The MUST HAVE accessories to set up your embroidery business

Hello embroiderers!

I know there are many of you who are interested on starting an embroidery business. If you’re trying to build, little by little, your workshop or work area, this post is for you!

I’ve decided that is a great idea to share with you some of my must have items to make embroidery easy and, of course, to get better results. So I’ve made a list of products to help you decide what do you exactly need according to your line of work. In this post I’ll be giving a little explanation of each item and also I’ll add a link where you’ll be able to find it and buy it with just a click.

Magnet Bobbins

These are a real treasure, a time saving item. I have a box of these and it’s ever lasting. To use the bobbin, you need to remove the anti-back slash spring from the bobbin case and insert magnet tip inside of it. They can only go in one way, the magnet goes to the metal inside the bobbin case, so you don’t have to figure out which way goes where. The magnet helps the machine to pull the thread at a consistent rate. You’ll barely get thread breaks. However, you’ll have to find wich type works best with your machine and make sure you order the exact size for your machine, as they come in different sizes. Also, these will save you from wonky thread. You can get them on Amazon.

Needle threader

Most machines already come with it, but sometimes they get easily lost! If you have a multi needle machine, threading the needles manually can be very hard. The needle threader will help you a lot, with just some pushes, it will make the hard work  for you. Buy them here!

Madeira thread

I love using Madeira big cones for my multi needle machine, and you can also get small ones for single needle machines. This brand has many options, shiny, matte, metallic, glow in the dark, holographic, even a flame resistant set of threads. Of course these are top quality threads, with amazing colors and perfect looking results.

Thread multipack

Many brands offer a basic multipack of many colors. You’ll need to have variety of colors to make beautiful, different themed embroidery works. Maybe this should be your first acquisition and from there you can upgrade some colors, step by step, as you need more shades and quality.

Robinson Anton metallic thread

This is one of my favorite brands of great quality thread. Good quality minimizes the breakage and is better for your machine health. As I said before, as your business progresses you’ll want to upgrade your threads. That will make your job much easier. I particularly recommend this brand’s metallic thread line, that will give a nice, smooth look to your embroidery works.

Good quality blanks, 100% cotton

Rest assured that working on good quality fabric makes a difference. So if in your business  you want to create t-shirts, it is essential  that you use excellent quality products. First, for the final result. Secondly, because working on a good fabric is simple, it won’t rip easily, you won’t have trouble with thread puckering. If you can find blanks that are especially made for embroidery, you’ll be able to tell the difference.

Glitter Heat Transfer Vinyl

If you like to decorate your embroidery works with a sparkly shiny result, try using glitter HTV on your designs. It’s a particularly girly look that I totally love! You can find it here.

Mighty magnet hoops

Really important and useful, because the hoops that comes with the machines sometimes won’t fit into some t-shirts or other garments. With these, you can avoid hoop burn most of the time. To me, they are better and easier to use than regular hoops that you need to close manually, and the placement is firmer. Be careful and always keep the magnetic hoops away from computers and electronics. Neither are they allowed to people with pacemakers. This magnets are very strong, so always watch out for your fingers, do not get caught between them!

Disappearing purple marker

These are great for making marks on fabric when measuring, calculating sizes and fabric placement. It’s a water soluble pen, very easy to erase. Lifesaver when marking out where the center of the fabric is.

Frames and clips

If you have a multi needle machine, frames are a must have. Instead of hooping the garment, you put sticky stabilizer on, and then you clip it to the frame nice and tight. These will allow you to work freely.

Fiskar curved tip scissors

The curve tip and tiny size of this scissors will help you a lot when cutting out fabric scraps from appliques. You’ll never get holes in your fabric as it may happen when using traditional straight scissors. When making appliques we have to manage through many tiny cuts and pieces, so these scissors come really handy.

Duckbill scissors

Absolutely needed for appliques, with these scissors you’re less likely to puncture or cut through your shirt and just cut the fabric instead. You get an nice and clean looking for the applique, and the difference with the Fiskar scissors is that duckbill scissors are able to cut through thicker fabrics. 

Embroidery Stabilizers

We have many types of stabilizers. Some people are happy using one or two of these options because they have become used to doing it that way. But I would like to tell you about the advantages that each of these stabilizers present according to the kind of work that we want to create. No particular order intended!

Tear away stabilizer

There’s a rule on the embroidery world: if you wear it, don’t tear it! But even though it’s not a bad advice, I would say that it depends on the quality of the blank you’re working with. To me, I find this stabilizer quick and easy to use. Some people use it in conjunction with the sticky stabilizer on products where you don’t want the stabilizer showing. You can also use it as a secondary stabilizer for appliques. But you have to be careful when removing it if you’re using fragile fabric. Be real careful not to break the stitches, and I would not recommend it when using vintage stitches.

Sticky stabilizer

Useful when using frames in a multi needle machine or when you need to float something on your hoops, whereas it is a hat, bookbag, ribbons or any other hard to hoop object. It adheres to the fabric you’re working on so you can move it without risk of accidentally ruining its placement. I also like using sticky stabilizer on appliques.

Cut away stabilizer

This is the thickest kind. Some people use it for monograms and appliques. To me, this is the best option when using vintage stitches, because you need something more rigid whereas its an applique or a patch. This will protect the stitches from breaking. As you can imagine, this is the one that gives the more stability and holds stitches the best. It comes in different weights, I advise you to try them all and decide which one you feel more comfortable with. Check this out!

No show fusible poly-mesh stabilizer

You can get it in bulks or pre-cut sheets, but to me, it’s easier to handle the pre cuts than cutting it myself. These are great for monograms, and can replace a cut away stabilizer as they are quite stiff and flexible. It’s advantage is that you don’t get the white frame on the back of the embroidery. I advise to use this stabilizer when you want to use more stabilizer than a tear away but you don’t want the bulk of a cut away. Moreover, it comes in white, black and nude color so it will fit most of your works.

Water Soluble stabilizer

This is a must have if you are working with fleece blankets, stockings, anything with a fuzz or a pile, because it creates a barrier within the fabric and the embroidery, and protects it from the needles. It prevents the piles of the fabric from getting caught and it creates a nice clean stitch, hard to achieve without the water soluble stabilizer.

HeatNBond Lite

This is an Iron-on adhesive used for prepping your fabrics before putting them on a shirt as an aplique. You have to adhere the HeatNbond lite to the back of it and it creates a plastic film that makes it stiffer. Also it will give you a real smooth cut so you don’t get a lot of frame in it. Then you iron it down before the satin stitch, which prevents the fabric to rip, fray and wrinkle. Absolutely needed for appliques.

Tender touch stabilizer

You can use the tender touch as an overlay for monogram or applique, to prevent the thread from scratching skin, specially good to use in baby products and children products. It creates a smooth effect. I recommend to use Sulky’s, which I found to be the one that lasts the longest.

So, to me, these are the basic items. There are many other things I would like to talk about on another post 😉 . What else would you add to the must have list? Let me know on the comments below!

I really hope you’ve found what you needed to start improving your embroidery works!

Take care and sew you soon!

Mary