Quick way to remove embroidery?

February 29, 2008 6:13 PM

Quick way to remove embroidery?

Anyone know a quick and clean way to remove embroidery, such as logos on hats and clothes?

I do it by using tweezers or a needle and breaking the thread from the backside but this takes hours and my hands get cramped up.

Thanks~

posted by 0217174 to clothing, beauty, & fashion (12 answers total)

Seam ripper?
posted by [NOT HERMITOSIS-IST] at 6:24 PM on February 29, 2008

Using a seam ripper is not exactly quick but probably easier on your hands than tweezers or a needle. You slip under the thread and push forward and the seam ripper cuts the thread. Depending on how tight the sewing, sometimes you can just cut every other or every third thread and then they will easily pull out. Sometimes you just have to cut each and every one.
posted by metahawk at 6:28 PM on February 29, 2008

Oh yeah, I forgot about those things.. used to use my mom's lol.
posted by 0217174 at 6:32 PM on February 29, 2008

Peggy's Stitch Eraser is not cheap but is made for the job.
posted by Fins at 6:34 PM on February 29, 2008

My mom used to use a thing that looked like a thimble, except that it had a rather wicked hooked blade attached to it. You put it over your index finger and use it to cut stitches you don't want; works fast, works easy.

I have no idea what it might be called, however, so I can't find anything to link to.
posted by Class Goat at 7:10 PM on February 29, 2008

Keep in mind that if it's a garment that's been through some washings and wearings, the fabric beneath the embroidery may be darker than the surrounding material. And yes, a seam ripper works well.
posted by mumkin at 7:10 PM on February 29, 2008

nail scissors are great, too.
posted by thinkingwoman at 8:34 PM on February 29, 2008

Holy crap... that sounds.. so very tedious!! I have super freakin' sharp thread snips, and I just touch the tips to whatever I want gone, open and close them a few times, pull the loose threads away and see what's left... Rinse and repeat. I thought that was a PITA! :)
posted by mu~ha~ha~ha~har at 2:59 AM on March 1, 2008

I feel your pain, I have a really cute cap, with a really stupid logo. I have used a really sharp blade to slit through the front, and then run something like a toothpick under from the other side, pulling up the stitches so I can pinch them out in bunches. The problem is that the stitch holes are still really visible even though the fabric colour is the same under. I am going to try batter it a little to disguise this.
posted by Iteki at 3:46 AM on March 1, 2008

Looking at that stitch-eraser I am wondering if a cheap beard/hair trimmer might do the job in the same way?
posted by Iteki at 4:03 AM on March 1, 2008

My mom does a lot of machine embroidery, and she apparently uses a disposable razor to remove mistakes. Gently shave across the stitches until most of them are broken. Then you can pick them out.

Google also tells me something called a serger ripper might be useful.
posted by Squeak Attack at 7:22 AM on March 1, 2008

Check out stitch cutters: high-speed seam rippers for the skilled and fearless.
posted by dpcoffin at 10:43 AM on March 1, 2008