I had someone call and ask for this. So Cathy, this is for you. But it’s also information for other people who might want it.

Bobbin work is stitching done upside down with thick thread in the bobbin. It sounds hard. It’s not.

How thick? Usually, I use thread that’s either 5-8 weight for bobbin work. Pearl cotton comes in a million colors in those weights. There are thick metallic threads as well: YLI’s Candelight, Superior’s Razzle Dazzle, and Madeira’s Glamor are all 8 # threads and are beautiful in bobbin work.

I do my bobbin work free motion, because I can draw with it. It builds up images quickly because the thread fills in faster being thick. If you would like more information about free motion bobbin work, look at Bobbin Work Stitch Vocabulary for a short tutorial.

Here’s some basic information on Bobbin Work from the Stitch Vocabulary Book

Settings for decorative stitching

But what if you want to use all those cool decorative stitches on your machine? You can do that! It’s not that hard, but there are differences.

Leave your feed dogs up!

Use an applique foot that gives you some room for the thicker stitching.

Pick stitches that have no zigzag in them. Zigzag stitches are more likely to jam. Instead, stitches formed from straight stitch will work much better.

Try them out. Different size stitches may look very different. I’ve prepped some pieces of plain muslin with a backing of Decor Bond to stabilize them. I’m working from the back.

This works for most machines. I wrap the end of the thread around my bobbin, twist the thread around the winding pin and hold the thread in my hand. That way I can wind bobbins from threads in odd put-ups and reels. And I don’t need to rethread my top thread.

Stitching

Turn your piece on to the back.

Take your first stitch holding on to both top and bobbin thread so it doesn’t jam.

Go slowly until you know how your stitch will work.

If it jams, cut the bobbin thread at the end of the stitching and then you can pull the piece away from the machine safely

I recommend making a little booklet of your practice sheets. You can do that by sewing them together and binding the edge with bias binding.

Hope this helps!