Skirt Embroidery

A little late with these photos! Wanted to get them on here Friday. Here is the process of Test stitching out the skirt design for the Duffy dresses.

That is just the first swirl. Test stitching involves alot of different factors. There are the known items…the fabric, thread, and the design. After that there are many variables…..tension, interfacing, stabilizer – both under the fabric and above the fabric, needle selection, and hooping method. Just like when we were kids and some kind older person taught us how to embroider using an old wood circle hoop…machine embroidery involves a lot of the same principles. Each of these variable needs to be addressed for a proper finished item.

On the above pictures you can see that I have added something on top of the fabric that was not there when I started. This is to help the stitches stay on top of the fabric and not sink in. We call it a “topper.” This orange fabric is very soft. I had hoped the smoothness of it would mean it would not need a topper, but the softness of it proved otherwise. The edges looked much better after adding this.
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This is the design all finished. This is about the distance that I think most people would see the design when a dancer is wearing the dress. Plus this is on the skirt, so the viewer will actually be looking down rather that straight on as this photo shows. These are stage costumes so we must always keep in mind how they will look in that context.

This is a very up close view. You can see my markings showing the different thread tension numbers that I tried while doing this test. Noone will actually be examining this item this close up except for when it is being constructed and probably when the customer is picking it up. I’d like it to look well done in those circumstances too! Much was learned during this test. A few adjustments have been made to the stitches of the design, which will give better coverage inside the outline. (and your eyes are not deceiving you…I did use two different color threads in this test!) More updates as things progress!