I want to give all my kids monogramed towels for Christmas! I have a wonderful machine that will whip them out. PROBLEM is - I don't have a clue where to start. What kind of stabalizer do I need for botton. Do I need stabalizer for the top? What to use? Color? Color of thread for bobbin? Should it match the color of the towel? Any tips would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

I don't embroider, but I saw a demonstration, and they used a wash away stabilizer on top of the towels to keep the stitches from disappearing into the nap of the towels. This was in addition to a tear away on the back.

I would use a mid weight cutaway for the bottom and a water soluable over the top, bobbin thread is usually white or black 70wt, it blends in with almost anything and isn't really noticed.
what machine do you have? I have a Singer Futura

You need a wash away on the top and bottom to keep the thread from being lost in the knap.

I was told to use tear away on the bottom and wash away on the top at the Janome Dealer. I haven't done it yet, but I want to try. Actually, I havent even tried to do any embroidery yet, I think I am too scared too.LOL It looks so easy when you see it done, but the placement of things worries me. If you figure it out, let me know!

thats about it for towels, just don't get a super heavy velour or nap

Tear away stabilizer has a tendency to wrinkle when it gets wet. Obviously, a towel will get wet at sometime.

Regardless of what a Janome dealer tells you, and before you get upset, I sold and held classes on Janome embroidery machines and love them, use wash away on both sides, you'll be happier with the results.

Gosh,I would never get upset when someone makes a suggestion to do things that are new to me. !! Ill take all the help I can get!! Years ago I used the tear away for something I was stitching, and I hated it because it was so stiff when finished, so wash away sounds good to me. And now I know who to ask when I need help.LOL Thanks!!

It would be my suggestion to use two sheets of water Soluable on the bottom for a bit more stability. Then one on top to keep stitches from going down into towell.

I was told to use the wash away on top and a cut away on bottom. The embroidery was stiff that's for sure. I don't know what it's like after many washings, they weren't mine. My question is if you use wash away on the bottom, when it washes away what holds the stitches after heavy use. Does the stablizer that is "caught" bewteen the stitches not washed away, therefore keeping the stitches in place. I've done very little embroidery. I thought I would really like doing it but so far I haven't caught the bug. I love to piece so haven't taken the time to get to know all the ends and outs of machine embroidery work.

I did a set with Mickey Mouse a couple years ago. I did wash away on both sides, double thickness. Yes, it is a little costly, but my embroidery still looks good. I do not embroider a lot, to me it is boring and most times I just use what I have and have even been know to use sewing stabilizer....

I will try and post a pic in a minute. My computer is not being very friendly to me at the moment....

Go to embroidery library and view the tutorial on embroidering towels.

http://www.emblibrary.com/EL/ELProje...oductid=PR1256

Here are my towels. I would reduce the size next time I do them. These are about 2 1/2 years old with at least 100 washes.

I have done towels, with no stabilizer! After repeated washing, they still look fine. However, like the others have mentioned, a wash-away on top will help to keep your thread from getting lost in the nap.

I use a wash away stabilizer when I embroidery on towels. I put it in the hoop on the underneath side and also on top to help control the loops in the terry cloth. This is my "experience" tip for you...use TWO threads of the same color thru one needle on top and stitch thru all the layers of the stabilizer front and back and the towel. The 2 threads has much better coverage than one and will stitch as one thread because you are running them thru the same needle. It really makes a big difference in the way the thread covers the terry cloth. I did monagramed towels last year for my kids and they turned out really well.

I just did towels for my GKs. I experimented a bit... The wash away on top is the way to go. It is doable without it, but is smoother and looks nicer with it. I have seen mention of using " glad" press and seal, instead of the wash away... I believe I would try this. It will pull away once stitched.
I used tear away on some and cut away on others on the back... I couldn't tell much difference. I studied a number of tutorials before starting this project. All tutorials recommended tear away. They discouraged wash away on the back. stating the emb would not hold up well. (Thanks to CQ for showing us towels after many washings-- they look like they held up to me) I used white bobbin as recoommended....my towels were colored and it definately shows on the back side.. Next time I think I would try to use the same color as the towel. Would certainly make it look much nicer. The best thing I learned from my research was to use "sticky" stabilizer.. instead of trying to hoop the towel. I did hoop one practice towel, with difficulty( it was a lighter wt towel , than my project towels.) I loved the " Sticky" I will definately use it on otehr projects...

This was a great post! I used wash away on top and tear away on bottom. Going to try wash away on top and bottom next time. My sisters loved their monogramed towels last year.

I agree great subject. I have a mega hoop so hooping towels and other items are a lot easier. Hooping was the one thing that really turned me off of embroidery but with the mega hoop it a doable project. I going to use the wash away on top and bottom next time. As for the bobbin I used white on bottom and blue on top and you couldn't even see the white on bottom, it blended in with the blue and it looked like I used the same color. Again thanks for the information and the pictures. See something done and reading about it makes all the difference in the world.

