Hooping – Eileen's Machine Embroidery Blog

Archive of ‘Hooping’ category

Who’s on First?

March 28, 2019 by eileenroche / Alignment and Placement, Clothing, Hooping, Just for Fun, Wearables / 97 Comments

You are! Sure to be a hit with all baseball fans, here’s a little baseball stitching to get you into the mood for the season. Celebrate Opening Day 2019, whether you’re a major league baseball fan or tee-ball devotee, by wearing this design. It doesn’t have to be on the back pocket of a pair of white jeans, it could adorn any pocket on a tote bag or polo shirt. Whatever your preference, show your baseball pride! Here’s how to do it on a pair of jeans. You’ll find the free downloadable baseball stitching design at the end of the article.

Open the design in software and print two templates – one as is and one in mirror image. Set them aside.

Decide if you can lose the use of the pocket – talk yourself into it because it makes adding the embroidery a whole lot easier. If you agree, separate a scrap of fusible web from its paper backing and insert it into the pocket.

Press the pocket to fuse it shut. This will transform the jeans into one layer instead of a shifting layer (the pocket) on top of a base fabric (the jeans).

If you really want to use the pocket, then separate the pocket from the jeans. Leave the bartack stitches in place (at the pocket’s top corners) and pin the pocket to hooped cut-away stabilizer.

Place the templates on the pocket. I opted to place and hoop each of the designs separately. When merged to fit on my pocket, the designs measured 120mm x 124mm. Since I wanted to use a 130mm x 180mm hoop on a multi-needle machine, the merged design left little ‘wiggle room’ for placement. And since this design was landing well, you know where – I wanted make sure each segment of it was placed properly.

Slide a target sticker under each template, aligning the crosshairs.

On the mutli-needle machine, slide the pants over the metal frame of Quick Snap and place the magnetic frame on top.

If you have it, use the machine’s camera to align the needle with the target sticker. Wow – I love that camera.

But don’t fear, you don’t have to have a fancy machine to stitch this project because I stitched the second pocket on a single needle machine with a slightly different method. For a single needle machine, hoop polymesh stabilizer in a 130mm x 180mm hoop. After turning the pants inside out, place the pocket on the hoop, with the legs extending over the attachment (away from the head of the machine). Place the templates back on the target stickers so you can see the design.

Then, pin the pants onto the stabilizer, keeping the pins out of the design area. Use binder clips to hold the bulk of the pants out of the hoop.

Attach the hoop to the machine and stitch the first design. Move the needle to the center of the second target sticker, mirror image the design and stitch. Repeat for both pockets.

Wear with pride and I’ll look for you at the ballpark!

Download your design here, you’ll find two sizes: 4” x 4” and 5” x 7”. I used the 5” x 7” designs on my jeans.

What’s New ?

Eileen Roche’s 68 page full-color book, The Flower Box Quilt, is an invaluable educational resource for machine embroiderers. The book guides readers through the steps to create a 72” x 80” quilt and a 12 ½” x 40” table runner.

Be on the lookout for Eileen’s next Facebook LIVE on April 3rd at 1:00pm CST. She will discuss quilting and the 5 Biggest Mistakes Quilters Make!

So Much Talent!

March 1, 2019 by eileenroche / Baby Lock, Blog Tour, Continuous Embroidery, Current Posts, Digitizing, Embroidery Techniques, Hooping, Inspiration, Lettering, Marie Zinno, Nancy Zieman, National Embroidery Month, Social Media / 9 Comments

What do you get when you give 11 talented embroiderers a fairly simple fabric panel and a few embroidery designs? Eleven uniquely-embroidered works of art. It absolutely amazes me to see how people put their own stamp of creativity into an embroidery project.

The past month has been an eye-opener – we’ve seen subtle touches such as Marie Zinno’s soft blue filagree designs that are built-in the Baby Lock Valiant.

And an out of the box transformation by Cathy Sundermann of Stitch Fork Designs. That’s an impressive front door!

Deanna Springer of Nancy Zieman Productions sashed the wood grain panel with Nancy Zieman’s red Riley Blake shiplap fabric to spice it up. Deanna ditched the wrapped canvas idea and added a pretty floral border for a traditional wall-hanging.

Milinda Stephenson opted to wrap her panel around a pillow. This was a fast and easy finish and her dog, Iris, loved it!

Michelle Umlauf used the IQ Designer in her Baby Lock Solaris machine to enhance the lettering. Talk about perfect placement! That’s a show stopper technique and wonderful way to show how to incorporate prints with embroidery. It’s all about value – making sure the embroidery is visible on a busy print.

