Table of Contents
Watch the video: “How to Embroider on a Sun Hat” by Bernina of Naperville.
Sun, straw, and a stitch of personality—this quick project turns a plain sun hat into a polished summer statement. If you’ve ever wondered how to embroider a design on a brim you can’t hoop, this tutorial shows you how with a water-soluble sticky stabilizer and thoughtful machine setup.
What you’ll learn
- How to choose and hoop a water-soluble sticky stabilizer for items you can’t hoop directly
- How to adhere a straw hat brim to the stabilizer and keep it flat
- How to use virtual positioning to confirm placement before stitching
- Why to match bobbin and top thread when both sides are visible
- How to baste, stitch, and soak away stabilizer for a clean finish
Introduction: Elevate Your Summer Style! A resort-ready hat doesn’t have to be store-bought fancy. In this project, you’ll embroider a one-color motif (the video uses a seahorse) on the brim of a straw sun hat. It’s approachable, practical, and relies on the magic of an adhesive, water-soluble stabilizer to create a hoop-free hold while you stitch.
Why Embroider a Sun Hat? The brim of a sun hat is tricky to hoop and stiff to maneuver, but it’s a perfect canvas for a small motif. The solution here is a sticky, water-soluble stabilizer that sticks to the brim during embroidery and disappears in water afterward. Because hat brims show on both sides, you’ll see why the tutorial matches the bobbin and top thread for a finished look on the underside. As you consider alternatives, remember this method is built around adhesive stabilizer—not magnetic frames—though those can be useful in other contexts. magnetic embroidery hoops
What You’ll Learn in This Tutorial You’ll prep Aqua Mesh Plus, mount the hat to the sticky surface, and use your machine’s virtual positioning to make sure the design lands exactly where you want it—then baste, stitch, and wash away the evidence (the stabilizer, that is). The video demonstrates this workflow on a BERNINA machine, but the technique applies broadly when you have a compatible embroidery module and the right stabilizer.
Gather Your Materials and Tools The Perfect Stabilizer: Why Aqua Mesh Plus is Key The star of this method is Aqua Mesh Plus—an adhesive, water-soluble stabilizer. It offers a firm, sticky platform that acts like a temporary “hoop” for items that shouldn’t or can’t be hooped directly (like a sun hat brim). After stitching, most residue peels away, and the rest dissolves in water, leaving both sides of the hat pristine.
Pro tip If you’ll see the underside (you will, on a hat brim), match bobbin and top thread so both sides look equally polished. This is explicitly called out in the tutorial.
Choosing Your Thread and Design The project is stitched in a single color (navy). The presenter threads navy on top and in the bobbin for a two-sided finish. The specific seahorse design file isn’t named in the video, so choose a compact, one-color design you own and love. When you want to explore alternative holding methods for other projects—not this one—consider purpose-built frames by brand; for instance, BERNINA users sometimes explore accessories separate from this technique. bernina magnetic hoops
Essential Tools for the Job You’ll need a cutting mat and rotary cutter to trim the stabilizer, and a large embroidery hoop to tension the stabilizer. The machine shown is a BERNINA B 880 PLUS, but any BERNINA with embroidery and the correct stabilizer method can do this (as echoed in the comment replies). If you’re shopping accessories for other workflows, there are third-party options not used here—choose brand-compatible versions if you go that route later. magnetic hoops for bernina embroidery machines
Quick check Before you begin, make sure your hat can be safely soaked. Water is required to dissolve the stabilizer completely.
Step 1: Preparing Your Hoop Cutting the Stabilizer Cut Aqua Mesh Plus to fit your large hoop. The video uses the hoop itself as a visual guide, trimming a piece slightly larger than the inner ring so it can be hooped taut.
Hooping for a Sticky Surface Hoop the stabilizer with its paper (shiny) backing facing up. The goal is drum-tight tension—no sags or ripples—so the sticky surface remains uniformly supportive once you peel the paper. If it isn’t tight, re-hoop before moving on.
Watch out Don’t rush hooping. Loose stabilizer equals a wavy stitch-out, especially on a rigid straw texture.
Step 2: Mounting the Hat (No-Hoop Method!) Exposing the Adhesive Peel away the paper backing to expose the adhesive mesh. You now have a sticky, water-soluble surface inside the hoop.
Placing and Securing Your Hat Lay the hat brim flat on the adhesive, smoothing from center outward to avoid bubbles or wrinkles. Press firmly so the brim stays bonded during basting and embroidery. If you misplace it, gently lift and re-position before you stitch.
From the comments A viewer asked about flat-brim western hats. The channel notes this technique can help in theory, but it’s not a general-purpose doctrine for other brimmed hats because you must wash out the sticky stabilizer; a stiffer hat may also require a different needle. If you try it, test on an inexpensive hat first.
Step 3: Machine Setup and Design Placement Threading for a Two-Sided Finish Thread the machine with the same navy thread on top and in the bobbin so the underside of the brim looks as refined as the top. This is key when both sides remain visible.
Adjusting Your Tension Increase upper tension slightly—about 3.5 in the video—to balance stitches with matching top and bobbin thread. A small tweak here helps prevent bobbin show-through and ensures the underside looks clean.
Using Virtual Positioning for Perfect Placement Load your design, then use virtual positioning to walk the needle to key points (corners or perimeter checkpoints) and confirm the design fits where you intend on the brim. This feature doesn’t change the design by itself; it moves the needle so you can verify boundaries. If needed, nudge the on-screen design slightly to sit closer to the brim’s edge while staying clear of the hat’s crown area.
