This is the greatest assistant I have. On the right, I've drawn a simple image of my hooper helper. They are basically made of wood (1/2" pine or plywood, well sanded ) but we did make one out of plexiglass one time. We have two of these in our shop as sometimes we are using them on different products. For example, on one machine we could be running names on sleeves of jackets and on another we could be running hat backs. The reason it is 6" wide is to enable us to use it as a base for our 18 cm hoop. We also have one that is 4" wide for use on smaller items (youth jackets for example).

What you do is slide the helper under the area where you want the embroidery to go. You then slide your hoop in on top of the helper and use it as a solid base. If you're doing sleeves, it just fits easily inside the sleeve and allows for easy smoothing of the material, placement of backing and very easy hooping. We sometimes attach the helper to a table or edge of embroidery machine with a carpenters quick release grip available at any hardware store (Quick-grip Bar Clamp). We use this mostly for embroidering on the back of hats. Without a doubt, this is the most commonly used attachment in our shop.

In the following posts, I'll be expanding upon it's other uses and other products used in a similar fashion.