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    Cap types in machine embroidery

    By Irina, in Machine embroidery materials and technology, , 0 comments, 5,095 views
    Original text by Marina Belova 
    If one examines closely all the information on the subject of machine embroidery on the Web, one could notice that nearly half of it concerns creating and embroidering the designs on baseball caps. You can read so many things about them that one can but marvel how open people are about their work, how they just go ahead and share their experience with others. Therefore, I abandoned embroidery with sequins for a while. After all, a not very successful experiment must work itself out in my head. So I decided to turn my attention to caps instead. All the moreso, I've already begun to take steps in that direction. 
    There are more that a few places for embroidery on baseball caps. Traditionally they are as follows: 
    front panel  back panel under strap  side  peak  on the strap that serves to regulate the cap size  From all appearances, one should approach embroidery on baseball caps from afar. First, you need to find out what types of caps are in existence, and what are the key differences between them. 
    Surprisingly, it turned out that there is a huge variety of caps in the world. It is because I myself don't wear them, I've remained in the dark until now. But when you start working with them, this kind of knowledge will be of great importance not only for hooping, but for choosing the right kinds of needles and stabilizers, and creating the designs as well. 
    Caps differ in the number of panels of which they consist. The most popular is the 6-panel cap with a seam at the front. But at the same time it is the hardest to embroider because of that seam. 
    This is how it looks from the side: 

    This is how it looks from the front: 

    Some 6-panels are easier to embroider. They differ from the traditional cap in that the panels on it are twisted, and there are 2 seams at the front — to the right and to the left from the center: 


    This type of 6-panel is preferable because most of the designs are embroidered in the center so that if its size is not big, nothing will prevent it from being embroidered correctly. 
    But the easiest to embroider is a 5-panel cap with 2 front panels joined into one so that there is no seam, so inconvenient for embroidery. 

    All of the caps have a sweatband on the underside, which helps to join the panels together, and that is usually being folded back and out of the way during the embroidery so that it does not get stitched. 



    Some caps are also reinforced from at the front with the help of special materials (you can see that on the photo above). Such a material can be hard or soft. Some models don't have any reinforcement and don't have anything on the underside except for the band tying the panels together. 
    One should also pay attention to the thickness of the seams between the panels. Some of them are so thick that you don't know how to embroider on them at all. 
    Additionally, the caps differ from each other by the look of their back side, where the adjustment strap is located. Some models don't have any strap at all. 
    An embroiderer should pay close attention to the cap height. There are the following types: 
    High-profile caps are the easiest to hooping. The gray cap on the very first photo is an example.  Mid-profile caps — see the second beige cap in this article.  Low-profile caps can be seen in the photo below: 
    I've even read that the low-profile caps call for the special hooping devices that are of a lesser height than the ordinary ones. But I haven't seen any of such frames — the ones that come with the machine are almost of the same in height. 
    Besides the cap appearance, you should also look at the fabric of which the cap is made. A variety of materials can be used, from the hard and coarse ones to the soft and stretchy. There are caps made of woven fabrics (cotton, linen, polyester, wool and so on), including knitwear, and even fabrics with the padding, and the ones made of non-woven fabrics (leather and its substitutes). The surface can be smooth or piled (velvets, velours). 
    All of these parameters will determine how to work with baseball caps. After all, not everyone has the possibility of embroidering on the cap parts prior to sewing them up, there are occurrences when you have to embroidery on the ready item. 

    Troubles with the embroidery machine when doing Photo Stitch

    By Irina, in Machine embroidery materials and technology, , 0 comments, 2,485 views
    Original text by Marina Belova 
    Sometimes I embroider portraits. I usually do that on the Velles 15 because I have this little flat frame from the Tajima machine that cannot be inserted into Velles 19. Therefore, I do not have a choice which one of the machines to use. During the embroidery process 3 problems always occur: 
    Trimming (the machine does not trim the threads, and there are so many trims that I sometimes don't know what to do). 
    After the trimming, the thread comes out of the needle. Taking into account the number of trims, it is a disaster.  About 50 or 60 thousand stitches (the machines stops correctly with the main shaft at 100°) the presser foot does not raise anymore. On the photo below I encircled the control panel together with the main shaft indicator and thread take-up lever (I believe that's the proper word for it) in the same position, and the foot is at the bottom, only slightly raised above the fabric surface:  The funniest thing is that when I take the portrait out and embroider something ordinary, nothing like that ever happens, even if there is a lot of trims. 
    I don't try to solve neither first nor second problem. The first because I haven't yet got to the trimming knives and the information on how to adjust them. About the second I tried to tell in my previous article. Just now I was meddling with the options on the control panel, and things seem to have improved, but I'll just observe for some time before rushing into battle with the picker. In order not to be preoccupied, I just switch off the automatic trim and remove all the jump stitches manually. It's dreary but quicker than having to deal with trimming troubles (some of them are rather nasty — one day I'll tell about them) and keep inserting the thread into the needle. 
    The third problem is easily solved (I discovered it by trial and error): I lubricate this part of the machine two or three times during the embroidery — with the ordinary oil, not one or two drops but much more: 

