help hooping knit caps

[olivia]

can someone tell me what type of backing, and what font looks good with knit caps.we wear in new england in the winter.

[Barbara Bunker]

Good Times is a great font. For knits I add center walk and double zigzag underlay. Nylon mesh works great as a stabilizer. solvy on top.

Barb in Broomfield, CO

[signman]

I run batches for a local stone/gravel company. The wide knit sanmar 'beanies. We set up the speed frame to run a roll of 4" wide tearaway, and cut solvy into 3-4" wide strips to avoid waste.
I also do them for Boy Scouts with the fleur-de-lis
logo and lettering. Use a small 'wedge' clamp (off the WACF hat hoop) to hold one end of the tearaway on the frame-slide the hat (inside out) over the frame to line up. Slide your strip of solvy across and clamp the frame, then pop off the wedge clamp. Then pull the sides of the hat 'out' to get the 'ribs'of the knit back into parallel lines. Keep the embroidery about 1/2" above the bottom of the hat, and no more than 2" high. When you flip the hat inside out-your logo is now on the folded hem facing out.
Run the presser foot so it just kisses the knit and you don't get false thread breaks (might take some experimenting for this). I set it to auto and don't worry about what it does. Lettering and logos expand your pull comp, 120% or so (again, experiment and when you get what you want, sew a sample and write down all your settings!)
when the hat is done, open the speedframe, and pull the solvy off from one side to the other-don't cut it off. Reach underneath and yank the tearaway out, don't cut it off. Now set the tearaway so where it 'tore' is on one side of the speed frame, clamp it down. Set the next hat in place, do the same with the solvy-don't waste it, you only need enough solvy to hold it under the frame-that's why you don't need to cut it.
I found we 'cut our usage' of backing and solvy by 75% doing this!
While the next one sews, take the first one, pull off all the large pieces of tearaway and solvy, then put your hands inside the hat and spread it right out...and the tearaway pieces practically fall off by themselves-very little time spent picking out each tiny piece. No visible backing left, solvy on the front use a damp cloth and just 'wipe' off pieces that won't fall off.
Now you have a knit beanie that doesn't act like there is a huge solid patch sewn in the front!