Love it or loathe it, the fact is that the majority of sport shown on television is football and, although none of the home nations have qualified for the upcoming European Championship, the interest in the game is bound to increase.  Many of Europe's soccer stars are revered by fans young and old with many wanting to emulate their heroes, and the easiest way to show support for a team or an individual is by copying them in what they do or how they appear.

Wearing a replica shirt, for instance, is probably the most obvious one but a trend that has grown amongst players over the past few years is to have their boots embroidered. This is usually done on the tongue, the side of the boot or both and is usually their initials or, more commonly, their number. The close-ups of free kicks and penalties give the viewer an excellent view of this and, of course, they can be clearly seen in publicity shots etc. The fans see it, the fans want it, so this type of embroidery has increased in popularity at street level too.

Holding the boot on the machine

Embroiderers have always shown themselves to be inventive and so some set about solving the problem of holding the boot in on the machine. Some of the ideas worked whilst others had more earning potential for technicians repairing the machines than for the embroiderer. Don't despair though as a simple solution already exists.

The problem with embroidering an item like a boot is not with the area you are embroidering but, rather, with the area that you are not. Most machines these days are tubular so when embroidering the tongue you have to support the rest of the boot. If this is not done then it may start to move on the machine, resulting in a ruined boot. Remember that in most cases the boots will belong to your customer who will not be pleased if you ruin a £120 pair of boots.

Ideally the boot needs to be clamped onto the machine, which is where the clamp frame supplied by Your Embroidery Services Ltd. comes into use. The system is designed to handle a variety of difficult-to-frame products such as horse blankets and boots, and has interchangeable frames of different shapes and sizes. Two of the frames available were originally designed to embroider the side of caps but also work very well with boots, allowing the embroiderer to easily decorate the tongue and/or the side of the boot.

The system is very simple and will fit onto any of the major machines in just the same way as any other hoop. Unlike standard quick change style frames where you have two in constant use, the clamp frame stays on the machine so you only need one. The item to be embroidered is slid into the open clamp which is then snapped shut. The jaws of the clamp are coated with a soft grip surface which adequately holds the item during embroidery. When it is finished the clamp is opened and the finished embroidery removed with the next one slid into place ready to be embroidered. With little or no risk of movement, the results are consistently good and high productivity is easily attained and maintained.

There are of course many other ways to hold a boot on an embroidery machine but there can be few that offer such ease of use and security. Yes, there is a cost implication but, as with all things in business, it is not about how much something costs, but how much profit it can generate.

If you are regularly embroidering boots or any other difficult to frame items, clamp framing has to be worth looking at.

If you would like more information about Clamp Frames contact Your Embroidery Services Ltd on 01623 863343 or e-mail sales@yesltd.co.uk

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