Use the embroidery editing software of your choice to create a text design with one of our fonts specifically digitized for use with puffy foam.

TIP: BX files are included with purchase for use with Embrilliance software.

Hoop your fabric or item with the appropriate stabilizer for the material you are embroidering.

Use a piece of foam similarly colored to the embroidery thread you are going to use. In the sample below, we used Sulky’s 3mm Puffy Foam in purple.

Sulky Puffy Foam is currently available in 12 colors in two thicknesses (2mm and 3mm).

We recommend using puffy foam that is specifically designed for use with embroidery machines, because it has been tested to be safe for machine embroidery and tears away cleanly. If you use craft foam, you may find it to be more difficult to remove.

Lay a piece of foam over the area to be embroidered. To minimize waste, consider the overall dimensions of the text design you have created and cut a piece of foam a bit larger than that rectangle. In the example, we cut the foam approximately 2” x 6” and laid the foam in the same orientation as the design, using the hoop template to make sure the foam was centered.

TIP: You may want to add a basting box to your design for accurate placement.

Stitch the text design directly on top of the puffy foam.

Trim any jump stitches that were not cut by your machine.

Very carefully tear away the foam from the perimeter of the text design.

Use tweezers to remove any small pieces of foam that didn’t tear away, such as the area inside the hole of a letter.

If any “pokies” remain, you can use heat to make them shrink inside the stitching. A hair dryer, heat gun, or steam iron held over the foam (but not touching the foam) will work.

Step back and admire your work!