8 tips for Better Embroidery
Summer is here and it is officially hot at home base in Phoenix, AZ. Things usually slow down a bit for us in the summer but this year along with the weather we have stayed HOT at Qdigitizing and for that I want to thank all of you! This year we are going to try our first show in the center of the country. We looking forward to meeting all of you in at the National Network of Embroidery Professional (NNEP) Show in Nashville August 7th and 8th. Please come meet us in booth 409 and look for special offers related to the show.
For the newsletter this month Cora, Amy and I have all gone down a similar path and written lists that are meant to help you take your game up a notch. For those of you who don’t know I have been a professional, commercial embroidery digitizer for almost 25 years. I have also embroidered or been responsible for crews who have embroidered millions of garments. Cora’s specialty is screen printing art and production. Amy is our guru on everything web and social media. My business partner, Amit Jham is behind the scenes and his specialty is marketing as well as managing our production facility. I would be lost without out the help of these three industry professionals and if I never said it publicly; let me say it now…thanks to each of you for making Qdigitizing what it is today.
My contribution is on tips for better embroidery. You can produce passable embroidery but taking short cuts here and there but if you strive for excellence try and keep these points in mind. Any of these tips alone might not be your key to success but if you consistently seek to improve your technical expertise along with creative skills and focused marketing you will rise to the top of your craft.
Eight Pro Tips For Better Embroidery
- Keep you equipment properly maintained to include regular oiling and lubrication. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ChtQ5lJkab8
- Learn how to properly adjust tension for both top thread and bobbin thread. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIIbouE34ko
- Keep multiple weights of backing in your facility and know which work best for different types of fabric and designs. Backing is not one size fits all. http://www.allstitch.net/content/choose-the-right-design-fabric-and-stabilizer-to-avoid-puckering-1039.cfm
- Keep different needle sizes and tip types and understand when to best use different types of needles. http://www.allstitch.net/content/embroidery-machine-needle-selection-guide-1023.cfm
- Have your designs digitized for the specific apparel it will be embroidered on.
- Always tell your digitizer what type of fabric your design will be on. It makes a big difference.
- Make sure your backing covers 100% of the hooped area.
- Get educated – even after almost 30 years I learn something new almost every single day. There are virtually limitless resources on the internet that are only a search away providing some very good information for the most up to date techniques, materials and equipment available in the world of commercial embroidery.
If any of you have questions on this top or anything else related to the wonderful world of commercial embroidery, digitizing or art for apparel printing please don;t hesitate to drop me a line here or send me an email to steve.freeman@qdigitizing.com.
Steve Freeman
Managing Partner
Qdigitizing.com
steve.freeman@qdigitizing.com
877-733-4390
Thank you for the tips!