Project of doom... embroidery help!
 

I have just started the Harry Potter quilt Project of doom. It is on Craftsy, the free pattern section.
I would love to do the embroidery for the book titles. I have never done it on a machine and was wondering if it is worth getting an embroidery machine. What else you would need to use the machine, stabilizer , different thread and so on. Or do you think it could be done by hand. ha ha Then I would have to learn to embroider ... any help please

http://www.craftsy.com/patterns/quil...rtBy=relevance

Sounds like an ambitious project!

I will give you my thoughts on the embroidery machine issue, since I have contemplated getting one too.

Points to consider -
How expensive a machine is required to do what I want to do?
Realistically how often would I use it, other than this project?
What sort of learning curve would I be dealing with?
How far would I have to travel for a class or classes to learn how to use it? (I live in the back of beyond. Lol) and would I actually go to the classes if they are over an hour away?
Do I have the time to devote to this or could it become a burden among the other things I'm doing that have priority?
How badly do I really want it? Is it a momentary "oh shiny" or something I've been wanting to do for a long time?

So far I haven't determined that I really want one bad enough to invest the time and $ required. Of course that could change at any time. Lol!

I love my embroidery/combo machine. I can do anything I want with it, of course, I've been embroidering a long time and do lots of embroidery. I also use this machine to embroidery a quilt design on my quilts. Hope that makes sense.

Hand embroidering those book titles would be no big deal. A simple stem stitch or back stitch would be all you need to learn. There are many excellent YouTube videos of hand embroidery that will teach you every stitch you ever need to know. Watch a couple of videos and try it out.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TebgWq9AqyY

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rZ_wVC84UmM

For a small use I would start out entry level one of the 4x4 brothers from Walmart should be sufficient for what you want without costing much. I love embroidery it can be very fun and costly

Machine embroidery can be addictive. I own two machines and in the beginning embroidered everything and anything. It can also be very costly. I have at least several thousand dollars worth of designs I have never gotten around to using. I have a lot of money tied up in stabilizers, thread and gifts for the machines like different size hoops and extension tables etc. I have discovered that the older I get the lazier I get. Most of my embroidery these days is done with variegated thread so that don't have to constantly change colors which requires rethreading the machine. I also think that a cheapy machine from Walmart would give you a taste of what is involved without draining your bank account. The other option is to approach a dealer about a trade in etc. Some dealers will also do the embroidery for you for a price. That may be your best option. I have found that a paper towel can work as a stabilizer and is handy.

I could farm out a ton of embroidery designs I needed done to my friends who have and regularly use these machines (and therefore are proficient at their use) before I've spent enough money to have bought my own machine!!! :shock:

Perhaps I'm the only person on the planet who does NOT want an embroidery machine!:rolleyes:

Jan in VA

I have two - both Baby Locks. An Ellisimo and an Ellegante. I love them both. I got the Ellisimo for Christmas and tried to sell my Ellegante, no one wants to pay what I SHOULD have traded it in for. Now I use both, 1 is embroidering while I am sewing on the other. I think the investment I made was well worth it. I love the embroidery I can do with it and love the way they sew. I ALSO love to do hand embroidery, and as Lisa_wanna-be said, the stem stich or outline stitch are simple, very easy to do and would do you just as well. Check out the tutes she mentioned. But if you ever decide on a embroidery machine, I don't think you will be sorry. Happy Sewing.

We think a little alike. I have the Ellegante, would love to sell it along with all the designs, feet, etc. (I would even throw in tons of thread) but who will pay what it is worth? Plus, I still do not have the dollars to get the Ellisimo I desperately would love to have, and keep the Ellegante both because I won't give it away. If I did end up with both, I know I would have worse guilt than I do over the existing stash I have that will take many years to go through. I know I would use both, but without a job to take away some of the guilt, I keep enjoying the Ellegante. I believe it may end up being my last big expense with this quilting and sewing addiction I have.

I agree with you Jan, I don't want an embroidery machine either.

I have finished a Harry Potter quilt, and I wrote the names of the books on them with fabric pens, and heat set the ink, I used, black, white, silver and gold pens, it looks really neat.

I use my embroidery machine to do some of my quilting - and I've made embroidered quilts that are very unique. I've got it so I will use it and love it!!

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Brother-PE...roduct+Reviews

This is the cheap Brother machine. $258. I want to do that quilt, too, for my DH, a big HP fan. I'm having the same quandary you are. I bought one of the first embroidery machines years ago when my kids were little and never mastered how to use it. However, it appears that they are easier to use now. I actually want the PE-770 for $600, but not sure about spending that much for something I'm not sure I will use. So I have been really thinking about this machine. As far as doing the embroidery by hand, that is how she did the original quilt. It looks doable, but I love the one I saw posted on here with all the fancy machine embroidery for the book titles.

P-BurgKay would love to see your quilt done with fabric pens. Never thought of doing it that way. How well has it washed?

For stabilizer, I've read that coffee filters work well. Never have tried it myself. You would need a spool of bobin thread and a spool of each color you want to use. Whatever machine you decide on will come with one or more fonts to do the labels with. If you want more than those fonts, you will need software to do your titles. There are so many options out there for software. You could spend $20-$1000 for software. If you have EQ7 you can get EQStitch to do your fonts and more.

The embroidery machine is the easy part. Unless you are going to spell out each word small enough to fit inside your hoop with one pass you will have to re-hoop and hope you get it right. A four inch field is pretty small when it comes to lettering.

Well heck, I guess I will be doing this by hand. Checking into embroidery machines I really don't think I want to spend money like that for one quilt.Then learning a new machine to boot So do you still need to use a stabilizer if doing it by hand.

P-BurgKay, would love to see a picture of your quilt also. Thanks everyone..

