a common flat fill of a very low density – 0.8-1 mm, no understitching.  The digitizing particularity of this layer is that it should go beyond the future border no less than 1 mm. In the picture below the blue line represents the border on the right side of the fabric. Dark gray areas represent the bottom layer that spreads beyond the borders on all sides. 
    Create the upper layer – the borders. The upper layer is usually created by the running stitches, double at least.  Create the rest of the traditional embroidery that will be on the right side.  This is all, in a nutshell. Nothing difficult. 
    General recommendations: 
    You can use any semi-transparent or transparent fabric (muslin, batiste, organdy, linen, chiffon, thin silk and so on).  The color range of both the upper and the lower (shading) layers is unlimited.  It's better to use soft rayon or cotton and avoid the coarser polyester.  You can vary the density of the bottom layer in order to regulate the degree of shading.  If the wrong side is not visible after the embroidery, you may substitute the water-soluble stabilizer for a piece of organza or a net. 

    Joining appliqué in machine embroidery

    By Irina, in Machine embroidery materials and technology, , 0 comments, 4,417 views
    Original text by Marina Belova 
    I find joining appliqué a rather interesting machine embroidery technique, which may be used to create an edge finish by means of joining several pieces of fabrics together. 
    Join type will depend directly on the design. I can see the following types: 
    Joining edge-to-edge – the fabrics overlap just a little and the joint place is covered with a satin column. 
    The fabrics only partly overlap, like in a traditional patched appliqué. This way is better for usage than the edge-to-edge one. 
    The embroidery process is simple and includes the following steps. 
    The edges of two pieces of fabric are superimposed with their right side facing up.  Then the fabrics are basted together.  Hooped.  A small zig-zag outline is embroidered, to which the fabrics will be trimmed.  The fabric is trimmed along the zig-zag stitch.  The hoop is turned the wrong side up and the extra fabric is trimmed. I think it is necessary to prevent the rest of the design being embroidered on the second layer of fabric.  Put a stabilizer under the hoop.  Embroider the rest of the design.  The process of creating a joining appliqué is a bit different from that of an ordinary appliqué and consists of approximately the following steps: 
    Creating a zig-zag outline to which the fabrics will be trimmed.  Inserting a stop so that the hoop will come out for trimming.  Creating a finishing column.  Creating the rest of the design.  These are the steps that constitute the whole process. Real easy. The only thing you have to do is to find a design and to play with embroidery settings. 


    How to increase the size of a design and adjust the stitch count in My Editor?

    By Irina, in Machine embroidery materials and technology, , 4 comments, 10,545 views
    How open file you can read here 
    For example, used he design of Fashion teddy bear design from our embroidery library. The format is chosen arbitrarily.
    Open the design you want to resize. Click on Upscale design. 

    Increase the size of your design either by percent or by a certain number of cm. (I added 10%). Press OK.

    As you can see in the lower left corner of the window, your design is now bigger than it was, but the number of stitches remains the same. This means that the embroidery may look a bit bald when finished. And we don’t know that, do we?

    Press Ctrl + A to select the entire design. Ultimately, left-click on any part of the background and drag to enclose the entire design. You’ll see a rectangular frame around it.

    Now, go to Stitches > Auto Density > Apply.

    My Editor has automatically added the stitches in the required places. You can see that your stitch count went up. 

    All that is left is to store your design where you want it on your computer.

    Appliqué with ragged edges

    By Irina, in Machine embroidery materials and technology, , 0 comments, 5,276 views
    Original text by Marina Belova 
    Appliqué with ragged edges is, perhaps, the easiest type of all in the machine embroidery. Easy both in digitizing and in making. This appliqué contains a very moderate amount of stitches. 
    I will consider the method of manually trimming the extra appliqué fabric right in the hoop. 
    The technology of creating appliqué is simple and includes 2 steps: 
    Embroidering an outline that will show where to place the appliqué fabric. Then the machine makes a stop and the hoop comes out for positioning of appliqué fabric sprayed with temporary spray adhesive.  Appliqué fabric is usually stitched with running stitches or zigzags to hold it in place. After that, the machine makes another stop and the hoop comes out for cutting the fabric directly in it.  The fabric is cut in a free-hand, you may even say artistic, way, 3-5 mm from the edges. You can fray the edges afterward. In this way, for example: 