Pro tip When using virtual positioning, touch away from the design when you’re simply moving the needle to check points; that prevents accidental design shifts.
Sidebar thought Magnetic frames are popular for hard-to-hoop items in many machine families, but this project relies on adhesive, water-soluble stabilizer because it must wash out cleanly. If you experiment later with brand-specific snap-style frames for other projects, match them to your model and follow your machine maker’s guidance. dime snap hoop
Step 4: The Magic of Stitching The Importance of a Basting Stitch Select the machine’s basting function and stitch a temporary rectangle around the design area. Run the basting slowly and keep the hat flat with your hands; this locks the brim to the stabilizer and prevents shifting when the denser stitches begin.
Embroidering Your Design Start the embroidery and let the machine fill the design. The presenter keeps things simple with one color. The straw texture stitches cleanly with this setup when the brim remains flat and supported. If you encounter a thread break, re-thread and resume.
From the comments On needles and thread: a size 90 embroidery needle was used by the presenter, and “any thread will work,” depending on thread weight and the straw. If you’re exploring alternate holding systems for other projects—not this one—be sure they’re compatible with your machine model. bernina magnetic embroidery hoop
What good looks like As the design fills, you should see consistent coverage without puckering or tunneling. The texture of straw will show through the stitching slightly, giving a crisp, dimensional look.
Quick check
- Is the brim still flat under the needle, without bowing?
- Are stitches balanced on top and bottom?
- Is the design staying clear of the hat’s raised crown?
Watch out Straw can be grippy. Don’t tug the hat while the machine is stitching; adjust only when stopped.
When the stitching finishes You’ll see a completed design still nested in the hoop, with the basting box surrounding it.
Step 5: Finishing Touches Removing the Basting Stitches Remove the hoop from the machine and pull the basting stitches out. Take care not to snag the straw while picking the corners.
Washing Away the Stabilizer for a Clean Finish Gently peel up what you can of the Aqua Mesh Plus from around the design. Then soak to dissolve the remaining stabilizer fully—this is what leaves the brim neat on both sides with no visible film. After drying, the hat is ready to wear.
Results to expect A crisp, one-color motif with clean edges, balanced tension, and a neat underside thanks to the matched bobbin thread.
From the comments: FAQs and field notes
- Can I do this on a BERNINA 770 QE with the embroidery module? Yes—any BERNINA machine with embroidery can do it, provided you use the correct stabilizer technique.
- What needle and thread are best? The presenter used a size 90 embroidery needle and notes that any embroidery thread can work, depending on the straw and thread weight.
- What about very stiff, flat-brim western hats? This approach can help, but it’s not ideal as a general doctrine for all brimmed hats because the sticky stabilizer needs to be washed out. Stiffer materials may also want a different needle. Test on an inexpensive hat first.
- Could this work on a straw purse? The video doesn’t specify; if you try it, confirm the item can be safely soaked and practice on a similar, low-cost piece first.
Troubleshooting cheat-sheet
- Design seems too close to the crown area? Use virtual positioning to move the needle around the perimeter and nudge the design away from any raised areas.
- Hat shifted during basting? Slow down and keep the brim flat with your hands; re-baste if needed.
- Puckering? Re-hoop the stabilizer tighter, double-check tension (about 3.5 in the demo), and ensure the brim is adhered smoothly.
- Visible bobbin on the underside? Match bobbin and top thread to keep both sides looking identical.
Alternatives and add-ons (for other projects) While this project hinges on an adhesive water-soluble stabilizer, some embroiderers use brand-specific snap or magnetic frames for other hard-to-hoop items. If you go that route on a compatible machine family, choose model-matched accessories. For BERNINA users exploring accessory ecosystems for different projects, ensure you’re selecting hardware designed for your machine series before experimenting. snap hoop monster for bernina
Need a quick vocabulary pass?
- Aqua Mesh Plus: A water-soluble stabilizer with a sticky surface; it’s hooped and then the paper backing is peeled to expose the adhesive.
- Virtual Positioning: A feature that moves the needle to points on your design so you can verify placement on the material.
- Basting Box: A large temporary rectangle stitched around the design to hold the item firmly in place.
Project recap
- Hoop Aqua Mesh Plus with paper side up and make it drum-tight.
- Peel the paper to reveal the adhesive and press the hat brim flat onto it.
- Match top and bobbin thread; set upper tension to about 3.5.
- Use virtual positioning to confirm placement; nudge if needed.
- Baste slowly while keeping the brim flat; then embroider.
- Remove basting, peel what you can of the stabilizer, and soak away the rest.
Beyond the brim: thoughtful experimentation If you’re eyeing similar no-hoop projects, keep two rules in mind: the item must tolerate soaking, and both sides may be visible. That’s why this method shines on a sun hat brim. For different projects or machine accessory paths, evaluate options specific to your brand and model, and always test first. bernina magnetic hoop
Shopping note for accessory explorers This tutorial doesn’t use magnetic frames, but many embroiderers keep a short list of brand-compatible options in their toolkit for other projects. When you research, look for correct model fit and installation guidance from the manufacturer or dealer. magnetic hoop for bernina
And if you’re comparing cross-brand ecosystems for non-hat projects down the line, focus on verified compatibility and use cases described by the maker or trusted dealers. dime snap hoop bernina
Happy stitching! With a single color, a smart stabilizer, and careful placement, you’ll turn a simple straw hat into your signature summer piece.