    Though the 2 paragraph the user guide says that it should be lubricated once in three months, I pour oil into this opening at least once a week, even when there is no photo stitching. As the result not only the needle bar raises all the way, but there is much less noise, too. So, this brings up the question: is there something with the oil that it takes much more to lubricate the machine, or am I doing something wrong? 
    I am now looking at my Velles 19 and beginning to think that if there is no such opening there, problems like that surely won't occur? 

    If somebody has embroidered the designs with a huge number of trims on it, could you please share your opinion with us? 
    Actually, the information on lubricating the machine in both user guides is so scarce, and the pictures are so small, that this makes me uneasy.
    Especially when it comes to lubrication the machine with thick grease. 

    Reasons for the upper thread coming out of the needle

    By Irina, in Machine embroidery materials and technology, , 0 comments, 5,488 views
    Original text by Marina Belova 
    And again I will bore you with technical details  
    I'm gradually drawn to the conclusion that no two machines are alike: each has a unique aspect. 
    For example, my Velles 15 is known for two troubles: 
    The upper thread comes out of the needle after trimming. This does not happen every time, but often, especially when I embroider with polyester threads, which is very unpleasant because you have to stop whatever you're doing and run to the machine. 
    The upper thread is not always trimmed. The lower thread is trimmed all right, but not the upper. My machine has had this problem from the very beginning: sometimes it's not so bad and sometimes it can reduce me to tears. 
    I like a lot about Velles 19, but it's supply-failure detector is not working properly: it signals when the bobbin thread is long gone. So the design may go many stitches ahead before the upper thread won't get twisted and break as the result, and the detector signals at last. I will still have to see about that, all the more so because I've peeked into the books and understood that you don't have to call a serviceman for the preliminary diagnostic operation and troubleshooting. We can do some things by ourselves. As always, the most important thing is to know what you're doing. When I figure out what causes the trouble, I'll by all means write about it. 
    But back to performing the diagnostics on the Velles 15. There are more problems here, therefore, they are of greater importance. 
    So, according to the whole bunch of materials I've studied on the subject, it comes down to this: 
    First, we have to check the following possible reasons for the thread coming out of the needle, for they are the most obvious: 
    a. The upper thread tension being too tight. Check and adjust in case that this is it. I've written about it here at much greater length. But I dare the following: adjusting the upper thread tension on the Velles 15 is some fun. I even think of buying a new set of knobs so as not to wonder anymore why some are winding and some aren't, and why I can adjust this but not that. 
    b. Compensation spring is out of place. Not every machine has this tricky thing, I've written about it here. There are still no clear instructions on how to use it, to my profound regret. 
    c. Too short a thread tail after the trimming. I won't give instructions on that, but the length of the tail must be adjusted somehow. 
    If this didn't help, you need to check and adjust more complex units and mechanisms: 
    1. Picker
    In case somebody does not know, a picker is this thing marked by an arrow on the photo: 

    This is how it looks from the side: 

    Judging by the ancient Toyota machines guides, which, as rumor goes, were the first Velles progenitors, you need to check three parameters — that is if you find out that it works at all: 
    a. The clearance between the picker and the bobbin case should be about 0,5—1 mm in a stop position: 

    The "funniest" thing is that there is no such clearance in my Velles 15. The picker bumps up against the bobbin because there is nothing there to stop it. I delved into it. Basically, there is nothing so complex about this unit. In this case, a platform was provided for setting the gap correctly, which is held in place with these screws (circled in red): 

    Supposedly, when the machine makes a stop and trims the thread, the picker should bump up against this metal groove (circled in red) with its tip (a blue arrow) — correct me if I'm wrong: 
    I believe that this platform should be adjusted in some way (raise of fall) so that the user could set the gap correctly. BUT! As my husband said, those hands that made all this should be torn away. Broadly speaking, the problem is that the picker in the machine cannot be adjusted at all, there are no means of doing it. We have screwed the detail loose and tried even to turn it upside down, but it didn't work. Thus, in the way the machine is assembled now, the clearance between the platform and the tip is 1—1.5 mm! The tip doesn't bump up against anything, the bobbin itself restrains the picker: 

    The metal plate that was botched by the "professionals" cannot be neither turned nor shifted — in fact, you are not able to do anything with it. A replacement is needed. 
    This is how the things are: You solve one problem… and encounter a new one in the process. 
    Out of curiosity, I went to see how this thing was handled in Velles 19. It turned that everything was in order: there was a clearance between the picker and the bobbin, which could be adjusted, and everything was done neatly: 


    b. Then, by reference to the various sources, the picker position against the main shaft is usually checked — to see whether it hasn't shifted right or left. Or whether the shift didn't exceed 1 mm (my picker is off the center, you can see that with the naked eye without checking): 

    c. Then you should check the picker height in relation to the center of the bobbin at the same time. The height between the center and the upper point should be 7—9 mm. 

