Water-soluble stabilizers (WSS) are one of the great wonders of the embroidery world. There are so many kinds out there, they come in different weights, and many have different names. How do you know which one is right for the job you are stitching?

There are three basic types of WSS on the market: light film, heavy film, and mesh. Or, you might see them listed as backing or topping.

These angel designs show two kinds. Water-soluble (WS) light films (left) look like plastic wrap while mesh (right) appears more like a light mesh tear-away stabillizer (make sure you properly identify your mesh stabilizers so as not to confuse regular mesh and WSS mesh).