MaysonD

Hi!

I'm new to QB, and I'm hoping to get some advice and information on embroidering. I am an avid seamstress and crafter and I have a computerized sewing machine and a serger, but I just ordered my first embroidery machine this morning and I don't know even the basics of where to begin! I ordered the Brother PE 770. I'm expecting a little girl in March and also have a 2 year old son and 1 year old son, and I'm hoping to be able to do some embroidery and monogramming for them. My questions are about what I need to get started. Do I need a particular thread for this machine? I read somewhere about Brother specific colors? Will I need these? I also know nothing about stabilizers. Do I need a new piece for each project? I've seen that it comes in sheets and rolls. Is there a difference? As you can see, I'm pretty clueless. I'm planning a trip to the craft store today to get what I need so I can start "playing" when my machine gets here, but I thought I'd get better help here than at the store.

Thanks!

PaperPrincess

Welcome!
We have a great thread on this board dedicated to embroidery machines:
http://www.quiltingboard.com/main-f1...un-t32969.html

Also, if you use the search feature in the upper right area of this page, and put in "Brother PE 770" you will find several posts from people with the same machine.

Dolphyngyrl

Embroidery is fun, brothers are very user friendly
best advice I can give is read the manual
www.emblibrary.com has some neat articles on embroidery and very nice designs
http://www.kenssewingcenter.com/ has stabilizers at good price shipping is always free
www.sewforum.com is another good forum very dedicated to embroidery, there are quite a few from here on that board
There are many free trials for different software, use those until you decide what you want because I got mine and now I wish I would have done research first

linda8450

Congratulations! You will have your hands full with babies, so I hope you can sneak in some time to play with your new "baby" embroidery machine.

You CAN use any thread,it makes nice candlewicking results, but you will be much happier with the results of regular embroidery designs if you use embroidery thread. It comes in rayon or polyester, has a nice sheen, and is thinner than sewing or serger thread. if you want a dull finish, you can use serger thread. You will need bobbin thread (black and white) which is even thinner. I use pre-wound bobbins but you can buy a spool and wind your own. If you do fsl-free standing lace (items are made on a wash away stabilizer and only the thread is left, lots of fun projects) then you would use a matching bobbin of the embroidery thread color on top.

Stabilizer does just that, stabilizes your project. You almost can't over stabilize, but you can under stabilize. If you do not use it, or enough of it, you will get puckers and other issues. Tear away works for lots of projects, cut away is better for t-shirts and knits, as it needs to stay in there when you are finished to "stabilize" the knit. Looks wonky when it's washed without proper backing. I would certainly have some thin, wash away "topper" (looks like saran wrap) for topping towels and t-shirts (keeps the stitches from sinking down and getting lost in the nap), some "vilene" cloth-looking wash away for fsl. There are heat away and sticky-backed, and lots of others than you can add at a later date.

Have plenty of needles available, you will change them more often than when sewing. Needles can be the one thing that is making the machine act funny, and when you put in a new one, all is well.

There are methods of embroidery where you don't actually hoop your item (like a small onsey) and you stick it down to stick stabilizer, or spray with a temporary adhesive (make sure it is for sewing, gums up the needle if it isn't) or pin it down to your stabilizer, so lots of tricks to learn.

I personally would not purchase my supplies at a craft store. Jo-anns, Hancocks or your local machine dealer is a better bet, best prices are on-line. So very many, can't begin to list suppliers.

This is not an inexpensive hobby, and it is addictive! One spool of blue isn't enough, you will want 16 shades of blue, and green and yellow, lol. Hope this helps.

peacebypiece

As Linda said, there are better places than the craft store to buy your supplies. When starting out as a newbie to machine embroidery, it's a good idea to chat with the dealer. This time of year all the top digitizers (the guys who write the designs in a language the machine understands) are "on the road" giving seminars at local dealers. For
$35-$50 for a full day you get 5-7 hours of lecture, examples, and often other goodies. They of course want to sell their stuff, so there will be very good deals on stabilizers, thread, and design packs. At one of the Anita Goodesign seminars you will learn more than you can pack into your brain. My dealer here in Michigan usually hosts at least three of the major digitizers each year. Well worth the $ to attend.

rjwilder

I suggest you go to JoAnn's and use coupons. They have Sulky stabilizers in small rolls, also Pellon makes stabilizers that you can purchase by the yard. It's a great way to try out different weights and types before spending tons of money on a huge roll. As far as software, I suggest you try Embird, they have a free trial period. If you like it you can buy just the basic software but I suggest buying Iconizer so you can see little icons of the designs. There are a few Yahoo Groups for Embird that will be helpful to you. I like polyester embroidery thread, it doesn't bleed and I've even bleached the garment and the thread didn't fade. I also use prewound bobbins, just make sure you get the correct size for your machine. I have a Brother PR620, it has 6 needles so I buy them in bulk, having plenty of them is a great idea. My best tip is to not over tighten your hoop and the garment does not have to be drum tight, you don't want to stretch the garment. Doing that will result in puckers and the embroidery design might curl up around the edges. Good luck and have fun.

Mamatron

Just learning so I will follow this thread too.

romanojg

Congratulations on your new purchase. You'll find it addicting and it can be costly but the results can be worth it once you figure it all out. I agree about not going to a craft store; you can use coupons at Hancock's and JoAnns. Some stabilizers you can buy by on the bolt from these stores and it is larger. I don't know about your machine but mine has some really large hoops to this is a must. So read the thread for chatting with others about embroidery. There is so much there and even though not all things work for all you'll find some great things. Normally I use Anthon-Robinson embroidery thread, its cheapest on line from Sears but I'd try different ones. I try to get at least two in different shades because most embroidery that I've done has had shading in it. So like two different shades of green to accent each other. I don't know where you live but if there are quilt shows in your area that is the best place to see different products and also buy them at great prices. I have a couple that I go to each yr. I'll include a link to a great source for stabilizer; you can download the book to keep at hand. I check out all the tutorials and projects on all of the sites I go to to see what and how they are doing things. You should also have places in your area that have classes even if they don't sell your machine. The LQS that I take classes at charge 40 a yr if you didn't buy your machine there, they don't care what machine you have and then the cost of the kit each month. Plus they offer special classes for things that take longer but lots want to learn. My favorite thing is the cutwork needles; makes life so much easier.
Emblibrary.com has projects and then under Kenny's archives you can find lots of infor on needles, stabilizers, different embroidery surfaces, including basa wood, etc. Its worth checking out.
Also for stabilizers its http://www.rnkdistributing.com/cid-3...-Products.html
If you let others know where your are located we could probably give you places to find classes that would help you. I've figured out alot on my own but having the LQS there when I needed plus the classes are invaluable to me.
You can go to oregonpatch.com they represent several design companies and I get an email each day with the sales. I love Hatchedinafrica.com for designs and they all stitch out so they are soft to even a baby. Annabove.com has good designs and some good specials on thread at different times. Do a google search for free embroidery designs for a certain topic like for children and you'll get lots of hits. Just check each site to see how they do different kinds of designs and projects. I'm sure there are even some good infor on Brother's website. I visit Viking's site alot and get a free design and project each month. Good luck and enjoy the process