Tubular Embroidery
Embroidery performed on tubular garments and items (sleeves, pant legs, finished hats, socks) using a sash arm or tubular fitting.
Tubular embroidery is any stitching done on a closed loop of fabric, such as a sleeve, pant leg, sock, or already-sewn finished garment. The garment is slipped over a sash arm (the metal extension that holds the hoop) so that only the layer being embroidered passes under the needle. The opposite side of the tube hangs below the sash, out of the way.
Commercial multi-head embroidery machines have a tubular configuration where the sash arms extend forward from each needle head. The operator slides the garment over the arm, secures it in a hoop or clamp at the embroidery area, and stitches without sewing the back of the garment to the front.
Most commercial embroidery (polos, t-shirts, jackets, hats, bags) is technically tubular because the garments are pre-sewn finished items. The alternative is flat embroidery on unsewn cut panels, which is done in some apparel manufacturing pipelines but is less common in custom-decoration shops.
Tubular fittings come in different diameters for different garments. Standard sleeve hoops are smaller diameter than body hoops. Specialty tubular setups exist for narrow items like socks and pant cuffs. A shop that handles diverse work keeps a range of tubular fittings on hand for each machine.
Related Terms
- Flat Embroidery →
- Embroidery performed on a flat panel of fabric, typically before the garment is sewn together or on items that lie flat in a hoop.
- Embroidery Hoop →
- A two-piece circular or rectangular frame that holds the fabric and stabilizer taut during embroidery.
- Hooping →
- The process of clamping a garment and stabilizer in an embroidery hoop to hold them flat and stable for stitching.
- Cap Frame →
- A specialized curved hooping system designed to hold hats and caps on an embroidery machine for stitching on the curved front panel.
- Multi-Head Machine →
- A commercial embroidery machine with multiple sewing heads operating in parallel, each stitching the same design on a separate garment simultaneously.