Hints *Advance your design one stitch at the beginning of the design and at each color change to decrease jump stitches. *For knits (T's and sweatshirts--my favorites!): *Use some sort of permanent (cut-away) stabilizer: either iron-on or spray-on a regular cut-away, or use a polymesh stabilizer like Sulky's Soft 'N Sheer. Tear-away stabilizer should be used in addition to a cut-away, but used alone, tear-away can allow knits to distort, leaving a poor stitchout. *Make sure your permanent stabilizer is large enough to be included in the hooping. OR Use a stick-on type stabilizer in the hoop or stuck to the underside of the hoop (still use your permanent stabilizer too!) For very detailed designs, I sometimes baste my knit fabrics to the stick-on stabilizer for extra stability. Basting designs for the 4x4 and D1 hoops are available on the More Freebies page. After stitching, peel off Sticky--that's it! *If you or those for whom you're stitching have sensitive skin, cut your polymesh stabilizer about 50% larger than your design on two sides. Stabilize as noted above. After embroidering, peel off as much tear-away and stick-on as possible. Take the polymesh, fold the free edges over the back of the design (to cover any itchy stitches or remaining tough stabilizers), overlapping two sides of the polymesh, and hand-whip a few stitches to keep the polymesh in place. Really, it's just a few hand stitches, and only takes about a minute! *A second way to baste (besides my free basting designs): Use the final outline of the design (usually the last color stop in an outlined design), using thread to match your fabric. Note: this only works with designs that HAVE outlines--many of mine don't! *You can hoop stick-on stabilizer, embroider, then "patch" the hole after removing embroidery. I usually manage five or six designs before needing to hoop another big piece. *If you have problems with your needle getting gummy while using stick-on stabilizer, try using a SMALL amount of Sewers' Aid. *Keep a set of permanent colored pens on hand to touch up spots where outlines are slightly off, or you accidentally get bobbin thread show. I use Pigma Pens which I purchased at Michaels Arts and Crafts, but I have seen a set specifically for this purpose from 5Ts Embroidery Supply (http://www.5ts.com). Nancy's Notions and Clotilde also have similar pen sets. *Another nice product is Cover-Up, available from Hoop It All (http://www.hoopitall.com). Use this when stitching a light colored design on dark fabric. HINTS FOR SATIN STITCHES I use a lot of satin stitches, as these really give embroidery a 3-dimensional feel, and allows the thread to shine more fully than with fill stitches. Here are some general hints for designs that utilize satin stitches: Use a NEW needle, free of burrs, and top-quality thread. I prefer polyester embroidery thread (Madiera polyester), but Sulky rayon is more easily available and generally does well with satin stitches. Make sure your thread is fully engaged in the tension disc (particularly important on the Designer 1), and that your bobbin thread is properly placed. Avoid rough fabrics that might snag the satin stitches. Make sure to test the design on fabric similar to what you plan to use! Stabilize your embroidery properly. Consider slowing down your machine speed (though the Designer 1 automatically slows down for satin stitches.) Use a snag-catcher (a "needle" with rough end instead of an eye, meant for pulling snags through on sweaters) to pull any loose threads through. I use the "Snag Nab-It" from Dritz which is available at Joann Fabrics. Happy stitching!

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