Marathon Threads Canada

Toll Free 1-877-THREAD-1 (1-877-847-3231) Toll Free Fax: 1-877-THREAD-4 (1-877-847-3234)
Phone: 204-694-9116 Fax: 204-694-9118
Email: mail@marathonthreadscanada.com

TIPS
from
MARATHON THREADS CANADA

Please click here for a printable pdf version of these tips.

Basic Tips for Embroidery:

Please note that embroidery is a field with many possible variants that will affect how your project will turn out. Below are some tips and suggestions to help give you a great end result but there are also many other causes of improperly embroidered items.

- Firm, tight hooping is necessary for a pucker-free design. (Please note: do not stretch fabrics when doing this.)
- Lay out necessary Marathon thread colours for your design prior to starting the embroidery.
- If desired, stitch out design on a separate piece of fabric to test.
- Before beginning, check to see if you have enough thread left on your bobbin to complete the design. Marathon Threads Canada's pre-wound bobbins tend to last longer than a machine-wound one.
- Check your needle to see if it is dull or if you need a different size or variety.

Needles:

- Marathon Threads Canada carries Organ home embroidery needles 15x1 with a flat shank or industrial DBxK5 with round shank in a variety different sizes in both sharp and ball point. Having a sharp needle is one of the most important factors in machine embroidery. Note that the embroidery needle has a more elongated eye than a regular sewing needle.
- Ball point needles penetrate between fabric fibers making marks or damage to fabrics less of a concern. For example, a knit should have a ball point needle to prevent runs or holes in the knit.
- Sharp needles actually pierce or cut the fibers which can be useful for cleaner designs and less damage to textured or thicker fabrics. Note that sharp needles may be needed if you are using a heavier stabilizer.
- Larger sizes indicate a larger needle tip and should therefore be used on heavier fabrics. 75/11 is suitable for most lighter weight fabrics and 90/14 for heavy fabrics such as denim and canvas.
-Marathon Threads Canada is also now carrying Organ quilting needles which are an industrial grade chrome needle with a flat shank for home machines for quilting projects with multiple layers. This is the HLx5 size needle available in 2 sizes.
-We also now carry the EBBR needle which is a special needle for use in the Babylock EMP6 and Brother PR-600C. This needle is an industrial grade needle with a flat shank, reinforced blade, light ball point and an oversized eye.

Thread:

- Marathon embroidery thread comes in 4 varieties: Metallic, 100% Viscose Rayon, 100% Polyester and Variegated 100% Viscose Rayon. Marathon threads have been said to sew out for a much better coverage than other embroidery threads.
- Marathon Viscose Rayon embroidery thread has natural fiber properties which produce beautiful lustrous designs. It can be a little more sensitive to bleaching agents, but it tends to run through the embroidery machine cleaner and also sews out in a lovely sheen.
- Marathon Polyester embroidery thread is spun together from synthetic fibers which make it a little more resistant to chemical damage, for example, bleach. The quality of Marathon's manufacturing process now has produced a much higher sheen and lustre than was previously achieved in Polyester.
- Marathon Metallic embroidery threads are available in a variety of gold, silver and colours which can accent or enhance a beautiful design to give it that finishing touch. It is important to have a good quality thread, such as Marathon, and a large-eye needle since metallic threads tend to break more frequently in machine use. Marathon metallic threads feel like thread and not wire which helps to run more smoothly through the machine.
- The Marathon's 100% Rayon Variegated embroidery threads come in two varieties: Ombre and Multi. Ombre, is different shades of the same colour-varying from light to dark and Multi, is 2, 3 or 4 different colours on one thread to make a striped or multi-colored effect, depending on digitizing. Marathon Variegated threads are perfect for cresting designs, border designs as well as colourful patterns such as floral, butterfly and animal furs.
-To estimate your thread consumption: on average, approximately 6.5 yards of thread would be used per 1000 embroidery stitches. This of course varies depending on stitch length, fabric thicknesses and tensions in both the bobbin and the needle.

Bobbins:

- If you prefer to wind your own bobbins, Marathon Threads Canada carries a Polyester 10,000 metre cone, in both black and the white, and 9 colours for the cost conscious embroiderer.
- Marathon Threads Canada's pre-wound bobbins have several advantages including that they are able to be wound much more uniformly on the core allowing it to hold more thread and they can run a little more steadily in the machine. Our Pre-wound Bobbins come in a variety of types including Polyester with plastic or cardboard sides or with a simple plastic core in black or white or a Nylon pre-wound bobbin which is carried in a sideless, coreless variety.

Stabilizers:

- The basic rule of thumb on non woven stabilizers has been the lighter the fabric, the heavier the stabilizer but this can cause puckering in the design so a better rule is to match the weight of the backing to the fabric depending on the stretch.
- Usually backing is applied underneath the fabric you are embroidering on. It's goal is to prevent distortion or stretching of the fabric during embroidery.
- TEARAWAY stabilizers are used on fabrics that require support during the embroidery stitching but don't need support after the design has been stitched. It is used for woven or non stretchy fabrics and is removed by tearing away after the design is completed. All of the tearaway stabilizers stocked by Marathon Threads Canada tear away easily in all directions. Marathon Threads Canada carries four weights of regular tearaways: EM-40 lightweight, HX35 light weight, EM-80 heavyweight (which is twice the thickness of EM-40) and HX90 our heaviest weight and 2 specialized tearaways: Rinsaway and Press N Tear/Peel & Stick. Since these tear away after use, they also cut down on production time. Our RinsAway Tearaway washes away after several launderings. See below for more information on Press N Tear/Peel & Stick stabilizer.
- CUTAWAY backing is used for fabrics that stretch such as knits and the excess is meant to be cut away after the embroidery is finished. Cutaways give permanent support to the fabric and embroidery. Many prefer the softness of cutaways on wearable items and they also help maintain a design even after many washes. Marathon Threads Canada carries several cutaways including the NoShow Nylon Meshes which do not show through the fabric on a left chest logo and they are available in fusible or non-fusible in several colours. Marathon Threads Canada also carries C-62, a light weight cutaway, HXT70, a medium cutaway and C-71A, a medium heavy cutaway. These all have a great soft feel. Our SF-1 is a light weight fusible cutaway (see FUSIBLE below for more information).
- FUSIBLE: Marathon Threads Canada's #SF-1 Fusible non woven backing can be easily ironed on to the fabric before embroidering for a nice stabilization to a fabric that has a lower frame tension. Marathon Threads Canada's NoShow Nylon Mesh also is available in fusible in several shades. This can be fused in several layers crosswise for added stability. Our fusibles also release if you wish when heat is reapplied so you can cut away remaining stabilizer.
- TOPPING FILM is used on the top of a fabric to prevent fabrics with nap such as toweling, fleece, or velvet from being crushed while embroidering. It allows the fibers embroidered on, to be pressed flat for a nice clean design. Marathon Threads Canada's cold water embossed water-soluble topping film is water soluble and washes out after washing with a damp sponge. Also works well to make lace embroidering on several layers together.
- Hot Melt Film and Trick Film stabilizers are great for lacemaking, patches, applique, sweatshirts, toweling and t-shirts as well as many other items. You can embroider directly onto these films. The film can be removed with an ordinary non-teflon household iron - 120^o C/230^o F. After embroidering, tear away excess film and touch iron quickly to remaining pieces. They will disappear immediately! For embroidered items with dense stitching, use a piece of terry underneath for a "bed" to iron on. It's easy to use, it doesn't pucker, doesn't shrink and won't change the colour of your fabrics.
- WET & STICK: Marathon Threads Canada carries a product called WetNSet in tearaway or cutaway which is the answer to hoopless backing on fabrics that are difficult to embroider such as smaller items or items too hard to fit in a standard hoop. This is the perfect solution instead of using messy spray adhesives which will gum up your needle, hoop and projects. Simply hoop the stabilizer shiny/adhesive side up, brush a moist (not wet) sponge across the surface, and stick your item down to it. Dries right away and avoids any gummy adhesives. Make an oops in positioning? Run your sponge along the glue line as you peel back the fabric and reposition if needed.
- PRESS N TEAR / PEEL & STICK - Marathon Threads Canada offers Press N Tear which has a paper release backing and pressure sensitive adhesive. It is used for items that are difficult to hoop that are too small, delicate or bulky for your hoop. Just hoop your stabilizer, peel back the paper and stick your item down to it. Eliminates the use of spray adhesives.
- WATER SOLUBLE Our non woven Water Soluble 70^o C can be dissolved in 70^o C degree hot water (almost boiling). For a cooler washing temperature variation, try H20Gone which can be dissolved under tap water or in your laundry. These stabilizers can be useful in giving firm backing to lacework or freestanding embroidery and then dissolved without harming your delicate work.

Here are some fabric/stabilizer suggestions:
Tearaways - nylon jackets, satin jackets, canvas, corduroy, cotton sheeting, denim, shirting, terry
Cutaway or Nylon Mesh - Lycra, Spandex, golf shirts, sweaters, sweatshirts, t-shirts.

Other possible Embroidery Problems you may encounter:
Thread Breaks - Causes: incorrect needle, burrs in needle eye, hook or throat plate, machine threaded incorrectly, incorrect needle bar height, tension adjustment needed, bent needle, machine needs lubrication, lint buildup, incorrect digitizing causing design to be too dense in an area, need for a silicon spray due to friction caused by thick fabrics or fabrics with treatments, pooling of thread which causes portions of the spool to wind off improperly - use Incredible Tape to prevent this
Needle Breakage - Causes: timing needs adjusting for needle & hook point, needle in machine incorrectly, bent/dull needle,
Thread Pileups on back of fabric - Causes: tension adjustment needed, machine incorrectly threaded
Stitching not following pattern outline - Causes: bent needles, loose hoop in frame
Flat stitching - Causes: tension tightness, topping film necessary on fabrics with a pile
Looping - Causes: tension adjustment needed for tight fabric weaves, digitized with too many stitches
Pigtailing - Cause: Top tension too tight
Skipped stitches - Causes: wrong bobbin timing, incorrect needle size
Puckering - Causes: tension too tight, backing not hooped the same tension as fabric, fabric hooped too tightly, needles not sharp enough, density of design too thick and needs to be increased in size slightly.

If you have a tip we've not included here or you have a question we can answer, please contact us below and we will do our best to answer the question. We hope these suggestions gave you some good pointers on how to produce a great design.

Subscribe to Receive future Newsletters for New Product information and Specials

24 HOUR RESPONSE:
We offer expert assistance by email within one business day and usually within several hours.

Unauthorized use of web content including pictures prohibited