NEM has two types of embroidery machines for members to use. Which machine to choose primarily depends on the size of the embroidered design; the four Brother Innov-is NS1850D Combination Sewing and Embroidery Machines are limited to a hoop size of 4” x 4”. The Husqvarna Viking Designer Diamond DeLuxe embroidery machine has a variety of hoops available, with the largest being 13.75” x 14”.
In order to embroider an image, it must first be converted into a file that the sewing machine can read. At the most basic level, these files consist of commands telling the machine where and in what orientation to place stitches, when to cut the thread, and when to change thread color. Embroidery digitization software takes a jpg, pdf, or svg and allows the user to decide parameters like stitch type, fill pattern, color order, text font, and many other aspects of how the design will stitch out on the machine. Digitization can be simple or very, very complicated.
Commercial embroidery digitization software is generally very expensive, so our users are typically encouraged to learn the Ink/Stitch plugin within Inkscape, a free vector editing program. Both are very powerful but can have a steep learning curve for beginners. A generous donor recently gifted NEM a copy of Hatch digitizing software; it is installed on one of the workstations in the laser room and available for members to use.
For those with a basic working knowledge of Inkscape, this playlist from Project Anonymous is a great starting point in learning Ink/Stitch. There have been significant improvements to the plugin since their earliest videos were published, so be sure to check the more recent ones.
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLtQ8IvTMaEGI3NeU2MppOkukHviNKmrJl&si=7ncF6hiB-rV-In7T
For Inkscape beginners, Logos by Nick has many helpful tutorials on everything from basics to complex vector editing. Again, Inkscape has undergone significant improvements since his earliest videos.
https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLynG8gQD-n8C-WYNovoPzWvxDMb1Ls_7S&si=Wa3QV8FuSYTSG_V6
This is a tutorial/walk through of how to go from an image (raster or vector) to the type of file used by the embroidery machines at NEM: