As an apparel decorator, you’re probably used to the usual orders. Logos screen printed on shirts, embroidery on upper left chests of work polos for corporate companies, or maybe you’ve even dipped your toe in the rigid substrate game with UV-DTF (pens, signage, phone cases, etc.).
But what about when a customer wants something that can glow in the dark, or something that looks and feels vintage even though it was just custom-made a couple of days prior? That’s where specialty effects items enter the chat. Looking at special-effects embroidery thread, decorators can optimize the options to create an even higher-end final product.
We talked to industry experts about the best tips, tricks, tools, and uses for special-effects thread. Here’s what advice they had for those looking to get their feet wet.
What Qualifies as ‘Specialty’ Thread?
No, you’re not wrong for asking this. Joshua Parr, applications engineer for Melco, explains it like this: “Special effects threads include metallics, flat sheen, wool, acrylic, glow in the dark, and thread that changes colors based on temperature.”
And if you were to ask embroidery expert Erich Campbell, he believes that anything that varies from 40-weight polyester thread can qualify as specialty thread. He attributes this to the fact that over the years, people have grown more accustomed to what machine embroidery can do.
“Everybody’s so used to what machine embroidery looks like, and popular commercial machine embroidery is done with standard 40-weight polyester thread, which has a pretty high sheen to it,” Campbell says. “And despite the fact that I really like the sheen of embroidery thread, over the years, being so accustomed to it, people now see that as mass produced. So in a world where … people don’t always want a big corporate look or where they want to differentiate themselves from what’s out there, 40-weight polyester thread with a standard sheen to it isn’t always the go. [Customers] want to look for something that’s different.”
Ed Levy, vice president of technology for Hirsch Solutions, also mentions that any thin thread that really lets you get into finer details, as well as flame-retardant thread, also falls under the specialty umbrella.
Read this full feature on Apparelist.
