Embroider a Linen Blouse

Blouse purchased for $9

This linen blouse is ‘naked’; plain, a little boring and it’s perfect to embellish to personalize it. Let’s add some extra value to the blouse by adding some embroidery! The weave is quite open so it is necessary to avoid seeing the stabilizer through the fabric. I opted for Madeira’s Super Film, which is a heavier stabilizer which dissolves with the heat of the iron.

Janome Canada is an importer of Madeira stabilizers, so they’re conveniently available from Janome Canada Dealers.

Notice the small dots on the back of the stabilizer which makes it rough and it is this side that must touch the fabric. That added texture helps grip the fabric to keep in place, but it’s also part of the magic construction of this disappearing stabilizer. It is inserted into the hoop along with the fabric to be embroidered.

Fabric and stabilizer in the hoop, taken from the underside.

When the embroidery is finished, the excess stabilizer must be removed; it can be cut away, then the embroidery piece ironed. The heat of the iron melts the stabilizer which forms small balls of dust. Do not worry, this operation leaves no trace on the soleplate of the iron.

Remove the excess stabilizer by cutting away what you don’t need, then press the backside of the embroidery with a hot iron to dissolve the remainder of the stabilizer.

The embroidery is finished. The result is perfect and the fabric is flat and free of puckers. I chose light, open patterns which are quite airy and are all from the same family of designs.

Embroidery pattern integrated into the Janome Continental M17.

Stitching of the yoke and decorative stitching around the collar adds a unique designer touch.

I also stitched the yoke seams in the front and back with a triple stitch so that the seams were more apparent. Since the Janome Continental M17 offers new stitch categories, I chose a pattern from the “Botanical” category to enhance the collar. I used a tone-on-tone rayon thread.

Pay attention to the buttons in the first photo; they are common and slightly thick, so I changed them to more delicate mother-of-pearl buttons. The seven buttons were sewn with the Janome Button Sewing Foot (T) and its specific function in the “Buttonhole” category. Sewing a button on by machine is such a time saver!

Sewing buttons with the Janome Button Sewing Foot (T) foot and the built-in Button Sewing function many Janome machines.

I pushed the coquetry by adding new small patterns, which are built-in to the machine, between the buttonholes… WOW!!! They make the shirt come alive!

Small personalized summer blouse which is now UNIQUE!!!

Janome Canada is a distributor of Madeira stabilizer so check with any Janome Canada dealer for the fabulous Madeira Super Film, and other Madeira stabilizers. They play such an integral role in any embroidery project.

Happy Sewing!