Lesson 5 - Manual Digitizing - The Final Design
Duplicate the Design
The maples design is now half digitized. It is a simple matter to copy the completed branch and leaves and place it in the bottom of the picture.
Bring magnification back to 100%
Click the Display Images icon to turn off the graphic.
Click the Select icon.
Click and draw a box around the entire branch and leaves design to select it.
Click the Copy icon.
Click the Display Images icon to show the graphic again.
Click the Paste icon. Drag and rotate the design over the bottom image.
Click the Display Images icon to turn off the graphic.
Resequence the Colors
When we duplicate an embroidery image, we duplicate the sequence of colors in the design. If we were leave the embroidery as it is, it would sew in the following sequence:
- Orange
- Burnt Orange
- Brown
- Cocoa Brown
- Orange
- Burnt Orange
- Brown
- Cocoa Brown
Each color would have to be threaded twice. We can avoid this by resequencing this design.
Click the Resequence icon.
Click Colors in the View box. We can resequence this design by color, and not concern ourselves with each object in the design.
The colors repeat at the fifth color in the sequence. Click on the fifth color, Orange #203. It will highlight with a blue bar. In addition, the buttons on the right side of the Resequence dialog box will activate.
Click the Up button until the highlighted color is one below the first color #203. This will accomplish sewing the four orange leaves from the top branch, then sewing the four orange leaves from the bottom branch before the first color change.
Continue in this manner with the three succeeding colors.
Click OK.
Click the Resequence icon again. The embroidery will be regenerated, and all the colors will be combined.
Changing Colors
We chose Cocoa Brown for the branch because it would show up better on the lesson graphics. However, it is very close to the Brown of the leaves, and does not have enough contrast to make the design look good.
It is an easy fix to change the color.
Click View, Show, Selected Color Only on the Menu toolbar.
The Select by Color dialog box will show.
Click the 4th color, Cocoa Brown. It will highlight blue. Click OK.
The Cocoa Brown branches will be the only part of the design showing on the design screen.
Click the Select icon. The branches will highlight.
Click the Thread icon. Click Sepia #259.
Click View, Show, All Objects on the Menu toolbar.
Resize the Design
If you wish the design to be small enough to fit in Hoop A, you must reduce its size. This is easy to do.
Reduce magnification to 75% so you can see the entire design area.
Click the Select icon.
Click and drag a box around the entire design. The entire design will be selected.
Reduce the size of the design by dragging a corner anchor point inward.
Save the design when it is completed.
3.1 Resources > Lessons Page > Learn How to Plan (p. 48)
6. Lesson 66 - What Can I Do About Gaps?
Version 1.0C
When embroidery sews, it pulls in fabric or pushes out fabric, depending on the embroidery stitch. This pulling and pushing requires compensation, in the form of good stabilization, appropriate underlay, and proper hooping.
However, problems sewing a design may be the fault of the design, and no amount of stabilizers will correct it. Gaps occur when embroidery objects butt up against each other. As they sew, each object pulls in, leaving an area where the fabric shows through.
Let's create two objects to simulate this effect.
Click the Parallel Fill: Rectangle Tool.
Click a point on the design screen. Drag a rectangle. Release your finger from the mouse to generate the rectangle.
Click the Select icon. The rectangle will become selected.
Click the Copy icon on the Standard toolbar.
Click the Paste icon on the Standard toolbar.
Click the Thread (Current Color) icon. Change the thread color to #230 Bright Blue.
Drag the copied rectangle to butt up against the original rectangle. Magnifying the screen will help get the two rectangles close to each other.
If we were to sew these two rectangles, the red one would pull in, as would the blue one. The embroideries will actually sew smaller than the size they were digitized. A gap will occur between the two rectangles.
The way to fix this problem is to overlap the two rectangles, and the way that is easily done is to use Reshape.
Click the Select icon.
Click the red rectangle.
Click the Reshape icon. Reshaping points will appear around the red rectangle. Again, magnifying will help you see the points well.
Slide your mouse cursor over the reshape point at the upper right and it will become a quadruple arrow. Click the point and drag it to the right. Do the same with the reshape point at the lower right. Make sure the points are straight up and down.
Press the Enter key to reshape the rectangle. Press the Esc key or click the Stop icon to deactivate the reshape tool.
The red rectangle will sew first, so you would want to increase its size more than the blue rectangle to eliminate the gap. The blue rectangle only needs a slight increase, if any.
This method will work with any embroidery design that you notice has a gap. Enlarge the object that sews first so that it is slightly underneath the abutting object.
In well-digitized embroidery, objects do no butt up against each other, but instead, slightly overlap.
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