Embroidery Must-Haves

It’s National Embroidery Month and we’re sharing all of our favorite embroidery notions to celebrate!  Like any hobby, using proper, quality tools is a necessity- you will have more successful results while having a lot of fun creating your projects.

Embroidery Stabilizers, Needles, Thread, + Scissors

First, let’s discuss stabilizers.  It’s literally the foundation of creating a great embroidery design that supports your fabric and thread.  When it comes down to it, we suggest you have at least one tear away stabilizer, one wash away stabilizer, one cut away stabilizer, and one water soluble topping.  They even make a sticky stabilizer for those hard-to-hoop objects.  The project you are doing will determine what stabilizer you will need.  Check out this handy guide to help you choose the correct stabilizer for your project.  At Two Chicks Quilting, we currently carry Floriani and Kimberbell brand stabilizers. 

The right needles are key! An embroidery needle has a bigger eye than a regular needle, which allows the embroidery thread to slip through easily without getting snagged. There are many different types of embroidery threads such as cotton, poly and rayon. We love to use the Floriani 40wt poly thread. This thread has a great sheen and Floriani has a HUGE assortment of awesome color choices. 

Let’s talk about scissors/snippets. In embroidery there are several different types of scissors to choose from.  A couple must-haves you might want to get are duckbill scissors or curved scissors for applique. These scissors help prevent snipping your stitch line when doing applique. A pair of snippets or scissors with a sharp point are a must to trim away any unwanted tails of thread. Using the right pair of scissors at the right time will help make the project that much easier and enjoyable. 

Machines

Today’s options in the embroidery machine world are amazing!  They turn ordinary items into works of art. You can add cute designs to shirts, bags, quilt labels, and so much more. You can also personalize everything, making those items so much more special. We’d love to answer any questions you have about embroidery machines. We have both BERNINA and Brother machines ready for you to check out.  Come on by for a test drive and learn about the current sales and promotions!  We offer classes and training year-round as well- come see us!