10 TIPS: Using embroidery mode on the HV DESIGNER EPIC 3

I love being able to quilt a project using the Husqvarna VIKING DESIGNER EPIC 3. For people who are hesitant to go down the free-motion quilting path, machine embroidery is a great way to add fabulous texture to a quilt.

I always tell people they can’t learn by watching or reading alone. It pays to sit down and play! As I mentioned yesterday, I haven’t done a lot of quilting with an embroidery machine, so as I played around with my quilt, I learned many things! There wasn’t enough space in yesterday’s post to highlight all the learning, so I’m sharing all my tips here. Some tips aren’t new to me, but putting them all in one place is good.

Here’s the list of things I learned about quilting with an embroidery machine. I highly encourage you to make a small quilt so you can experience these things and learn from them! While learning by doing can be scary, I think it’s the only way to learn and, more importantly, remember!

Let’s get started!

1. deLuxe Stitch System

I love the deLuxe Stitch System on the Husqvarna VIKING DESIGNER EPIC 3. However, when I’m in embroidery mode and working on a project where the stitches will show on the back, I get better results when I turn the deLuxe Stitch System off. Why? It’s an excellent feature for handling delicate threads, like metallic and invisible, but it brings too much top thread to the back and gives it a rough texture.

Also, note it’s common to use a running stitch when quilting in embroidery mode, so it isn’t necessary to use the deluxe Stitch System (unless you’re using delicate threads). The Husqvarna VIKING DESIGNER EPIC 3 tension system defaults to the traditional tension system when doing a straight stitch!

My rule is to turn off the deluxe Stitch System when embroidering items where the back will be visible. Do not forget to experiment to find the best solution for your chosen fabrics, threads, design, and final look.

To turn it off, you’ll find a toggle in the Embroidery Stitch-Out Settings Menu, which pops up when you move from Embroidery Edit to Embroidery Stitch Out.

A selection to turn off the deLuxe Stitch System

2. Using metal hoops

Here are some tips for working with metal hoops, which I love! They make hooping a thick project or something that won’t fit into a traditional hoop a breeze to secure.

• Using a large pair of scissors around the metal hoop isn’t such a good idea. Why? Because the scissors keep getting attracted to the magnets! OK – that’s good to know and easy to fix!

Use thin scissors to prevent them from attracting to the magnets.

• These magnets are strong, so keep your fingers from getting pinched between them, as it can hurt!
• Do NOT leave the magnets on the top of the metal hoop. A flocked surface on the top helps with hooping, and leaving the magnets on the top can cause the flocked surface to flatten. Store the magnets on the underside of the hoop or separately.
• Using a maximum of eight magnets on any metal hoop is recommended. The magnets increase the weight on the embroidery arm. I’ve never had an issue with needing more than eight magnets.
• Do not place the magnets close to the embroidery stitch area. If you don’t pay attention, it’s easy to position them inside the embroidery stitch area, and you don’t want the embroidery foot to touch the magnets.

This magnet is just outside the embroidery stitch area.

3. Registration Lines

My favorite marking tool is a Clover white Chaco Liner, which can produce a thick line. So, depending on the style of the Chaco Liner and how you hold it, your center reference lines can be slightly off. But also, be careful not to mismark the lines. I goofed on this one, but it was apparent that I was not in the center of the block. It was easy to rub the chalk away and draw a new line.

A reference line that’s not centered.

Be careful when placing the registration lines on the quilt. If you pieced an accurate 8” block, by the time you quilt it with stitch in the ditch, as I did, it may no longer be 8”. So, check the measurements when you’re marking. Notice that I’m marking with the ruler slightly less than 4”. Ensure the chalk line is right beside the ruler, which depends on how you hold the Chaco Liner.

Marking a registration line with a ruler and chalk

4. Support the quilt

My quilt is small at 40” x 48”. Depending on your setup, it’s usually easy to support the quilt on the left and the back of the embroidery machine, but what happens when you need to have the bulk of the quilt in front? Trust me, if your embroidery design is directional, this is a real possibility – ask me how I know! Set up a table, an ironing board, a chair, or something else to ensure the entire quilt has solid support on all sides. Your embroidery arm can become damaged if you use it to support the quilt.

Supporting the quilt on the back of the table

5. Be careful the project doesn’t fall into the hoop

You don’t want to touch START, walk away, and return to find the project has fallen into the hoop. Depending on the size, you can use the Metal Hoop Fabric Guide Set (if you’re using a metal hoop) or secure the project somehow to prevent the project from falling. Be sure that whatever you use won’t catch on the hoop. Better yet, if the part under the machine is bulky, it’s best to stay and babysit it!