    Edging 
    A several-fold running stitch is habitually used for an appliqué with ragged edges. Satins with ragged edges, small zigzags, motifs and whatever else your imagination can conjure, can be used as well. 
    Digitizing by hand 
    Creation of an outline that will show where to place the fabric.  Insert a stop so that the hoop will come out for positioning of the appliqué fabric. Every type of machine has its own way of adding commands.  Creation of an outline that stitches the appliqué fabric to the base one. Usually, several running stitches are used with 2 mm stitch length. Don't forget the tie-offs!  Insert a stop so that the hoop will come out for trimming. Every type of machine has its own way of adding commands. If there will be no embroidery after the creation of the appliqué, you can trim the extra fabric after unhooping.  General recommendations on creating the appliqué with ragged edges 
    In order to achieve a worn vintage look, better choose 100% cotton twill as your appliqué fabric and wash it prior to the embroidery. The appliqué fabric needs no stabilizing, otherwise, the desired ragged edge effect will not be achieved – the stabilizer will not allow the edges to fray.  Better stitch with the threads matching your base, not your appliqué fabric, in color. After washing, the edges of your appliqué will become even more frayed and the stitches will not be visible anymore.  To achieve even a more ragged edge, you can add notches and dents to the lines. 


    Thread Velvet technique variations

    By Irina, in Machine embroidery materials and technology, , 1 comment, 5,188 views
    Original text by Marina Belova 
    In anticipation of the New Year, I decided to make a small bag for a present. The design was chosen specifically for testing the Thread Velvet technique. With it, I wanted to kill two birds with one stone: to make a bag and do some experimenting. 
    An image, as usual, was taken from an open source on the Internet and slightly altered according to my purpose: 

    The already modified image for my New Year bag embroidery
    And this is how it looks on the screen: 

    The overall view of the embroidery after digitizing
    For some unknown reason, I decided to save up on stitch count and add just 2 outlines for the thread velvet instead of 3. I thought it would be enough. Each layer consisted of 2 colors. 
    I secured layer perimeter-wise by partly running stitches and partly zigzags. Want to see which one will hold the fabric better. 

    Various stitch lines along the perimeter to prevent the unstitching of satins
    Besides embroidering of the stylized Christmas-tree decorations and letters, I decided to add a serrated e-Stitch line where the strings will be.
    And also to outline my future item with a running stitch so that it would be easier to cut it out. I have a big border frame, therefore, I can embroider big designs. Why not put it to use, indeed? As the result, I got a 19.2 x 51.5 cm embroidery area. 
    I chose corn-colored silk for my bag. The threads were golden and lilac. 
    The embroidery went without effort. Already during the embroidery, I liked the volume on the right side created by several layers of threads superimposed on one another right where I was going to cut. Even with 2 outlines and 3 layers of threads are sufficient to create an impressive outer look. But the fabric is significantly puckered. 

    2 layers of threads create enough volume for the embroidery to rise above the surface of the fabric 
    This is how the embroidery looked still in the frame: 

    The ready embroidery 
    After that, I took everything out and decided to cut right away. The star was the first thing on the list. I planned to turn it into the ordinary fringe, so I cut the lower thread on the wrong side: 

    Cutting the lower thread on the wrong side of the embroidery
    Then gave the threads on the right side a little fluff and got this star: 

    A Thread Velvet star 
    Then I proceeded to slash the satins on the right side, where I wanted the velvety effect: 

    Slashing satins for the velvety effect 
    This is where the consequences of the mistake of economizing hit me. 2 outlines with 3 layers in each of them turned out far from enough. While cutting all layers of satins the fabric immediately showed through. And the outer look of the embroidery was far from what I imagined. But what is embroidered, is embroidered. 
    So I slashed the rest of the satins. This is what I got: 

    The embroidery final appearance after all the cutting 
    The slashed threads do not come out under the securing stitch lines and zigzags. Therefore, you can spare zigzags without hesitation if they are not here for decoration. 
    Sure, it adds a certain flare, but I myself arrived at the following conclusions: 
    You need to have much more outlines than 2 or even 3, superimposed. Each of the outlines should contain 3 layers of satins due to the understitching and the outer layer.  The number of layers should be determined separately for each embroidery design. But, the thicker are the satins, the more layers should they consist of. My thickest satin (8–9 mm wide) was inside the ball on the right. In the end, this ball looks the most naked.  In order to see the other color among the layers, you need to embroider at least 2 outlines with 3 layers of satins in them.  The outlines of different layers should be separated by at least 1–1.5 mm.  Don't be afraid to increase the density of double zigzag. I used 0.8 mm density, and it turned out to be not enough.  I would additionally place a low-dense flat fill under the satin layers so that the fabric would be less visible in case there wouldn't be enough density in the velvety parts.  Securing stitch lines for the satins should be placed off the edges and closer to the center. 

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