Embroidering t-shirts?

[WeAreAllBourgeoisNow]

Hello again!

I'm thinking of embroidering some t-shirts for dd, but need some advice!

What's that stuff that's ironed onto the back of the emroidery (inside of the T-shirt) to prevent the threads irritating the skin? I know it has a proper name but can't search for it if I don't know what it is!

Also, does anyone have any experience of embroidering onto stretchy fabric like jersey t-shirt material? All I've embroidered before is felt and stiff cotton, so not sure if I need something to put on the t-shirt before I embroider?

Any help?? :)

I do machine embroidery onto t shirts, and its one of those jobs that causes much gnashing of teeth, to be honest.

I cover the backs of any embroidery with a light iron on stabiliser...seems to work fine. As for embroidering onto the fabric, I have to use a couple of layers of stitch n tear plus spray adhesive (temporary) to get the material to stay in the hoop. My machine tension also needs to be a little looser to stop the bottom threads pulling up to the top.

Ignore all that if you're not embroidering by machine

I haven't done it, but I have a book that has instructions for how to do it. It's called "Making Stuff for Kids", published by the Guardian. I could scan the page in and mail it to you if you like?

(PS Are you a McCarthy fan or a Manics fan? Or both?)

EddieV - I'll be hand embroidering! I think I have some stitch & tear I bought years ago.

Mechanical - yes, a Manics fan (but McCarthy are pretty cool too!)!

Thanks :)

EddieV gave such a practical advice! I would use some soft cotton fabric to cover the back of the embroidery, this might help to reduce the friction. Well, guess it do not work so effectively recently.

I use iron on tricot interfacing to cover the back of the embroidery when it is rough. I don't think you would need that for hand embroidery though.

I've used something called "skin soft" before that irons on. It's similar to this