Having a problem with towels. They are dense & causing a problem, dragging under the foot. I am using stick stabilizer in the hoop and wss on top. May be i just need thinner towels? Any ideas

I know you've had several answers already and mine is no different. I've tried several different methods and still prefer tear-away on the bottom and wss on top. Works every time no matter the towel thickness. Embroidery Library is a wealth of info. Good luck.
Mickey

I always use iron on tear-away on the back of the towel. I hoop the sticky tear-away and then place the towel (with the iron-on stabilizer on it) then I pin the heat-n gone to the top. Works perfect every time and it tears away quite nicely on the back. I wouldn't do towels any other way. I also use this technique for fleece or anythng where the stitches could get buried.

I have embroidered many towels. I hoop my wet and gone stabilizer, wet it slightly and lay my towel on top. I wait for a few minutes for the glue to set and then I lay my water soluble topper on the towel and put a pin in each corner on my hoop. If the towel is thick I adjust my presser foot tension up from 3.5 to either 4.0 or 4.5. This works for me like a charm. I remove as much of the stabilizer as I can and the rest will wash out when it is laundered. I've done some very heavy character designs and worried that they would not be soft but they weren't scratchy at all. I hope this helps.

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by brendaripley 03 Jan 2008

One more thing. I slightly wet the stabilizer when I get done and it comes away from the towel very nicely. You don't want to pull the loops out the towel so wetting it is a necessity.

When you hoop the towel, do not hoop your stabilizer, just place it below the hoop and it will work better because you do not have so much in the hoop. Do not use the stickey stabliizer it is to hard on the needle with a towel. Also, so one asked what WSS is it is a Water Soluble Stabilizer, works great when you place in on top of the towel, it is like saran wrap, but it will disolve when wet.

Lonniejean50@yahoo.com

Embroidery Library does a wonderful tutorial on the use of different stabilizers for towels. they show what happens after seven washings. an eye opener. I personally would never use the sticky back stabilizer as it would pull loops.

I have been experimenting with the towels as I completed 14 sets for Christmas gifts. Light tear away top and bottom, towel ironed first before inserting into frame. No adjustment to machine tension at all. Washed a high density embroidered rose on one set, after embroidered, and I didn't have any stiffness. Haven't tried the wss as yet as above has been so successful.

I USE 2 LAYERS OF WASH AWAY STABILIZER ON BOTTOM OF TOWEL AND 1 LAYER ON TOP..WORKS WONDERFUL.GOOD LUCK

I have embroidered a logo on well over 350 guest towels to be sold in the national prison museum (I am a board member). I always use tear away at the back, wss on top. It works just fine, but I have to adjust the tension, which is quite easy both on my Husqvarna Designer I and Brother D190. Wish you success, one of the tips you got so far must surely do the trick.

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by freida 30 Dec 2007

Thank you, the sticky may be causing part of the problem, sometimes I see little bits of it on the needle. I have had so many good tips. I think I had multiple problems going on. Happy New Year!FreidaA

Freida, I've never embroidered onto towels, so can't help with that problem, but there is an option to embroidering directly onto the towel. Do the embroidery onto some other material, satin looks good, and then cut it into an oval, or whatever shape you like, and stitch onto the towel. You can even put a piece of wadding between the towel and satin to give it a slightly padded look. It gives the towel quite a classy look. It may not be the look you want, but it's an alternative if the towels really are too thick. All the best with your problem.

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by freida 06 Jan 2008

the wadding you are talking is called trapunto. It is a wonderful applique and quilting technique. I usually reserve applique for quilt projects. I just did a crib quilt for a new nephew. It had all kinds of toys, rocking horses, cars, trains, etc appliqued to it. I stitched around the applique giving it a faux trapunto look. Thanks ruthie

I put the tear away stablizer in the hoop then lay the towel on top of that center where I want it, I use melt away stablizer on top tear away was to thick, then program what I want on it and hit fix you have to help the stablizer to stay in place,and it sews around where the printing will be, holding the towel in place. I have a husqvarna Viking.

you always use water soluable oon the top of towels and light tear away stabelizer on the bottom. should the towel be thick you can use several layers of tear away on the bottom. never sticky. iron on is ok, i prefer the wash away, i itear away as much as i can and keep a small spray bottle handy to get the rest. have never had any problem or hardness on my towels. the secret to it is hooping it tight so it won't move. roberta

I wouldn't use sticky on the bottom as it has a tendency to pull the loops of the towels when you try to get it off. I use wss top and bottom and have never had a problem with my towels and I use the nice, big fluffy ones. I do try to have lots of underlay as helps to hold down the loopies too. Do you countersink your bottom hoop a little after hooping? I always countersink mine and helps with drag. Roxanne

Good answer from india....I have also had some luck by ironing where I am going to stitch, it seems to flatten the towel out some, or you can hoop the wss (as opposed to just laying on top) also flattening out the toweling.

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by freida 20 Dec 2007

I'll try ironing it too. That should reduce the density problem. You guys are just great. Merry Christmas

Hi Freida, I use lightweight iron on interfacing on both bottom and top of towel and then gently pull off. However, the medium tear away, top and bottom, is the best. Towelling has been quite thick and both are working beautifully.
Shirley

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by freida 20 Dec 2007

Thanks! Looks like a great way to go. I'll try it. I really appreciate the help. I am greatful for your experience. It will save me from a lot of the frustration I was having. It was no fun picking red thread out of the green loops on the towel I was doing. Thanks again