You've seen other motorcycle riders with patches all over their jackets, but if you're new to riding, you may not know how to add these patches or where to even get them. While you may be able to find a few in a department store, most bikers get their embroidered patches from specialty shops and stores that cater for bikers. Others buy their patches online, where there's a much larger selection. However, once you have your patches, you have to attach them somehow. There are two different ways of doing this, and each has its pros and cons.
The easiest way to attach your biker patches is to iron them on. This takes very little time at all. You heat up your iron, position the patch where you want it, and press the iron to it. The heat melts the plastic backing on the patch, attaching it to the item. While it's quick and easy, there are a couple of downsides. First, you can't use this method on leather clothing because the heat will ruin leather. Second, once a patch is attached using this method, it's permanent. You can't remove it later and put it on something else.
The other way of adding embroidered patches to your clothing is to sew them on. Most patches feature die cut borders just for this purpose. These borders are all one color, which means no matter how many colors are in the patch, you only need to use thread in the color of the border to sew the patch on. The downside here is that this takes much longer than the iron on method, and it can be difficult to do if your clothing is made from thick material. On the other hand, sewn on patches can be removed without damaging the item and can be reused.
