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Fabrics 101: Embroidering on Confetti Dot
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Fabrics 101: Embroidering
on
Confetti Dot |
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Confetti Dot fabric has
always caught my eye in the
fabric store. Among the
fabrics, it's got the most
shine and the most sparkle.
It's a glittery and somewhat
sheer knit fabric, and it
comes in many colors, and
the "dots" come in many
sizes and shapes.
This type of fabric is often
used for dancewear, skirts,
wraps, and accessories like
scarves and belts. You may
know it from one of its many
other names: dot lame, foil
dot, sequined glazed mesh,
reflecting knits, dot
sequins, confetti sequins,
or knit sequins.
The type of Confetti Dot
fabric that I experimented
with is a nylon and
polyester blend. The
sparkling dots themselves
are usually made from
plastic or Mylar, and are
held to the fabric with a
heat-reactant glue.
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Confetti Dot fabric is
lightweight and stretchy -
great for late spring and
summer ensembles. It's
surprisingly sturdy for
being such a light fabric.
Open and airy designs will
work best on this type of
fabric. If your heart is set
on using a solid-filled
design, choose a small one.
That way the stitches won't
be too heavy and cause the
fabric to drape poorly.
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Confetti Dot
is a stretchy, sheer fabric
peppered with sparkling circles or dots. |
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When embroidering on this
type of fabric, use a
cutaway stabilizer. Cutaway
stabilizer is the best
choice when working with
anything stretchy; tear-away
or water-soluble stabilizer
will usually cause
registration issues (that's
when sections of the design
aren't placed where they
should be).
I wondered about hooping
this fabric. Would hooping
bend or damage the dots? I
needn't be concerned. The
dots are well-adhered to the
fabric, and weren't scraped
or bent when I hooped (and I
was quite vigorous with my
hooping for testing
purposes!). |
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To prepare
the fabric for embroidery, I cut a piece
of cutaway stabilizer a bit larger than
the hoop. Then, because the fabric is so
stretchy, I sprayed the stabilizer with
a bit of adhesive (I use KK100). I
smoothed the fabric on top of the
stabilizer.
Using spray adhesive between the
stabilizer and fabric makes a nice tight
bond when embroidering. As the hoop is
moving around and about during
embroidery, stretchy fabric fibers can
become skewed, resulting in puckering or
poor registration. Using spray adhesive
will eliminate that problem.
I also took care when hooping, smoothing
the fabric so that there were no bubbles
or ripples in the fabric. The stretchier
the fabric, the trickier it is to get it
nice and smooth.
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The first design that I
stitched was the
Art Deco Hibiscus design.
You may remember my earlier
comment that when using
solid-filled designs,
choosing a small one is
best. A design like this is
perfect for Confetti Dot;
the filled areas are small
enough that they won't
negatively affect draping. |
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When embroidering on knits,
I often use a ball-point
needle. This type of needle
will slide the fibers aside,
whereas a sharp needle will
cut the fabric fibers.
However, I need a sharp
needle (75/11) to penetrate
the "dots." Using a
ball-point or embroidery
needle resulted in some
fuzzy stitches; a sharp
needle works best. |
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Because Confetti Dot is so
bright and lively, it was
tricky to pick the right
colors for the design. I
experimented with one-color
designs, like this
Simply Hibiscus Circle.
This example is
tone-on-tone, which results
in an understated look. The
key for a good tone-on-tone
effect is to choose a thread
color that is slightly
lighter, brighter, or darker
than the fabric. |
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This example shows the same
design in a bright and bold
scheme, which contrasts with
the Confetti Dot fabric
color.
Color scheme is all about
personal preference. You
might love something, and
someone else will think,
"Hmm... not for me!"
Working with fabrics that
have accents (like Confetti
Dot), or prints, or even
subtle woven patterns, can
be a challenge for choosing
the right colors. Choosing
simpler designs will be a
better balance for the
"busy" fabric.
Because Confetti Dot is
sheer and stretchy, a
stiff-feeling cutaway may
form ridges around the back
side of the fabric. I've
found that Floriani's
No-Show Mesh or Sulky's Soft
'n Sheer do a nice job of
"blending" with the fabric,
leaving no or little visible
ridge.
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One-color butterfly from the
Bundle of Butterflies collection. |
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Before leaving the fabric store
with your Confetti Dot, check the
label on the bolt for laundering
instructions. The label on the bolts
that I used advised hand-washing
separately; cold water, no bleach,
line dry and lay flat. However, I've
been known to "cheat." My version of
"hand-washing" involves turning the
garment inside out, putting it in a
lingerie bag, and machine-washing it
on a delicate or gentle setting.
The label on the bolt that I bought
guarded against dry cleaning; the
dry cleaning solution will cause the
dots to become unglued from the
fabric.
Don't attempt to iron Confetti Dot
fabric. At best you'll lose a few
dots; at worst you'll be shopping
for a new iron. |
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Stitching tips for Confetti Dot:
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Needle |
75/11
sharp needle (necessary to penetrate
the "dots") |
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Stabilizer |
Cutaway
(2.5 ounce) |
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Design
Choice |
If using a
large design, choose open, airy, and light; if a small design,
solid-filled. |
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