Stop That Sinking Feeling
Does your embroidery look like it is disappearing or sinking into the fabric?
When embroidering on high pile fabrics—polar fleece, sweaters, towels—your design may benefit from Knockdown Stitches.
Read on for answers from our experts on the top 7 questions we get about Knockdown Stitches:
1. What is a Knockdown Stitch?
A Knockdown Stitch is a criss-crossing of stitching that we add beneath an embroidery design that holds down fluffy fabric, making your embroidered text or embroidery design more visible.
2. Do Knockdown Stitches add much to our stitch count?
Knockdowns are made with an open stitch, so they do NOT add a lot of stitches. In most cases, a knockdown layer only adds about 800 to 1,500 stitches to the overall stitch count.
3. Must the Knockdown Stitch layer be the same shape as our embroidered design?
Not necessarily. The knockdown layer can be a simple box shape or take on a more organic form that closely follows the contours and perimeter of your lettering design. Both options are possible, and examples are shown below for reference.
TOP: Organic shapes follow the perimeter of the lettering that will be embroidered.
BOTTOM: Box-shaped knockdown layers frame lettering evenly on the top and bottom.
4. What sort of fabrics work best with a Knockdown Stitches?
Knockdown Stitches work best on fabric with pile or high pile.
When ordering embroidery digitizing for lettering, monograms or embroidered text, be sure to let us know your fabric type. Why? Because some designs and most lettering have more of a chance to “sink” or to be covered by high pile fabric.
Remember that lettering can disappear into the surrounding fabric and may not be as visible as you may like when you’re embroidering on polar fleece or heavy knits. This is where Knockdown Stitches can help!
Above example shows embroidered lettering on pile fabric with NO knockdown layer.
The following fabric types benefit most from Knockdown Stitches:
· Polar fleece
· Heavy knits
· Beanies and towels
5. Will I need a stabilizer or topping if I use Knockdown Stitches?
Using Knockdown Stitches keeps you from needing to handle and utilize toppings, like Solvy™ to make lettering stand out and be more readable on high pile fabrics.
6. Must the Knockdown Stitch layer be the same color as the fabric?
You don’t want the knockdown to be a different color because then the fabric will show through the Knockdown Stitch and just look like poor embroidery. 😊
7. What shape is best for the Knockdown Stitch layer?
At Ignition Drawing, we do Knockdown Stitches in two styles: Organic or Box-shaped. The best option depends on your specific needs and visual preference. When placing your embroidery digitizing order, let us know which style you prefer, and we’ll tailor it to your project. Examples of both styles are provided below.
TOP: Organic shapes follow the perimeter of the lettering that will be embroidered.
BOTTOM: Box-shaped knockdown layers frame lettering evenly on the top and bottom.
If you have embroidery questions you’d like us to answer in our blog, please let us know!
DIGITIZING CUSTOMER SERVICE
Phone: 253 284 0733 Ext. 2
Email: digitizing@ignitiondrawing.com
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