I have a 2009 Phaff Creative Visions. It is a great machine with lots of GOODIES! Maybe, just MAYBE, I'll learn how to use them all in MY lifetime....

Thanks to all who have given me numerous TIPS on monagramming towels. Lots of good information. You all have given me COURAGE.. Hope this has also helped others too!...

I've been told to use wash away on top and on bottom for towels.

Here is some towels I embroidered for my grandson for a wedding gift. I used H2Gone on bottom and light weight water soluble on top.

Great job Dorothy!

I forgot to add that when I used wash away on the bottom I hooped 2 layers, sprayed with Taylors quilt basting spray and 'hooped' the towels this way. There is almost no way to hoop terry cloth in the hoop. I didn't use any spray on the top to hold the wash away.

Also thanks Maryb for the double thread idea. I shall try it next time!

I agree about not trying to hoop the terry, especially on some of the heavier towels. For the top, I like to use a layer of tulle (fine nylon net) along with the washaway; it is easy to clip or tear away, and really keeps the design from sinking into the loops after rinsing away the washaway, and offers support thru many washes. I pin the tulle & washaway on top, away from the design area being embroidered.

Anne

I agree; wash away on both sides is by far the best way to go. I'm right now in the process of doing a set of tea towels for a friend for Christmas. I use wash away on both sides. I've also done many many monogrammed bath towel sets. I use wash away for that as well.

I used to use tear away but then I discovered the great new products on the market - I go to JoAnns every so often to check out what's new - this is how I discovered the wash away that I use. It's worth your time to spend an hour or two perusing the products that are now being sold.

nice work, haven't tried towels yet & good to know that they will last that long & still look so good

I use tearaway on the bottom and washaway on the top. This is how mine look.

Don't hoop your towel, spray the back of the towel with basting spray and lay on top of your hooped stabilier. Then lay a piece of wash away on top and run a baste stitch and then stitch the design.

Placement shouldn't be a problem if you do a practice stitch out first. If you are using something too small to hoop, use a stabilizer that has a sticky surface to hold your garment. You are right about the stabilizer - use a cut away or a tear away on the bottom and a water soluble on top. If you are like me, you will sit next to your machine and watch every stitch!

You need to put a tear away stabilizer in your embroidery hoop.
Then keeping the 505 spray or temporary spray of your choice away from your machine spray the stabilizer. Mark your towel as to where you want your embroidery, your book should help you with placement, then stick your towel on the stabilizer with the hoop on your machine. Then spray a piece of plastic looking stabilizer on top of the towel to keep the stitches from sinking into the towel. Be sure the plastic type stabilizer is wash away.
After embroidering the tear away will come off the back and the plastic will tear away or wash away. Hope this helps.

Cannot thank you enough for this. I just did towels w/ high velour nap and they did not turn out very well --next time terry!

a water soluble on top and a tear away on the bottom It just stablizes the stitches better and they don't pucker when washed.....The water soluble desolves in water so what I do after I'm finished I take a wet cloth and just go over what I did and the stablized will desolve and your done....and it looks great.....

I just finished 3 sets. I used Pellon(what they called heavyweight) one layer on the bottom, and a water topping. The topping keeps the threads for coming through the emb. These were made to use as a decoration only. If they are planning on using them just cut the stabilizer as close as possible. By the way the topping comes off with a little water. Most of it will tear away.

This is all great information! I've had my Bernina 730E for a little over a year and have done quite a bit of embroidery but have been hesitant to do towels. Now I have the "inside scoop" and will have to get some water soluble stabilizer so I can make some!!! Thanks for all the great info and suggestions.

There's a sticky stablizer out.You stick it onto the bottom of your hoop.Put your towel on top of the sticky then put the washaway on top of towel.When your done pull off your towel,it will leave a hole in the sticky,you just put another piece of sticky in the hole ready to do it again.

You have to put a cut away stabilizer on the bottom and a washaway on top. That keeps the terry cloth loops from comining through the stitches. Embroiderylibrary.com helps to explain this. They even show the different stabilizers used and what happened after several washings. Hope this helped.

I think that sewing with Nancy has a video on this very thing from her sewing show. She has them on her web site too, Also I saw on from the America sews show....all of this is on line I believe as they both have web sites.

Good idea,get the info from the pros

Look at sewforless.com,they have stablizer for embroidery they also have a chat line.

Agree 100% Work for a Janome dealer too and that is the way to go. Water soluable on top and bottom.

I have done towels in the past and had trouble with hoop marks on towels when finished and the nap coming through the embroidery after several washing even with heavy embroidery. Found using a water activated stabilizing in the hoop, activate just the edges and then do the basting stitch around the edges worked best for the back stabilizer. For the front place organza to match the towel over where you are going to monogram. That will keep the nap from coming through and is light weight and easy to cut away when finished