    But the servicemen persuaded not to check the last two things, but to confine myself to the clearance. This is easier, and more so because I can't even imagine with what to check this last parameter. But it seems clear how it can be adjusted. All you need is to loosen up the screws shown on the photo and set the necessary height — there are grooves for moving up and down: 

    There you have it, an important unit in the machine may cause problems with the thread coming out of needle. 
    2. The next unit to check is the thread take-up lever. Here it is in case somebody is not familiar with it: 

    Here you should make sure that: 
    a. The lever has not been damaged. 
    b. The lever puts the thread into the thread holder (the throat behind the needles, marked with an ordinary sticker). 
    These two options, too, were advised to me by the service engineers. Having read the materials from various sources (naturally!), I found out that I can adjust the hook myself, too. But this I haven't tried yet because it seems to be working properly. 
    Summary: I didn't solve the problem. But we have already thought what could be done in order to repair the picker and see where it would take us. 
    The more I embroider, the more I think that everybody should know their machine inside out. But who could teach us? 

    Machine embroidery techniques

    By Irina, in Machine embroidery materials and technology, , 1 comment, 3,849 views
    Original text by Marina Belova 
    Have you ever considered what exactly can you do on the embroidery machine? What can one do, which techniques and devices are known to us? After you begin to systematize your knowledge, you find out that machine embroidery has manifold possibilities. One cannot overlook that. 
    So, here is the classification of machine embroidery (the one that can be digitized), how I see it: 
    1. Ordinary machine embroidery — the embroidery without using any special devices or techniques: 
    Sole-colored embroidery — it has lots of varieties, from the cross stitch and to the redwork.  Multi-colored embroidery — from the simplest one to the cross stitch and color blends. 2. Employing a variety of embroidery techniques and with the help of our consumable materials: 
    Applique — no less than 10 varieties (raw-edge, free-standing, reverse, etc.)  Openwork embroidery (cutwork, pulled thread embroidery, and so on).  Free-standing embroidery — the one can function as an independent item — there are several types of it. Everyone's favorite FSL is also here.  Three-dimensional embroidery — no less that 5 variations, with and without the additional consumables (3D Puff, fillings and so on).  Quilt and trapunto  3. The kind of embroidery that requires extra machine embroidery devices or even the embroidery machines of special variety: 
    Boring — punching holes  Cording  Embroidery with ribbons  Chenille on special machines  Sequining — sewing on the sequins  I would also add the possibility of embroidering on caps, socks, pockets, ribbons and other ready garments with the help of additional devices. 
    Embroidery with beads — requires a special machine  Not so little as one might think. And that not to speak of the possibility of applying all the techniques on various fabrics. So there's a lot that could be done in terms of digitizing and technique. You can see the machine embroidered garments, kindly donated by our visitors, executed in various techniques in our Gallery and shop. 

    Dealing with sequins

    By Irina, in Machine embroidery materials and technology, , 1 comment, 5,866 views
    Original text by Marina Belova 
    Dealing with sequins is one of the blank spaces on my map of machine embroidery. And as I have to deal with them more and more often these days, I'm pushed into learning many new things. All of this because this topic is of the less researched. Nevertheless, our colleagues from China are ahead of the curve — as indeed is their custom — in using sequins in their designs. They of all people know how to digitize them properly.
    And I look on them with admiring envy for I haven't yet mastered this particular skill. 
    But as it is time for me to learn how to do this, I'll proceed to the theory. 
    It turned out that round sequins with a hole exactly in the center — you can see an ordinary Chinese-manufactured reel with such sequins on the photo below — are not the only ones: there are other varieties. 

