Hooping Heavy Jackets

I got an order to embroider multiple logos on thick, heavy jackets. They are canvas, with a quilted lining. Each jacket weighs between 3 and 4 pounds, depending on the size. The first one I stitched fell out of the hoop near the end of the stitching.  I was able to fix it, but it took a lot of time.  To prevent this:

1. Don't use the smallest hoop possible, use a larger hoop than you need. You will have more gripping area. My logos would fit into a 12 cm hoop. I'm using a 15 cm hoop.

2. Don't try for a nice, snug hooping. Really. Don't.  Heavy, thick items are not going to scrunch up while being stitched.

3. I've been told that a wooden hoop has a better grip than a plastic one, but I own no wooden hoops for machine embroidery. YMMV.

4. In the past, I have added a layer of shelf liner in the hoop, to increase my grip. Other people will wrap the inner ring with tape. I'm too lazy/cheap, and I had shelf liner that I wasn't using. I cut a hole in the middle of the shelf liner that also helps line up the center marks that I make. The jackets were too thick for the extra layer, so that trick didn't help.

5. I tried working with the table in place, as you do for flats, but the shape and the stiff seams of the jacket hampered the movement of the hoop. The shoulder of the jacket would get caught on the corner of the table, and when I tried to get the jacket more on to the table, the bunched up fabric wouldn't let the hoop move freely.

6. What worked for me was to add a large binder clip (1" capacity) on the outer edge of the hoop to help the item stay hooped. When adding a clip, I carefully checked by using the contour function multiple times to make sure that the clip is not hampering the movement of the hoop and the garment. Once I knew the clip placement won't be a problem, I stuck with it and didn't try other placements. Bad clip placements would cause the garment to shift inside the hoop, interfere with the needle, or push the hoop out of the mounting brackets.

7. I also stitched the jacket hooped sideways. After multiple attempts, I discovered that the jackets stitched better like that. There is less weight pulling on the jacket and the heavy, stiff shoulder seam doesn't hamper movement of the hoop.

8. I supported as much of the jacket as possible by letting it rest on the bar stool that sits in front of my machine. There is no way that the hoop could hold up the weight of the entire jacket.

In short, whatever you do should not interfere with the movement of the hoop or the needle and should not add a lot of time to your hooping process. It should be cheap and repeatable. When possible, it should be re-usable as well.

Craft Show Report

I went to a variety of craft shows this fall. Some were local, some were professionally organized.  Some were a hit, others, not so much. There is a local organizer that I will never work with again. I lost money on her show. All of the other shows were run by groups and those were better. I made a profit on every other show.

What have I learned?

• Elegant, tasteful, classy stuff doesn't sell very well.
• Humor sells.
• Pet themed things will sell. Like for dog or cat owners.
• A full display sells better than an artfully scattered layout.
• Eye level. Adult eye level. 
• Everyone assumes that you take credit cards, but a sign doesn't hurt.
• Free stuff for the vendors, like coffee during set up time, does NOT ensure a good show. 
• Do not plan on having assistance to set up. 
• Take snacks and beverages, but don't make a big deal out of it. 
• Start with a larger amount of change. Including coins. 
• Breath mints or coffee breath? Not a difficult choice.

Are craft shows worth it? Sometimes. The shows that cost more to buy a booth space can be worth the fee. 

In the end, I made a reasonable profit. I was able to pay some bills and purchase hardware on my wish list for the business. I'll call it a win. 

Calculating and Controlling Costs

My accountant tells me that calculating my costs is critical. I keep telling her that it's a pain and annoying.

However, some simple math for keeping track of costs has made a significant difference in my bottom line.

Here's an example. I get my water soluble stabilizer from a retailer. It costs me $2.15 per yard. From one yard of stabilizer, I can get 8 pieces. I'm paying 26 cents per piece. I pay no shipping, but I've got to drive out the the store and catch a sale. It's an hour out of my working day and I get no embroidery done during that time.

I get my wash/tear away (paper) stabilizer from a commercial source and I pay 58 cents per yard. I get 8 pieces per yard for an end cost of 7.25 cents per piece. I pay shipping, but I shop from home while the machine is running, completing paying work at the same time.

By using the tear/wash away instead of water soluble, I'm saving about 19 cents per item. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to determine that the better thing to do is to use the cheaper stabilizer. For each 5 items, I've got a dollar extra in my pocket.

To further press this point, I live in Florida. Items created with water soluble stabilizer are affected by humidity. The stabilizer shrinks up and causes the items to become wrinkled. They look awful. The only thing that will fix that is to wash the items and iron them after I've embroidered them. Ain't nobody got time for that!

If my goal is to keep my machine running to create items that have high resale value and decreased cost, I'm not going to buy any more water soluble stabilizer. I have a stash that I've got stored in plastic in case I need it for a special job. When I need to use it, I'll charge the customer extra.

Freebies!

Since starting my business, I've received two pre-printed custom pens, as a teaser that I should order more of them and then give them away to my customers. Ummm.... Nope! I give out business cards. But these free pens are really nice! I keep them for myself. The first one simply had a nice feel to it and the second has a special point that can be used on a touch screen as well as a nice pen built in. I like them both, but I have no intention of ordering any more. I'm still on the side of 'not making a profit' with my business. I can't afford to give out expensive pens as gifts to my customers.

Someday will I order these pens and give them out? Probably not. But I do enjoy getting them for free!

Removing Machine Embroidery

I had a thread tension issue while putting the Moonlit Mansion from Urban Threads onto a flour sack towel. Knowing the towel was a loss, I decided to test removal methods.

I don't have a "Stitch Eraser" so I first tried a seam ripper and scissors. Annoying and very slow.

I tried a 'Body grooming' electric razor. Pretty good results, but still slow.

I tried my Wahl hair clippers. Fail on removing any actual stitching, but it did trim off any thread tails I had left.

I tried a Bic disposable double bladed razor. Wow! It took all sorts of thread off, but it also  put holes into the fabric because I tried it on the front. On the back, It was the best and most effective tool.

Final decisions. Work from the back. Leave the item hooped as long as possible, Don't remove stabilizer until the very last. Keep a lint brush, not a sticky roller, handy and use it frequently.