Michele Umlauf – Sewing Machine Artistry

Carla Reale used Baby Lock’s Palette software program to add her own message in the applique heart of the Grateful panel. Join the Baby Lock Palette group on Facebook to watch her video.

Carla Reale of the Baby Lock Palette Community

Karen Parker made two samples! Her Grateful panel shows offset floral sprays at the top and bottom. I love that layout and never think of using it! Of course she pulled her thread colors from her fun, striped border.

Karen’s English Pub theme set the tone for her border fabrics and faux leather trim – complete with nail heads! Her satin circles mimic a dinner plate and the embroidered knife and fork really seal the deal. Finished with two glasses of cold beer, this panel will look great in any proper drinking establishment.

Debbie Henry extended the wood grain quilting beyond the panel edge onto a wide border. Love her delicate blue floral spray in the center of the heart!

The Embroiderist, Colleen Bell, used a dark thread to quilt her Gathering panel – love how visible the wood grain is. She paired her panel with an embroidered chalkboard fabric. As a mother of nine, she knows a thing or two about prepping meals!

Sara Gallegos of Sew Positively Sara added family names to the applique heart on the Grateful panel on her Baby Lock Solaris. Of course, she nailed the placement of the quilting designs with the help of a quick camera scan on the Solaris. Nothing like seeing before you stitch!

Check out her blog at SewPositivelySara to see how she pieced the heart blocks on her pillow.

Our last participant, Debbie Cleek, added trapunto to her floral sprays on the Gathering panel. She used Designer’s Gallery to add the traditional technique of trapunto but with today’s technology.

I’d like to give a huge thank you to all of the participants. If you followed along, I’m sure you’re were as impressed as I was with their creativity. And so many techniques were shared! Please leave a comment and tell me what’s your biggest embroidery challenge. We’ll pick a random winner to send one Farmhouse Sentiments kit.

Facebook LIVE Tutorial on Conquering Your Fear of the Snap Hoop Monster: Magnetic Hooping

February 7, 2019 by eileenroche / A Closer Look, Alignment and Placement, Baby Lock, Blog Tour, Current Posts, Eileen Roche, Embroidery Techniques, Embroidery Tips, Hooping, In-the-hoop, National Embroidery Month, Social Media / 19 Comments

We hope you enjoyed our second Facebook live this week but due to technical difficulties we decided to re-shoot a video just for the blog! Take a look below to learn more about magnetic hoops and why you shouldn’t be afraid of the Snap Hoop Monster.

An introduction to floating your quilt block

September 22, 2018 by Denise Holguin / Current Posts, Hooping, Quilting / 1 Comment

A song popped in to my mind the first time I used the Monster Block Maker. The block was “floating” at the machine and I found myself singing quietly to myself: “It floats through the air with the greatest of ease…”

While it’s certainly novel, you might be wondering, why would you want to float a quilt block? The answer: You’ll save fabric and batting!

The Monster Block Maker is designed to work with the 8” x 8” Snap Hoop Monster. It is available for single needle and multi-needle machines. The kit includes:

4 reusable plastic templates for 5″, 6″, 7″ and 8″ blocks
60 yards of ¼” wide double stick Monster Block Maker Tape
Instructions for how to use the product
12 Downloadable embroidery designs (C2S, PES, JEF formats)

Here’s a look of the product in use:

The photo shows the 5” template attached to the bottom frame of the 8” x 8” Snap Hoop Monster frame. I’ve been using the template for multiple uses (hence the fibers on the double stick tape). The tape has enough adhesive to still adhere a few more blocks. Of course, when the tape has lost it’s stickiness, I can peel it away and apply new strips of tape.

The bottom fabric of my quilt sandwich is adhered to the back (underside) of the Monster Block Maker template as shown.

Next, a piece of batting is adhered to the top of the Monster Block Maker template.

Last, the top fabric for the quilt sandwich is placed on top of the batting.

Note, the magnetic frame from the 8” x 8” Snap Hoop Monster is not used with this product.

Now it’s time for the embroidery machine! The first stitch sequence secures the fabric.

Now the machine stitches the decorative elements.

The block is complete. The hoop has been removed from the embroidery machine.

Now just peel away the block from the Monster Block Maker template.

Trim any excess fabric around the block with a ruler and rotary cutter.

For more information on the Monster Block Maker visit the Designs in Machine Embroidery website. Two product links available: Single Needle Machines and Multi-Needle Machines.

Update/Correction: The video the batting is cut to the same size as the front and back fabric – the batting should be smaller and fit within the hole in the block maker, only the front and back fabric should get stuck to the tape!