    Sequins come in all shapes and sizes, from square to star-shaped ones. Besides, there are also sequins where the hole isn't centered. Just think about it, how much creative freedom this allows you! The main question is where to buy them. 
    Wilcom 2.0 sequin collection proves that they indeed come in a variety of shapes: 

    Later I'll photograph and show you how sequins of various shapes and sizes look in reality. 
    In theory, sequining is not at all difficult. You'll need a special device for it. What is extremely important — you should know how to adjust this device. Standard #40 threads are used for sewing sequins onto the fabric in most cases, and if you don't want to accentuate the sequins, select a monofilament yarn. 
    Machine embroidery design with sequins is easy to make — you'll only need to adjust several parameters, the most important of which are as follows: 
    The main parameter is sequin size. 
    The first adjustable parameter is the fix type. I.e. the way in which sequins will be attached to the fabric. The classic method is using the Y-stitch, which firmly holds the sequins and the fabric together: 

    Other ways of attaching sequins: 

    Which type to use depends on your embroidery software. In the Stitch Era editor there are the following types: 

    Which one of them to choose depends on the goal you want to achieve: you can create one design and change the fix type only, but not the thread and get different color when embroidering. The more threads cross the sequin, the more it abandons its own color, adopting the color of the thread instead. 
    The second adjustable parameter defines how far the next stitch will be from the sequin: 

    It is generally thought that if the distance will be excessive, the sequin won't sit tight. But I haven't found out what value is considered appropriate. Looks like I'll have to experiment a little. But if the next stitch begins right at the edge of the sequin, the resulting embroidery will be too stiff because such a short stitch will hold the sequin and the fabric together sure as death. 
    The third parameter determines the sequence of the sequins overlapping each other in the neighboring rows. 

    For example, Bonnie Nielsen considers the upper way incorrect and bad-looking. For me, it is a matter of opinions. 
    The fourth and the fifth parameters determine how far the sequins will be from one another in a single row and between different rows. 
    As for the sixth parameter, it determines which side of the sequin will be stitched down. When using the ordinary embroidery machine, the sequins should be stitched down on the north side, in order for preventing it from being shifted by the thread. Meaning, if you look at the sequining device from the top, you'll see that a sequin is situated below (south), the needle on top of it (north), and you sew it down from the other side, towards the feed. Wilcom even allows the users to adjust the angle at which the sequins will be attached (Set maximum allowable angle): 

    You can use the sequins in the following ways: 
    Set them along the line: 

    Fill the space with them (I can do in my Stitch Era along a straight or a curved line or in spirals): 

    Usually, you have almost no influence on the way the software transfers the contours onto the fabric. It will be as luck will have it. 
    You can add the sequined border to give the embroidery a nice finishing touch: 

    But some embroidery editors allow setting the standalone sequins in the places you need them. 
    This is all for now. But I have plans for the future: I'll show you how I did adjust the sequining device on my Chinese-manufactured machine, and the problems I encountered on the way. 

    What if the underthread keeps breaking?

    By Irina, in Machine embroidery materials and technology, , 1 comment, 3,253 views
    Original text by Marina Belova 
    This is another one of the educational articles on the subject of embroidery machine maintenance and solving minor problems without the help of a service engineer. 
    Does your underthread break often? I've only had some isolated cases. Consequently, I didn't gather any data on the subject and I never knew the reason for a situation like that. 
    But it turns out that if this happens you should do some checking. According to the official recommendations of the tech service you need to do as follows: 
    Apparently, you should check whether:  The bobbin thread is not old  The bobbin thread is of poor quality  And if so, then, of course, you need to replace them. How do you personally rank bobbin threads? Which ones do you use? I've tried many different kinds, and now it's clear to me which ones are good (bad) and which ones are cost-efficient or not. 
    You should also check if any of the units that touch the underthread does not work properly.  Whether the thread has been inserted into the bobbin case in the right way. In case any of you is unfamiliar with the subject, you can read about it here.  Whether the bobbin case tension is too high. I touched the subject slightly it in my article on the thread tension adjustment. But it appears that some information about the Drop test there was not entirely true because I've just seen another, slightly different version of that same test.  Whether the thread had been properly wound: not too loose or lopsided etc. For example, if you wind up too much thread as it often happens on my Velles 15, the bobbin gets stuck inside the case and loses the ability to spin.  There may also be less obvious things that should be checked as well: 
    Scratches in the throat plate opening.  Scratches on the bobbin case tension spring.  Whether the bobbin case is round in shape at all. Click to read how the case being not round can influence the embroidery what are the ways of checking it.  I'll also add — not from my own experience, but out of the variety of sources which I've studied thoroughly when delving on the topic: 
    Check the point of a hook for scratches and polish it, if that's the case: 
    Also check the retainer (also called hook support, finger) — whether it is not scratched. I'll write about the retainer some time: 
    I hope that there will be people that will find this article of any help. 

    Tatami fill on 3D Puff

    By Irina, in Machine embroidery materials and technology, , 3 comments, 12,842 views
    Original text by Marina Belova 
    About two weeks ago I saw a cap with a 3D embroidery of a very high quality at my work. The distinctive feature of that embroidery was that it hadn't been done in the usual way 3D embroidery design again — covering the 3D Puff with satin stitches. Instead, the 3D Puff was covered with the ordinary Tatami stitches because the design didn't allow doing it any other way — the shape of the embroidered object was too intricate. Nonetheless, the embroidery looked puffy enough. 
    Of course, I've been familiar with this method for some time now, yet I haven't seen any examples. Moreover, I haven't even seen a single photo of an item embroidered in this way. For this reason, I used to think that Tatami fill with its abundant needle perforations would break the 3D Puff and the embroidery would be flat. I couldn't be more wrong. 
    Of course, seeing a real-life example of an embroidery of that kind, understanding that someone managed to do it, one cannot help to become eager to do something like that, too. Having considered it for a while, I chose a design and digitized it:

    It turned out that there was not the slightest difficulty in making a machine embroidery design that would work. All of the rules for digitizing a design with satin stitches over 3D Puff could be applied here: increase the density and secure the open ends (provided that they are present). I didn't use any understitching, except for the edge run. You can read here why I did so. I used the standard flat Tatami pattern that can be found in any editor, with needle penetration offset at 33 and 66%. 
    The embroidery process goes as follows:
    First, we mark the place on the fabric where the 3D Puff will be located with a guide stitch. I do it only because 3D Puff is quite expensive, and I'd better not squander it:

    Place a piece of the 3D Puff onto it, having previously sprayed it with an adhesive: I used Gunold solid 3D Puff because it was the only one I had:

    Embroider:

    Give the embroidery design the finishing touches:

    Tear off the Puff. Everything looks very, very good.

    3D Puff under Tatami pattern was nearly as high as under the satin columns: 

    All I have left is to remove the 3D Puff leftovers that stick out.
    And this is how the boundaries are destroyed. 

    What do you need for creating a Photostitch design?

    By Irina, in Machine embroidery materials and technology, , 0 comments, 4,963 views
    Original text by Lisa Prass 
    Photostitch is the technique that helps to create realistic machine embroidery designs. The designs look like photos and are filled with chaotically organized stitches. What do you need for digitizing designs in this technique? Not so much, only the editor, some Photoshop skills and, of course, the desire. 

    Photostitch — what do you need? 
    Among editors able to create machine embroidery designs, I can name, perhaps, two that will help you with Photostitch: Embird and PE Design.
    Both of them allow to automatically create beautiful designs. 
    One of them (Embird) generates Sfumato fills, and the other one (PE Design) imitates the free-motion machine embroidery. 
    PE Design. Photostitch 
    This design creation module offers hardly any customization and image processing options. It is designed for users that know how to work in
    Photoshop-like software. If you want to create Photostitch patterns in PE Design, be prepared to study how to work in the aforementioned image editor.
    You won't need too much knowledge because a large part of image processing is removing some of the details, lightening and darkening problem image areas, and also removing the background. You may continue studying Photoshop, of course, but for our purpose the knowledge of these basic tools will be sufficient. 
    In order to make Photostitch designs that not only look beautiful but can be embroidered as well, you should bear in mind one crucial aspect: when creating Photostitch embroidery designs, don't add too many changes of color. Not only this will result in the time-consuming embroidery process, but in excessive density as well. Try to figure out which colors among the ones you've chosen to turn your ideas into reality may be spared. Be wary about finishing your work on a design after getting the first, not altogether bad, result. Create several designs and compare the stitch count, number of color changes and their look. Find the balance. 
    Embird Sfumato 
    A full-scale module for creation of Photostitch designs. The name, Sfumato, the manufacturer borrowed from the great Leonardo. There is no discernible connection between these two technologies. This method of making stitches is often vulgarly called "brains" or "worms". 
    Unlike PE Design, Embird has plenty of tools, customization options, and an additional image processing module. This software is not the easiest to master, and in order to learn how to create Sfumato embroidery designs, you'll not only need a basic understanding of Photoshop, but also the profound knowledge of histograms, brightness, saturation and so on. 
    Despite the difficulties awaiting you on the learning path, you'll quickly grasp the basic rules and working methods. It's a funny thing: despite the software being somewhat difficult to understand, most of its users manage to create beautiful and neatly-looking designs without going deeply into the way it works. 
    Taking all the aforesaid into consideration, we may say that you'll need: 
    Photoshop user guide  PE Design software  Embird software  The desire to learn all of this.  FUNDAMENTAL PRINCIPLE: THE BETTER THE SOURCE IMAGE, THE HIGHER THE QUALITY OF MACHINE EMBROIDERY DESIGN. 

    P.S. Read how to split a Photostitch machine embroidery design properly. 

    Embroidery on corduroy

    By Irina, in Machine embroidery materials and technology, , 0 comments, 6,010 views
    Original text by Marina Belova 
    I've long wanted to write about machine embroidery on corduroy. Though it's not the most typical kind of fabric for embroidery, but it's nevertheless interesting why it was ill-fated as a "tricky" one. 
    If you want to summarize this fabric in several sentences that are relevant to the machine embroidery, you can say the following: 
    Corduroy has a strongly pronounced surface texture — the ribbing on it is formed by alternating stripes with and without pile. These stripes may be of highly varying width — from the narrow ones with a short pile to the wide ones with the high pile. 
    The corduroy can be made of 100% cotton. And in this case, we have an almost perfect non-stretchy fabric. Or — and this is the most common situation nowadays — it consists of the variety of different fibers. Besides everything else, contemporary manufacturers like to add lycra. As the result, the fabric becomes stretchy and can be arranged in folds in one direction — across the ribbing. At least, I've never seen the examples to the contrary. 

    It was the texture that earned the fabric its nickname "tricky". Not only can the elements being embroidered sink into the pile, but they can also get lost between the piled stripes. Also, the outlines of the elements are in danger of becoming ribbed in places where they are crossing the stripes. This defines our objective, which is not at all difficult. 
    Machine embroidery on corduroy is a rather simple technique, and if you stick to it, it most probably will not disappoint you. 
    Hoop the fabric together with the stabilizer. You may use either a heavyweight tear-away stabilizer or a middle-weight cut-away one. Which one to use, depends on the quality of the material. For further stability, you can secure your fabric on the stabilizer with the help of temporary spray adhesive.  If the pile is very high, then, as in cases with all piled fabrics like terry cloth or velvet, you can use a water-soluble film on top. There are numerous recommendations on what type of film to use, from the thinnest variety to the extremely thick one. I've even read somewhere that you should use a dense water-soluble film on the rough ribbing. In my opinion, it can be used indeed, but how does one remove it out of the corners? I dare to add that you can replace the costly film with the cheap locally improvised material that is present in every household.  For crushing the pile, you can also use a heat-away material like thermogaze, advised by the manufacturers, for example. But if you don't want to damage the pile, you'd better put the food wrapper or a plastic bag on top.  You should use sharp needles. The needle thickness is chosen in accordance with the thickness of the corduroy and the width of its ribs. When embroidering on the fabric with the very narrow ribs, the needle should be #70/10, and for very wide ribs use #80/12.  You can use any type of threads for your embroidery.  The rules of creating or choosing a design for corduroy are the following: 
    Any kind of design is good for the fabric with very narrow ribs, from the simplest one like redwork to the most complex ones that are completely filled with stitches.  Dense designs that are filled with stitches and do not contain small elements are preferable for the fabric with the wide ribs.  If there are letters in the design, it's better to make them no less than 6 mm, in order for preventing them from sinking into the pile. In case the letters sink into the pile anyway, you should put the Tatami fill of a low density under them so that the small elements are not sinking into the ribs.  You should increase the understitching.  And place a full grid at 45 and 135° under the fills instead of the grid at 90°. Choose the stitch length that allows the embroidery surface to be smooth.  Put 2 edge runs with 2—2,5 mm long stitches under the satin columns of middle width.  Put the central underlay under the thin satin columns.  Put 2 edge runs + a zig-zag stitch under the dense satin columns.  Increase pull compensation by at least 0.1mm compared to the standard.  Set the density value at 0.4 mm or slightly more.  As usual, all the settings for creation of the design are approximate. You'll have to find the right parameters in accordance with the particularities of the fabric type and the chosen design. 
    I embroidered all of this on the fabric for the first time, so I created a test design, as I usually do, with the usual dense values (in my Sierra it is 5 lines per mm, which roughly equals to 0.4 mm). The only thing that was changed were the underlays under the letters: I made 2 runs in order to give them more strength. And I also increased pull compensation for 0.1 mm. 
    I embroidered the same design both on corduroy with narrow ribs and short pile: 

    And on the one with wide ribs and high pile: 

    I didn't use any film on top in any case. Lower-case letters in the lower line were 4.6 mm high, and in both cases the result was good and nothing sunk into the pile. And if you don't count some general digitizing mistakes, like too small pull compensation on the leaves, and the fill showing from under the satin outlines here and there, everything is very good. 
    I've also embroidered the design on the wide ribs with the running stitch, and it sunk a bit, but the general look is quite decent, in spite of the absence of the film. 

    Everything is possible. 
     

