Images_Digital_Edition_August_2019

KB TIPS & TECHNIQUES www.images-magazine.com 58 images AUGUST 2019 number of knit ribs that’s easy to count — say eight ribs — and use a fabric tape to measure the distance from rib one to eight on the hat as worn. Then, hoop the hat, stretching the hooped fabric so that eight ribs are that same distance apart as measured. The hats may not look perfect laid flat, but will lay well and look less warped on customers’ heads. You won’t have to measure each hooping in perpetuity; after a little practice, seeing the proper distance between the ribs becomes second nature. That said, every hat style is somewhat different — you may have to repeat this exercise on any new knit styles you encounter. Measuring the stretch can also help you to combat problems with stitching the back of stretch-to-fit hats or Though this particular backing is far from the worst I’ve seen, it’s certainly stiff. Imagine those six fabric layers where the panels’ edges are rolled under and covered with tape, and you can see why the centre seam causes so many problems with stiff crown support material by hooping knit materials too tightly, over-stretching and ultimately increasing warping, even if design registration benefits. As stitching marries the design area to the stabiliser, the material under the design is trapped in a state where it is stretched beyond the natural stretch it would experience on a head. When the hat is unhooped, it rebounds to its natural state, rippling, wrinkling and distorting as the free material gathers around the stitched-down design. For the best worn-look, you can mitigate this by ‘measuring the stretch’. With your cap on an average-sized mannequin head or willing co-worker with a normally- sized noggin, you can find a happy medium of stretch for hooping. Here’s how it’s done: first, choose a even stretchy exercisewear. Simply make two marks with a removable fabric marker or chalk and execute the same measurement to find out by how much the material will stretch when worn, then hoop accordingly. Stitch structurally This requires help from your digitiser, but it’s well worth the trouble as it fixes so many knit hat headaches. Mastering knit hats means keeping them stable, taming their texture and avoiding design elements sinking into their loft – all of which can be aided or achieved through structural underlay. For simple, thick-stroked lettering or satins, a one-two punch of edge- walk or contour underlay followed by zigzag or double zigzag underlay will do wonders. Edge-walk secures the hat to the stabiliser and provides a ‘rail’ for the edges of the zigzags and top-stitching to ‘grab’, making edges look cleaner. The zigzag compresses the hat somewhat, holding back the texture while lifting top stitching away from the knit. For detailed designs, unsupported text, open elements, thin strokes or any design that suffers through interacting with the furrows in the knit, a light mesh underlay in the garment colour provides excellent support. Some digitisers use full-density fills to flatten knits, but this method is lighter and more efficient. Create a shape under your design, extending just beyond its edges. Fill that shape at a 45° angle with a tatami or fill stitch, with its lines of stitching spaced at 2mm rather than full four points/0.4mm coverage. Replicate that shape directly atop the first with an opposing 135° angle fill placing its start As you can see from these distributor samples, with a large enough direct order, you can both avoid decorating stiff hats and benefit from them having been decorated pre-construction. Peak embroidery and all-over embroidery and printing are just a couple of the possibilities open to you This tough hat is about to be tamed by the judicious application of steam. There are many ways to soften a hat, from heat pressing and heat guns, to pounding the seam with a plastic mallet. I prefer a less hands-on approach, but some hats require a lot of intervention