Magnetic Hoops

September 12, 2018 by eileenroche / Current Posts, Eileen Roche, Embroidery Techniques, Hooping, Uncategorized / 33 Comments

I take magnetic hoops for granted. I invented them so long ago, I’d have to check the patent to verify the year. I use them everyday for many embroidery tasks. So it surprises me when I attend events and meet embroiderers who are not familiar with magnetic hoops.

They’ll ask if they work. And the answer is, “Absolutely!”

They ask if they’ll harm their machine. And the answer is, “No!”

They’ll ask what size should they buy. And the answer is, “Every size available for your machine!”

So let’s dig a little deeper. Magnetic hoops work like a dream because they do not cause fiber distortion. They have a flat metal bottom frame and a flat magnetic top. The magnets are quite strong and firmly grip a quilt sandwich, a terry towel, a knit shirt and many other fabrics. They do not replace a standard embroidery hoop, they complement it!

Magnetic hoops do not harm your machine as the magnetic force is shielded by the metal frame. The magnetic force grips the fabric – not the machine. The hoops have been thoroughly tested on all machines during the prototype stage. There has never been an issue with a magnetic hoop interfering with the machine’s operating system. Many years ago, we were told not to use magnetic pin cushions. At that time, the computer in the machine was encased in a light plastic housing and magnets could interfere with the operating system. In you owned a cell phone in that era, it was housed in a tote bag with long coiled wire!

Today, the machine’s computer, although very powerful, is tiny. It’s highly insulated and the magnetic force can reach it. Think about the power of your cellphone, the advancements in embroidery technology are very similar.

So what size should an embroiderer buy? I always ask, ” What size hoop do you stitch the majority of your embroidery projects in?”

Whatever the answer is, that’s the first magnetic hoop size they should purchase.

Now if someone is starting to quilt with their embroidery machine, then the answer is, the largest hoop that’s available for your machine!

Nancy’s Sewing Weekend

May 2, 2018 by eileenroche / Current Posts, Eileen Roche, Embroidery Techniques, Embroidery Tips, Hooping / 8 Comments

I just arrived in Beaver Dam, WI for Nancy’s Sewing Weekend. It’s always a fun time – full of great classes, inspiring samples and wonderful people. Of course, this year will be a little different without Nancy but we’re all committed to carrying on this great tradition. If you’re in Wisconsin or Ilinois or Iowa or Minnesota or…well, you get the idea, head to Beaver Dam. I’m reposting Saturday’s blog from Zieman Productions here. Read on to see what’s happening at Nancy’s Notions this weekend, May 3-5, 2018.

What started as a grand opening in 1985 has grown into one of Wisconsin’s largest annual sewing events. This year’s events start Thursday, May 3rd, and run through Saturday, May 5th. FREE Admission and FREE Parking!

Join in on 24 seminars featuring top educators and designers

New! Sewing Weekend speakers include:

- - Sara Gallegos
  - Mike Johns
  - Joi Mahon

Returning favorite speakers include:

- - Eileen Roche
  - Marti Michell
  - Linda McGehee
  - Pamela Leggett
  - Mary Mulari

Find seminar details and class ticket pricing over at the Nancy’s Notions website.

Test-drive a Baby Lock Sewing Machine!

Hands-on classes are running throughout the weekend. While many are sold out, tickets for select days and times are available onsite at Nancy’s Notions Sewing Weekend.

Free Demonstrations by the Experts

Company representatives from some of the top brands in the sewing industry are available at Sewing Weekend to answer questions and demonstrate products.

NEW! This Year: Food Trucks

- Food Trucks—7 food trucks/vendors will be part of the Sewing Weekend festivities this year. You won’t need to leave the event to travel to an off-site food location, unless you choose to do so. A seating area and tent will be near the food trucks. It’s a great way to enjoy a variety of choices plus support other Wisconsin-based businesses. Trucks and vendors participating include:
  - Lisa’s Pizza (serving an array of pizzas and pasta)
  - Mac’s BBQ (serving chicken sandwiches, pulled pork sandwiches, shredded beef sandwiches, jambalaya, coleslaw, potato salad, etc.)
  - Cold Stone Creamery (serving various flavors of ice cream, of course)
  - Curd Girl (serving their specialty fried cheese curds)
  - Gouda Girls (serving specialty grilled cheese sandwiches)
  - We Go Waffles (serving waffles that are both sweet and savory)
  - Mobile Café Express (serving coffee as well as breakfast and lunch food options)

Don’t Miss the 3-Day Super Sale!

