Using a hoop?

[brityboo]

When you use a hoop, how do you keep it from flattening/ruining your stitches?

[Eliste]

First and most importantly- never, never, EVER EVER leave your project in the hoop. I can't stress this enough. It'll ruin even the lightest fabric.

Secondly, I work with the largest hoop I can manage wherever possible. If you can find one that's big enough your whole project will fit inside, use that, even if it is more awkward.

I've seen it suggested, and done it myself before, that one of the things you really should do is wrap your hoops. Take scrap cloth of a non-dyed material or bias tape and wrap it around both hoops. You can stitch it in place once you make certain its nice and tight and there aren't any bobbles that'll prevent it lining up with its mate. This prevents the wood from catching on either the fabric or your stitches.

Finally, don't forget that you really should be hand-washing and then ironing and/or blocking your design once it's done. This will get rid of almost anything but the worst creases.

Alternatively, I've found that I've become less and less enamored with hoops and find it far more rewarding to put my sewing on frames instead. Stretcher frames or roller frames or Japanese embroidery frames are all great ways to keep the fabric stretched and in most cases, you can leave it on the frame until the project is finished, which makes me a much happier bunny.

[brityboo]

Yes, I understand all of that.

I just thought there might be some other way to prevent the stitches themselves from being ruined.

[Eliste]

Exactly what is happening that's "ruining" them?

Short of leaving a hoop on overnight, or a rare wood splinter pulling the stitch, I havent seen a hoop destroy a stitch. It almost all comes out in the wash.

I have this whitework project that I've been stitching for about a year, that's a tablecloth and impossible to fit on anything without going over prior work. Even the inch long stitches are still looking fine despite repeatedly being smooched by the hoop which I haven't bothered to cover.

Do you use wooden or plastic hoops? And define what is "ruined" or if you could post a picture of what you mean, I could probably give you better advice.

[predawn]

As eliste said, never leave your work in the hoop. I am paranoid to the point where I take the hoop off even for short breaks, to prevent stretching. I'd also suggest using plastic hoops. They sell them at Michael's. I believe they are slightly more expensive (not by much though), but it's worth it to not have to deal with splinters or that weird wood dust. I tried stretcher frames, but the one I have leaves the aforementioned wood dust on the canvas and I'm worried about it damaging the fabric.

[kuja.girl]

I'm going to go against the grain and admit that I have left work in the hoop for ...-gasp- months at a time with no problems.
Your stitches will look flat and squished after removing the hoop but after a washing they look perfect and there are no marks on the fabric. I've never had issues with this particular problem.
...
You are washing your finished pieces right? (hand washing)

here's a decent help site: http://www.better-cross-stitch-patterns ... -hoop.html

[Yurtle]

Yeah, I'm with kuja.girl. I always leave my hoops in! I do use the plastic ones and I've never had a permanent problem with using hoops and leaving them in. I do always hand wash my projects and iron them. There has never been any lasting damage done because of a hoop. Hell, I've even had a project in a hoop for a year!

[faewren]

I don't have problems leaving my project in the hoop either. I just try and use a hoop that's slightly bigger than my project. If it's too large I have frames that I use. And if you're using a wooden hoop (I don't anymore) then you really should cover it. I learned that the hard way. Have you tried pulling splinters out of fabric?

[Yurtle]

What does everyone think of frames? I always find them to be too big. It's hard for me to handle them and really hard for me to flip them over easily to catch the back of the thread or weave it through at the end. I had a stand at one point but couldn't use it at all.

[Eliste]

I love the little frame I have. It a small roller frame which is only about 12inch square. I have some larger rods I can swap in, but unless the project is quite big, I tend to use the smaller one. With a lap stand, I have no problems, just lift up there's the back. I wouldn't use it if I had to hold it in my hands all the time, but then since my repetitive strain, I can't do that with my hoops either anymore.

I love that I don't have to worry about putting my piece on and taking it off every time. Unlike other users here, I have had some very fine silks and some cutwork pieces ruined by leaving them in the hoops because they can be oh so delicate.

I also find that I can get a better stretch of my fabric on a frame instead of a hoop. I always feel like I need to be pulling it tighter with a hoop, which stretches the fabric even more, thus making it more likely to get skewed.

However, for truly small projects, I almost always go hoop. The lightness of the hoop wins for me when its a small project.