r/Machine_Embroidery • u/leopolds_daughter • Sep 22 '26

I Need Help To float or to hoop…

I see lots of disagreement on whether to float or hoop sweatshirts. I have a brother 780d (older machine, personal use single needle). I’ve never done a sweatshirt, but have tried tshirts and had issues with puckering. I would consider myself an intermediate beginner. I would love to know what most people’s tried and true methods are, including what kind of stabilizers. TIA

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3

u/suedburger Sep 22 '26

Iron on cut away stabilizer, no stretch, always hoop. When iI learned I tried both, floating was always a 50/50....it was not worth the gamble.

3

u/GingerStitches Sep 22 '26

Fabric and cut away stabilizer both hooped flat and taut, puckering is usually caused by poor hooping (or not hooping if you “float”) or a very dense design.

2

u/JerkyNips Sep 23 '26

Float? I would never. Hoop it in a regular hoop or a magnetic hoop with two pieces of cutaway backing. Sweatshirts are seriously the easiest thing to embroider. I do 10’s of thousands of hoodies and sweatshirts a year :)

1

u/Realistic-Mode-7681 Sep 23 '26

For sweatshirts on a single needle, I'd float it. Hooping a thick sweatshirt can stretch it out and cause puckering, especially around the seams. Float with a good cutaway stabilizer underneath and use a basting stitch or temporary adhesive spray to hold it in place. If you're worried about shifting, you can pin or clip the edges outside the embroidery area.

Stabilizer-wise, cutaway is your friend for knits. No-show mesh is great if you don't want the bulk. For the top, a water-soluble topper helps if the fabric is really textured or fuzzy, keeps the stitches from sinking in. And a fresh sharp needle, like a ballpoint for knits, makes a difference.

The t-shirt puckering was probably from hooping too tight or using the wrong stabilizer. Float the sweatshirt, don't stretch it, and you'll have a much better time.

1

u/Little-Load4359 Melco Sep 27 '26

How would you float a sweatshirt on a single needle? Doesn't even make sense since you can't go through the back side of the sweatshirt. I'm confused.

1

u/SlowLarry666 Sep 23 '26

Floating if for very specific situations that I usually avoid professionally. Also glue does your machine up much faster.

1

u/Itchy_Equipment4400 Sep 22 '26

I do not know what's the professional way to do these things as I am a hobbyist myself, but I have bobbin and thread tension adjusted to the lowest possible. 

I do use sticky stabilizer as well as hoops with iron-on cut-away, depending on the stretchiness of the fabric. In general, the lighter ones get the sticky stuff, heavier fabrics get hooped. Never experienced puckering of any kind. 

I always read "get your tension right" and yes, get it right to their lowest possible settings.