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Will I need backing and if so what kind?

1457 Views 5 Replies 6 Participants Last post by  aimagedesign, 
N
I will mainly be doing appliqué work and some direct embroidery using twill stitch pro to design my work. I would like to know what type and style backing that I need to do work on t shirts , sweatshirts, cardigan sweaters etc. I need to order backing if I need it ASAP. Thank you
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L
Yes, almost always. The rule of thumb is:
Cutaway on knits
Tearaway on wovens.

So for tees and sweats you would typically need a decent tearaway.

IF and only if the fabric is super stable and dense do we run without backing. things like 600D woven poly or a carhartt style jacket...

Now having said that, since you mention applique, if your applique runs a placement stitch, stops and you place an applique that is then sewn down, then you may be able to get away with a light tearaway, just enough to stabilize.

Experiment a little. We keep a fairly standard stock of backings:
1.5 ounce tearaway in 8X8 and 16X22 precuts
2.5 ounce cutaway in the same two precut sizes
Polymesh in a 7X7 precut
Rolls of heavy tearaway for caps
Solvy in 7X7 precuts and rolls
And a couple of specialty backings like the new one for performance fabrics.

We don't cut corners on our supplies, good thread, good backings etc make it a lot easier to be consistent.

Your mileage may vary.
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cmdslick
Needhelp said:
I will mainly be doing appliqué work and some direct embroidery using twill stitch pro to design my work. I would like to know what type and style backing that I need to do work on t shirts , sweatshirts, cardigan sweaters etc. I need to order backing if I need it ASAP. Thank you
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For what you described, I would definitely go with a thicker cut away. However, you can do thinner and just double up. But Liberty is right... use cut away on the knits.
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SunEmbroidery
I prefer to keep things simple. I use a soft medium-heavy cutaway on almost everything. I think many wovens need the support of a cutaway during laundering.
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lizziemaxine
SunEmbroidery said:
I prefer to keep things simple. I use a soft medium-heavy cutaway on almost everything. I think many wovens need the support of a cutaway during laundering.
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Same for me. I use a cutaway the majority of the time. About the only time I use tearaway is on a tote bag or something else that won't be washed often, if at all.
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A
Yes, me too. I prefer to use cut-away even on woven fabric.
But after saying that I have used a tear-away for twill and appliqué, where that fabric is enough to support itself. The backing is just a security measure.
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