Technically, embroidering on fabric won’t actually “shrink” the fabric, but as the stitches are embroidered into the fabric and the machine pulls each stitch to take it taut, distortion occurs, which can result in a “shrunk” appearance. shrinkage”. These distortions occur as a result of “push” and “pull”. Stitches stick out at their open ends or parallel to the length of the thread and pull in along the sides where the stitch direction is reversed. Digitizers try to correct these distortions by using proper compensation.
Major Causes of Fabric Distortion
A list of the usual suspects that affect distortion include:
- Design. Stitch-intensive designs, those with lots of fills, particularly when combined with high density and many stitch directions, apply more tension and contribute to more push and pull. Proper digitizing and bracing techniques can reduce excessive pushing and pulling.
- Factory. Stretchy, unstable fabrics distort more than stable fabrics, which is why we use stabilizers.
- The stabilizer. The correct stabilizer can support the design on the selected fabric without adding undesirable stiffness or thickness to the final result.
- Machine speed. The faster a machine sews, the more distortion it imparts. Slowing down the machine will reduce distortion.
- voltage machine. The harder a stitch is pulled during the sewing process, the more the seam will pull from the fabric. And while your tension may be balanced, the tension may still be too tight overall.
- hoop stresses. Unless you are embroidering on Lycra or a similar fabric that will be worn stretched over the body, the fabric should be hooped with neutral tension and not stretched between the hoop rings.
Should you embroider before or after cutting the fabric?
If you are embroidering on fabric that will become a garment or quilt, I recommend embroidering first, then cutting out the pattern or piece of fabric. Not only will you be able to combat any contractions, but you’ll also be able to adjust your placement.
Some additional notes on fabric shrinkage
Actual fabric shrinkage can occur during washing and drying, especially if the fabric was not previously shrunk prior to embroidery. If he’s ever bought a knitted garment with a large or dense pattern, he may have experienced this: It looked great until he washed and dried it, after which it looked like a roller coaster of dips and hills. Stabilizers will not prevent this type of shrinkage; It’s not the stabilizer or the thread that has shrunk, it’s the fabric sandwiched in between.
The best prevention in this case is pre-washing and drying, possibly several times. While that extra step isn’t a big deal for home embroiderers or when working on some items, washing and drying garments can become quite an effort for production work. If you think it will provide the best result, let your client know why you think so (samples help!) and let them know what the additional charge will be.
For more information on offset, see my ezine article Understanding Offset: An Embroiderer’s Guide to Digitizing Terminology.
