If you have ever used mesh cutaway stabilizer and your machine embroidery project puckered after it came out of the hoop, this may be why.

Mesh cutaway is used in a lot of embroidery projects from T-shirts to any variety of in-the-hoop (ITH) design. There has been many a discussion about whether you should pre-shrink your fabrics before you embroider but did you know that your no-show mesh cutaways can also shrink? Often, we don’t find that out until it’s too late.

You try to do everything right. Choose the appropriate stabilizer. Use a quality fabric or blank. Hoop properly. Change the needle. Test the tension. Everything looks great when embroidery is done and the project is still in the hoop but when you take it out of the hoop and iron it or even wash and dry, puckers show up everywhere.

Non-woven mesh stabilizers can shrink - actually as much as a quarter of an inch, certainly more than enough to pull fabric and stitches out of wack.

To test, cut two pieces of mesh cutaway. They don’t have to be very large, maybe six- or eight-inches square. Leave one alone and hit the other with a hot iron or a shot of steam. Now compare the two. Even the slightest bit of shrinkage is enough to cause wrinkles in the finished project.

Some machine embroiderers will launder an entire roll of stabilizer or even parts of a bolt to prevent any possibility of shrinkage. Others find that using a hot iron or a blast of steam accomplishes the same effect. Either way, it is one important step that can make a tremendous difference in your finished product.

Debbie SewBlest