    Image processing in Pattern Maker

    By Irina, in Machine embroidery materials and technology, , 4 comments, 6,893 views
    The process of creating Cross Stitch designs in the Pattern Maker software can be based on the image that you've created or found on the Web. Learning how to load an image into the editor will be your first step towards creation of the design. 
    Working with images is a pretty complex subject, so during this lesson, probably, some additional questions will arise that we don't cover here. We'll try to answer them in our next articles. 
    1. Open your editor, move the cursor over the File — Import Images and select one of the suggested options in the drop down list: 

    Import Into New Pattern — import the image into the new document. 
    Import Into Current Pattern — import the image into the current document. 
    If you have an open document with an unsaved project, it's better to choose the first option. Otherwise, when importing the image, your previous work will be lost. 
    2. At the next stage, the Image Improrting Wizard will suggest choosing a way of importing the image. To choose one of the options check the box to the left of the name. 

    Use an existing image — you can use the image stored on your hard drive or some other device. Click Browse and select the image in the window that opens. 
    Scan a photo — when choosing this option the Scan button will become active, and you will be able to launch an image scanning program. 
    Use the image on the clipboard — use the image from the clipboard. 
    Having figured out how to load images, click on Next and move to the next step. 
    A footnote: 
    The format — Pattern Maker recognized bitmap and vector image formats. The main bitmap formats you are going to encounter are *.bmp, *.jpg, *.gif, and vector ones are *.emf, *.wmf, *.eps. What do the words "bitmap" and "vector" mean we'll explain in our next articles. Meanwhile, you should remember that the file name consists of two parts: the name of the file and its format. The format is a sequence of characters added to the name and intended for recognition. 
    The software recognizes the following formats: *.bmp, *.jpg, *.tif, *.gif, *.pcx, *.wmf, *.emf*.eps, *.tga, *.png, *.ras, *.pct, *.pcd 
    Clipboard — the part of RAM memory where data in various formats can be temporarily stored for further copying or moving them to the other applications or to another part of the same application. 
    To send an image to the clipboard just open it with any image viewer and press PrtScn. As a result, everything that you just saw on the screen, will go to the clipboard. 
    HOTKEYS 
    To make a snapshot of the screen: PrtScn.  To copy selected objects to the clipboard: Ctrl+C, Ctrl+Ins.  To cut selected objects and move them to the clipboard: Ctrl+X, Shift+Del.  To paste from the clipboard: Ctrl+V, Shift+Ins.  3. At this stage, you'll define how the software will process your image. 

    Convert the image into full cross stitches — the whole image will be converted into full cross stitches. 
    Include image as an underlay for tracing — to use this image as a background for the further manual image conversion. 
    The choice between the two options suggests that after completing the import the cross stitch version will appear on your desktop as well as the original image. 
    Make your choice and on Next, to proceed to the following step. 
    4. Tone and color corrections. They are necessary for correcting the minor image flaws. At this stage the Image Importing Wizard will suggest process the graphics image, to change its saturation, brightness, change colors, crop the image, cutting off all the unnecessary bits. 
    Before we go into details I want you to notice that the adjustment sliders are now at level 0. Dragging any one of them to the left, you will be decreasing the parameter value, and moving it to the right — increasing it. 

    Brightness  Contrast  Saturation  Hue  Cropping — trimming the unnecessary bits around the edges. This tool is essentially scissors that cut along the perimeter.  Choose the Crop tool, hover your cursor over one of the image corners, left-click and hold, then drag it to the opposite corner. Having selected a rectangular area, release the hold and click on Crop. 
    After having completed the cropping, click on Next. 
    5. This step will be useful to you only if your image is covered with a grid. 

    For convenience, the cross stitch chart is covered with 10x10 grid. To specify the size of this grid click on Grid Tool. In the Mark Spacing field specify the number of crosses between the points 1, 2 and 3. Move your cursor over the upper left corner of the 10x10 square of the loaded picture (1) and left-click. Repeat the operation with the upper right (2) and the lower right (3) corners. Click Align Grid for confirmation. 
    Show Grid — show the grid.
    Mark Spacing — the distance between the corners of the grid. It defines the number of crosses between points 1, 2 and 3. The default number of crosses between these two points is 10. The maximum number is 1000. 
    Click on Align Grid to apply. 
    Undo Alignment — reverse all the changes. 
    Usually, the grid is used for processing designs in hand cross stitch embroidery. If you want to alter your image without using the grid, skip this step by clicking on Next. 
    6. At this stage, you can select those areas of the image that don't need to be converted into cross stitch. 