Ensure the project won’t fall into the stitching area.

6. Watch the orientation of the quilting motifs

If your quilting motif is directional, hoop the quilt so the design always stitches in the same direction. You can also use the Rotate Tool in Embroidery Edit to compensate for that.

A directional embroidery design

7. Thread and needle woes

I’m working with a 30-weight variegated cotton thread, which is very linty and challenging. As I was embroidering, the lint built up around the needle bar and would fall off in clumps onto my fabric. I had to be careful, otherwise the lint would get caught up in the stitches, making it hard to remove.

After every block, I used a small brush and cleaned the area around the needle bar, eliminating the lint from dropping onto the quilt.

Also, ensure the needle and thread match each other. This thread needed a TOPSTITCH 16 to prevent shredding and breakage. Perhaps it’s not the best thread for a first attempt at quilting a quilt.

Lint from the thread on the surface of the quilt

8. Watch the embroidery arm during calibration and operation

OK – I know better! When I turned on the Husqvarna VIKING DESIGNER EPIC 3 to start embroidering, the pop-up message to calibrate the arm showed on the screen. That’s the cue to ensure that nothing is near the embroidery arm. The arm slightly touched my power tower. Oops. Thankfully, it wasn’t something that could spill or damage the arm. I’ve since moved the power tower in this photo, but be careful!

The power tower is too close to the embroidery arm.

That threw the calibration out of whack, and my center needle position was off.

The center needle position didn’t match the center of my block.

I restarted the Husqvarna VIKING DESIGNER EPIC 3, ensuring nothing was close to the embroidery arm.  And now, when I checked the center needle position, it was back where it was supposed to be. You’ll find the Center Needle position in the Hoop Position tab in Embroidery Stitch Out Mode.

The center needle position matches my registration lines.

9. Watch the tension

I attempted to tighten the tension up a smidgen when I saw the top thread slightly poking through to the back of the quilt.

Adjusting the top tension

This was NOT a good idea as it created havoc with the 30-weight cotton thread shredding and breaking MUCH more than it had previously.

So, I backed the tension down to the default setting.

When you start to use heavier threads for various projects, it’s a good idea to play with this without being in the middle of a project. The more you become familiar with these basic concepts of needles and thread combinations, the easier your quilting will be.

In the photo above, there’s a box around the thread tension. There is no box when the default settings are selected.

The tension default setting

10. Design size is important

I take full responsibility for this, but I’m glad it happened, as I’ve wanted to experiment with it. The hoop size is 200mm by 200mm. I set the design size to 190mm by 190mm for the first set of blocks, ensuring I’d have some room around the motif within each block.

I forgot this step for the second block set and set the design to 200mm by 200mm, providing little room for error in the piecing and the motif’s placement. Some of the perimeter stitching didn’t quite go in the ditch, but overall, I was pretty impressed with the outcome.

I’m not sure I’d do this again, as it can be challenging to get everything precisely pieced and lined up so the perimeter stitching went exactly in the ditch.

So, while this wasn’t my intention, it was a great experiment! See what I mean? Learn by doing!

The embroidery motif filled the entire quilt block.

It’s probably better to make the design slightly smaller, so you’ll see the edge of the embroidery motif in the block rather than trying to hide the surrounding stitching in the ditch. You get a bit more room for error. I’m learning all about design placement, and while there are great tools on the Husqvarna VIKING DESIGNER EPIC 3, it also depends on your piecing accuracy!

An embroidery motif with room to spare around the edges

And there you have it – ten things I learned about quilting a quilt using the Husqvarna VIKING DESIGNER EPIC 3.

All ten of these tips were game changers in the successful quilting of my quilt. It’s easy to forget how some of our seemingly insignificant choices can make a difference in the final project.

And it shows that when my dealer told me over 25 years ago that many of the issues I’d experience would be related to needle and thread combinations or operator choices, he was correct!!

Husqvarna VIKING DESIGNER EPIC 3

I hope that helps you make wise decisions when quilting a quilt with your embroidery machine.

Be sure to return tomorrow, as I’ll be working on a new stitch category for the Husqvarna VIKING DESIGNER EPIC 3, and I’m excited to share my work with you.

Have a great day!

Ciao!

This is part 3 of 5 in this series

Go back to part 2: Stitching out an embroidery design with the DESIGNER EPIC 3

Go to part 4: Piecing a quilt with Floating Stitches | Decorative and Constructive

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