Shoppers Rule Blog

We are asked over and over again what type of embroidery backing is best.  The answer is - It depends on the stitch count and type of fabric or garment.  We have developed a simple free guide to help you choose the correct backing.

Your most important consideration for embroidery projects is getting perfect registration (the ratio between bobbin thread and top thread to create a clear and perfect design.)

In general, the key to proper registration is to create a ”tambourine skin” type tension with the material within the hoop. If the material moves, bounces or slips, you will lose registration. What a stabilizer does is aid in achieving this drum skin type tension.

A stabilizer should be stable in all directions.

People have used all sorts of things for stabilizing. I have even heard of people, some who should know better, advocating the use of coffee filters, newspaper, paper towels, etc. as a backing.( Backing and stabilizer will be used interchangeably.)

Paper will also break up and shred – causing excessive lint in your bobbin cases and machine parts Please note here the LARGE difference between paper and a nonwoven (Fabric-like material made from long fibers, bonded together by chemical, mechanical, heat or solvent treatment.)

Let’s talk about nonwovens.

As far as the embroidery world is concerned, nonwoven stabilizers are manufactured by two different processes-saturate/chemical bonded nonwovens and wet laid nonwovens.

In the first process, saturate or chemically bonded nonwoven, the contents are polyester, rayon and some kind of chemical binder. (something that hold the fibers together.)

It is a dry sludge (a mixture of soild material and water) as it comes off the machine and the fibers are dispersed in 2 methods.

Method 1-Carded or Directional saturate

The fibers are raked or aligned in the machine direction (MD)
There is a giant card or rake that combs the fibers in one direction
There is a definite direction to the fibers

Please note that these goods do stretch in one direction (CD) cross directionally.
Therefore every time you use a carded or directional saturate you will need 2 layers laid crosswise in order to achieve a drum skin type tension.  Most of these goods are made for interlinings and for other end uses besides embroidery.
This type of non woven addresses the drapability factor but NOT the stability factor.

 Method 2- Random Saturate

The second method of dispersal of this saturated sludge is by a random method therefore called a random saturate.

As an easy analogy to understand the method of fiber dispersal.
Lets assume that the sludge is in a giant vat, similar in texture to cookie dough.
A giant spoon comes along and mixes the fibers and the fibers are dispersed randomly.

What happens when you hit a thin spot while embroidering?
The answer is that you lose tension and registration in this area.

Random saturates are made for many industries, roofing, road building, house wrapping, etc.
In most cases they are NOT made for embroidery.
You will see many saturates in the market, many of them are inexpensive nonwovens made in Mexico.
Some of these are great products, for roofing or road building, but for embroidery there are better choices.

The second process is Wet Laid Nonwovens. Wet laid refers to the method of fiber dispersal – using water.

There are 2 types of wet laid nonwovens, delta formed and rotary formed.
For the purpose of this article, we will be concerned with only delta formed wet laid nonwovens. (Rotary formed wet laid non wovens have similar properties with slight differences in density)

The wet laid process is similar to the fine paper making process but there are differences.
The process used to take place in rivers – but they are now manufactured in a few plants worldwide with giant machines.  There is a slurry of water running through a trough in a machine and there is a wire screen sitting in this trough or bath.  We mix in the components polyester (a short fiber) for softness, rayon for tearabilty and stiffness, in varying percentages, depending if it is a tearaway or a cutaway being made.  Cellulose is also added as inexpensive filler.

All the fibers then are bound together with an acrylic binder and we add silicone as a sewing aid.
The screen then rises and dries, similar to an alluvial formation, like a river delta. Evenly spread – there is no direction to the fibers.  This is your “tambourine skin”

The resulting wet laid stabilizers are both non-directional, dense, and soft for drapability.  They can also be made firm!  We do an Elmendorf tear test to make sure that they tear equally in all directions – MD & CD. (They do!)
These are specifically made for sewing (the addition of silicone), and even more specifically for embroidery.
They are made in weights between 1 osy (ounces per sq yard) and 3 osy.

The idea is to match the weight and density of the stabilizer to your stitch count and stitch density, taking into account the weight and stretch of your fabric.  Again- this is your tambourine skin. This should result in you only needing to use one layer of wet laid stabilizer.

At this point I would like to make a disclaimer.  Embroidery is a somewhat complicated business – yet it can be simple!  Many people in the industry, commercial or home, do things in unique ways.  There are multiple factors involved, weight and stretch of the material, stitch count and density, hooping tensions, the weather, machine tensions, thread differences, top and bottom bobbin tensions and proper digitizing. Things that work for one shop or individual will not always work as well for others.

We can only give you a guide as per the best stabilizer.

Digitizing and Stabilization

Proper digitizing is as important or more so than proper stabilization.
Designs for sale are commonplace as are free designs.
Some of the designs that people download for free from the Internet are not made for human beings to properly embroider with.
With a properly digitized design, you almost do NOT need a stabilizer (in theory).

Major Question– cutaways vs tearaways

We recommend a soft cutaway on apparel.

Stable fabrics, like a nylon jacket, or a Carhart jacket, that are very heavy almost do not need a backing. However – a wet laid non-directional tearaway will aid in slippage of the hoop and also aid in achieving your tambourine skin, thereby adding extra punch to your definition.

Proper stabilization is the foundation for good embroidery.
Do not skimp on stabilizers and in the same vein do NOT over stabilize.
Drapability and less bulk are the fashion bywords of today.
You do not want to walk around with a bulletproof design on your chest.
Try not to get into the habit of solving problems by throwing in another layer of backing.
Use one layer of a dense, soft, non-directional wet laid non woven

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