Over 10,000 yards of fabric on sale; and more! Save up to 75% on select Clearance and Overstock items. New deals daily!

Ride the FREE! shuttle buses to seminar locations.

You can even check your packages while you’re attending seminars and workshops.

You’ll find lots of inspiration! Scott Stanton, accounting and IT guru, sports one of his personalized ties. Yes, Scott made it himself. Every day of Sewing Weekend he wears a tie that he made.

Special Exhibits and Displays!

Look for the Quilt Expo Black & White Plus One Award-Winning Challenge Quilts at this year’s Sewing Weekend! And, pick up an entry form for the New! 2018 Quilt Expo Bake Off Quilt Challenge.

Join us in celebrating the 34th annual Sewing Weekend, May 3–5, 2018—at Nancy’s Notions in Beaver Dam, WI. What started as a grand opening in 1985, Sewing Weekend has grown into one of Wisconsin’s largest annual sewing events.

Remember the first Sewing Weekend?

Check out these photos from the 1985 Grand Opening of Nancy’s Notions:

Thank you to Nancy, for her vision in creating an annual event for us to gather and celebrate sewing. This year, we celebrate Nancy and her many contributions to the sewing world, her elegant style and gracious living.

Hope to see you there!

How to Hoop a Tote Bag

April 4, 2018 by eileenroche / Alignment and Placement, Current Posts, Eileen Roche, Embroidery Techniques, Embroidery Tips, Hooping, Uncategorized / 7 Comments

Just about every tote bag can benefit from the addition of embroidery but hooping one can be challenging. Here’s how I do it – on a single needle machine or a multi-needle.

Place a target sticker 4” below the center top of the tote. Place the tear-away stabilizer over the metal frame of Monster Hoop.

Turn the tote inside out and center the tote over the stabilizer (centering the target sticker). Place the magnetic top over the tote. Use the edge of the tote as an alignment guide. If it’s straight, the design will be straight.

Attach the hoop to the machine and lift the tote over the machine head. Keep an eye on the straps and make sure they are not caught under the hoop.

Multi-Needle Machines

Place a target sticker 4” below the center top of the tote. Place the outer ring inside the tote and lay a piece of tear-away over the outer ring. Insert the inner ring, keeping the target sticker centered.

Or if you’re using Multi-needle Monster, then insert the magnetic frame into the bag, centering the target sticker. Position the metal frame on top of the magnetic frame and attach to the machine.

Easy peasy!

Tame Those Furry Fibers!

December 2, 2017 by eileenroche / Current Posts, Digitizing, Eileen Roche, Embroidery Techniques, Embroidery Tips, Holiday Stitching, Hooping, Inspiration Software, Perfect Embroidery Pro, Software Saturday, Software Techniques, Uncategorized / 4 Comments

Cold weather calls for cozy fabrics like Minky, faux fur and lofty knits. As wonderful as they are to wear, they present challenges when it’s time to add embroidery to them. First, their fibers creep over embroidery camouflaging the beautiful stitches. Second, since they’re lofty and bulky, they’re hard to hold in a hoop.

Inspiration’s Perfect Embroidery Pro’s Nap Blocker feature is the answer for taming the fibers. Nap Blocker adds a layer of complex fill stitches that’s just light enough to flatten the lofty fibers creating a smooth surface for the embroidery. Here’s how to do it in PEP.

Select the Text tool and type JOY in the Properties Box. I used the Bookman font.

Select the design, right click to access the command menu. Select Utility, Nap Blocker.

Instantly, a layer of complex fill is added to the design in the first color position.

The fill extends .15” beyond the design to ensure any long fibers will not obstruct the embroidery. You can change this by selecting the fill only and resizing.

Notice how the complex fill is placed at the beginning of the design in the color sequence.

Stitch the complex fill in the same color thread as the fabric. This is key because you want these stitches to disappear behind the beautiful embroidery. And…you don’t have to use a topper when you use Nap Blocker. How sweet is that?

Now to hoop – I use Snap Hoop Monster for all lofty fabrics because the magnetic flat frame does not leave hoop burn. My 5” x 7” is my go-to hoop for these bulky fabrics – its strong grip does a great job for monogramming and more!

PEP and Snap Hoop Monster are a powerful combination for furry fibers. Use it for Christmas stockings, faux fur throws and Minky blankets.

Tropical Stitching

June 28, 2017 by eileenroche / Current Posts, Eileen Roche, Embroidery Techniques, Hooping, Inspiration Socials, Inspiration Software, Seminars and Conventions, Uncategorized / 7 Comments

It’s always been a dream of mine to have an ocean view out my studio window.