    Before choosing the are you can adjust the Magic Wand sensitivity. 
    Select the Magic Wand tool, left-click on the colored area of the imported image, which you want to exclude: To select several areas at once press and hold Shift on the keyboard. Tool Sensitivity instrument is used to change the Magic Wand color sensitivity. Having selected all the areas, click on Next. 
    A footnote: 
    This part is not entirely covered in the English version of the user guide, as is everything concerning colors. Therefore, you'll find some explanations and recommendations on the Magic Wand adjustment below. 
    To explain how this tool works we'll use the color wheel. 

    Remember system of coordinates you've learned at school. You can define the location of any point in space if you know its projections onto the X, Y, and Z axes. Now imagine that our space is the color space and that any point in this space can be defined if we know its RGB values.
    Thus, knowing the locations of any two points in space, we can calculate the distance between them. The distance in color space is the similarity between these two points, and the shorter is the distance, the more alike they are. Excluding points of any color depends on two things: on the color of the point selected with MW tool and Tool Sensitivity options. 
    The options determine how similar is the point we're going to exclude, to the one that is selected in each of the color channels or in all of them at the same time. 
    Having adjusted the tool and clicked on one of the points in your image you'll define what color will be excluded from image processing. 
    When doing the adjustments we recommend not to do one component at a time — it's too complicated — but use the All slider instead: it will measure the similarity between the points that will be excluded and the one selected without any deviations from that particular color. 
    7. This step in image processing will allow you to select the least significant area of your image and specify how many percents of your palette you'll allot to it. If you are processing a portrait, where the colors of the face and clothing are the most important, and the background is a unified dark area, you can mark the face and the clothing as the significant color areas. 

    Choose the Foreground tool, move your cursor over it and, holding the left button, outline the perimeter of the selected area. If there is more than one significant image area, press and hold Shift, and continue selecting. Having finished, specify how many percents of the color palette you'll allot to this area. Click on Next and proceed to the next step. 
    8. A new window — and we're close to completion. Now we need to figure out the size of our image. 

    Select the size for the new design — define the width (W) and height (H) of the design. There are three ways of doing that. To choose one of the options listed below, check the box to the left of the name. 
    Size specified in — select which measurement units will be used: inches or millimeters. Select the desirable size in the W by H field. Setting just the width value will be sufficient, after that the software will automatically rescale the image. 
    If you want to enter the arbitrary values of width and height, deselect the Preserve aspect ratio parameter. You should bear in mind that entering the arbitrary values of width and height you may distort the image. 
    Size specified in stitches — determine the size of the design in stitches. Like the first time, it is sufficient to set the width value. 
    Size corresponding to the selection region — measuring the size of a randomly selected area. 
    The next group of options: 
    Preserve aspect ratio — keep the existing aspect ratio when changing the image size. 
    Square Stitch — the stitches that have a square shape. Untick to determine the size of the cross stitch in the Stitch Size window on the left. By default the cross is square-shaped and its size is determined by the #14 canvas (which means 14 crossed per inch). 
    Pay attention to the fact that changing the size of the design in stitches you automatically change its size in inches or cm. 
    Having set all the necessary parameters, click on Next. 
    9. Defining the color scheme. It's impossible to picture the embroidery without threads. Besides, it is advisable to select the color scheme in advance. There are lots of manufacturers that produce the threads for both the hand and the machine embroidery. Originally the Pattern Maker was aimed at hand Cross Stitch embroidery — perhaps that is the reason for mouline threads predominance in the selection. 

    Color Palette to Use — all the colors available. There are three ways of choosing a palette. To choose an appropriate one tick the box to the left of the name. 
    Use the color of this floss/thread type — use a palette from the given list of manufacturers/according to the thread type. 
    Use the colors in this palette file — use a palette stored on your computer. 
    Use only the colors already in the palette — use the color palette loaded previously. 
    Having figured out how to choose your color schemes, let's proceed to the next option. 
    Maximum Number of Colors to Use — allows determining the number of colors desirable for image processing. Press Advanced to adjust the color sensitivity. 
    Keep all colors already in the palette — use all the colors from the loaded palette. If you have already used some color palette before processing the image and choose this option, only the colors from it will be used. 
    Having decided which palette you're going to use, click on Next and proceed to the next step. 
    10. This is all, in a nutshell. The process of loading the image into the editor with the help of the Wizard is now complete. 

    The editor makes you aware of it and suggests clicking on Import for completion to see the result of the work you have just done, which will be displayed on the screen. If you are not satisfied with the result, click on Back and correct the mistakes. The Back button will allow you to return to any of the image processing stages listed above. 
    If you're satisfied with what you can see on the screen, you can easily finish the process of importing the image by hitting the Close button. 
    Now it's time for us to say goodbye. See you in our next articles! 
    Original text by Lisa Prass

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