Before you invest in an embroidery machine really look at how much you will use it. This time only? It does take time to learn how to use one and how to design the wording. If it is a one time thing or just for a few I would have someone else do it for me. I have a great machine but I use it all the time so that was my decision to buy. The good ones are expensive so that figures into it too.

Thanks Tartan,I have some of the books made into blocks already,I thought I would sew them into rows and then do the embroidery. Do you think this would work and do I need a stabilizer also.

No Jan your not alone I don't want one either I love doing it by hand as I'm relatively new to embroidery and I love the challenge of the tiny stitches - mad I know!!!!

Seems to me that hand sewing through a stabilizer would be really difficult, plus I can't see why you would need one if your fabric is flat (perhaps in a hoop?) and your stitches are not pulled too tight. I hand embroider for embellishment and I do not use a hoop, but I do check often to make sure fabric is not puckering.

No, Jan, I am right there with you. On rare occasion, I feel the need for one but my practical self puts the brakes on and saves me.

You are not the only one that doesn't want an emboridery machine. I have at times considered one but really have on desire to spend that much money to buy something I might or not use.

Wise words! Ditto! froggyintexas

No need to buy an embroidery machine, just use your regular machine set up for free motion quilting. Mark the material first. Unless you want an excuse to buy a new machine.

Me, either.

Embroidery is not hard to do by hand. It's one of those projects you do in front of the TV. I would practice on a separate piece of cloth to get familiar with the stitches. They're not that hard to learn. I do a little. Just a matter of a little practice. I don't like to do much fill in stitches. YouTube has tutorials on embroidery. you may find out you really like it.

Jan, you are not alone!

I have a Viking sapphire. Love it. Can use embroidery to make labels for my quilts - when I didn't make one my niece said first thing "where's the label"? You could decide on just one or two colors for the book words, And yes, you would need stabilizer. Mine also came with a program where you can just decide on wording for free. It just transfers to the USB stick d you plug that into your machine. I don't use the embroidery function every day but it's great to have. You can spend as little or as much as you want. Or I can PM you and make the blocks for you!!

I love being able to embroider names and/or dates onto the quilts I make. For my Dad's 90th birthday I made a quilt with dog fabric. I left alternate blocks as a solid color and embroidered the names of 16 dogs he's had over the years onto the blocks. I embroidered his name and 90th birthday onto the border. I also embroider labels for the backs of my quilts.

I bought an embroidery machine a few years ago (so I could make quilt labels). HA I've used the embroidery part of the machine MORE than regular sewing, including quilt piecing!!! I've monogrammed towels for graduation gifts, embroidered on dish and hand towels, made 'patches' for kids jeans, used for baby quilts, humor prints on toilet paper, many 'in the hoop' projects, including nonflammable tea light wraps for teacher gifts.......the list goes on. You might say the least I've used it for is quilt labels. You will be surprised how much you use an embroidery machine. Just make sure you purchase one with large enough hoops to do what you WANT to do. Mine only has 100mmx100mm (4inch) and 100mmx170mm, but have made good use of them. LOVE my Husqvarna-Viking machine.

I personally would refrain from using paper towels as a substitute stabilizer. I would think the lint build up in the bobbin case wouldn't be worth it.

To me, nothing compares to well-done beautiful hand embroidery. I can do stumpwork, hardanger, candlewicking, and all types of hand embroidery stitching. I belong to the Embroidery Guild and find the work fun but can be tedious and long to finish a project.
I have an embroidery machine that quickly does beautiful embroidery work.
Each discipline has it's own attributes and down-falls and depends on finished product desired.
The investment in an embroidery machine can be never-ending. Hand embroidery can be as well if you invest in silk, linen, batiste, etc. fabrics and then thread: silks, wools, cottons, etc. Each project can require something different. Then there are hoops, stands, lights, needles, and the list goes on.
It is all individual preference, cost, and the preferred outcome... imho

I never use a stabilizer when doing hand embroidery. Just an embroidery hoop. I have small hands so I use a 3-4" diameter hoop so my fingers reach at least to the middle when stitching. It means a lot of re-hooping but I just can't reach like I need to on larger hoops.

I would just do it by hand or have it done.

I have an older Pfaff (7550) that does not have the full embroidery function (no Hoops, no arms, no walking away) but does have a lot of fancy stitches I've never used - it also has a couple of alphabets that I have used even without stabilizer. If you have alphabets hidden among unused fancy stitches on your machine they might work well. probably need to run lengthwise on the spine of the book. I bought myself a Janome 11000 SE as a retirement present - full embroidery etc. Still haven't figured the embroidery out

You could always get markers or fabric paint to do the letters in the book titles...but as far as an embroidery machine..I have one, and use it a lot , but would never buy one just for 1 project. I think a lot of very cheap sewing machines have fonts on them now.

Jan is correct - The Machines are expensive and by the time you purchase it and all the supplies - OH and then learn to use it - you might be better off doing it by hand or paying someone with a machine to do it for you.

The other option is either hand write/print the titles with a fine point permanent marker - or put your fabric through your ink jet printer. Either might be fine and a lot cheaper than a new machine.

Unless of course you have been itching to buy one!! Then you should go for it!!

If you think you would like to do other embroidery, and get the real usemout of the machine, then maybe you should consider it. Otherwise, it is worth several thousand dollars to you for a few designs ( and the learning curve to use the machine)? If all you want is the Harry potter designs, it might be more cost effective to find someone to do them for you.

I love my embroidery machine !! Although I have a sewing place near by that does classes and projects which are free if u buy your machine from them. Its the best investment I have made that makes me happy. Have done several projects and now getting into quilting with the embroidery touch in it. I don't think u will be sorry.