Since I live in Texas, this is definitely not what I see out my window and it’s not likely to change any time soon. What would be the next best thing? How about an embroidery class in a store that’s just steps from the Pacific Ocean? Wouldn’t that be lovely? Oh I how wish I was teaching (or taking) one! But since I’m not available in July for Discount Fabrics Warehouse multi-island event, I’m sending Ashley Jones, one of our embroidery specialists to teach embroidery techniques. Ashley has received over 300 hours of DIME training so she’s a whiz at our placement, hooping and stabilizing methods. And she has a solution for almost every problem an embroiderer will encounter.

She’ll be showing Hawaiian embroiderers how to stitch a hat on a home machine plus she’ll share her secrets for flawless continuous embroidery.

She’ll even insert a little zen into the activities with exploring color therapy designs. Best of all, she’s bringing all of DIME’s tools for everyone to play with during class. So if you’re in Hawaii and have never seen or used DIME’s magnetic hoops, aligning lasers and rulers, then you’re in for a treat. Not only will you learn everything Ashley has to offer but you’ll enjoy a “try before you buy experience.”

If you like to decorate tote bags, pillows or quilt blocks, Ashley’s secrets to speedy stitching with professional results will wow you.

Want to expand your stash of embroidery designs? She’ll show you how.

Think embroidery is too ‘dense or stiff for t-shirts? Think again. You’ll see fabric-friendly designs that are extremely comfortable to wear.

Plan on spending an afternoon with Ashley so that you can bring your embroidery skills up to a professional level. The Vintage Chic event will help you get the most of your machine. And isn’t that what we all want to do? Use our machine for all their worth and stop struggling with hooping, placement and stabilizing. Click here to see what island event fits into your schedule! https://www.inspiredbydime.com/inspiration-socials/

This week’s winner is JUDY GRACZYK! Her comment: Oh, yes, misspelling, upside down, you name it. My stitch ripper and erasers are my friends! was selected to win a copy of Hoop It Up, the Stitching Sisters’ Guide to Hooping. Enjoy Judy!

Embroidering on Onesies

December 28, 2016 by eileenroche / Alignment and Placement, Applique, Clothing, Current Posts, Eileen Roche, Embroidery for Children, Hooping, Stitching on Knits, Wearables / 51 Comments

Is there anything sweeter than welcoming a new baby into the family right at the holidays? It brings the meaning of Christmas home…time to focus on the important things in live and leave the mall hustle and bustle to others. One of our team members, Sandy Griggs, became a first-time grandma on Dec. 18^th to Bo Braun – a beautiful, healthy 8.3 pound cherub.

We couldn’t be more thrilled for her family and since Sandy is a previous collegiate softball star, I thought it was only appropriate to stitch a onesie for Bo. It’s a little cold up there right now but come spring training, he’ll be ready for batting practice!

I purchased a baseball applique design at Applique For Kids and added lettering to personalize it for Sandy.

Here are the easy steps for stitching an onesie. Fuse polymesh cut-away stabilizer to the wrong side of the onesie. Place the onesie on a work surface and position the Children’s Perfect Placement Kit Center Chest template on the shirt. Match the shirt’s vertical center with the template’s vertical line and the curved neckline at the bottom of the ribbing. Place a target sticker in the opening.

Turn the onesie INSIDE out. Slide the top magnetic frame of Snap Hoop Monster into the shirt, centering the target sticker. You’ll have to peek into the garment to see if it’s centered. Attach Hoop Guard to the frame and pull the shirt over the Hoop Guard as shown.

Carefully transport the hoop to the machine (use the magnetic shield that came with the hoop). Attach the hoop the machine. Use the machine’s editing features to center the needle over the target sticker. Rotate the design so that it will stitch in the proper orientation.

Stitch the first color, the placement guide.

Place the applique fabric over the outline and stitch color 2, the tackdown. Trim the applique close to the stitching and continue with the embroidered details.

Remove the hoop from the machine, turn the onesie inside out and trim away the excess stabilizer. Fuse a soft, tricot knit interfacing over the wrong side of the embroidery to protect the baby’s skin.

If you like this baseball applique, then there’s a good chance you could win a $20 gift certificate at Applique For Kids. Just leave us a comment and we’ll pick FIVE winners next week! Since Applique for Kids designs are just $2.00, that’s 10 designs! Pop on over to Applique for Kids and tell me what’s your favorite category of designs – they’ve got plenty!

Happy New Year!

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