How Embroidery Digitizing Works

Embroidery digitizing is the process of transferring a picture or group of words into a language a sewing machine can understand. Following the transferring of the image, the sewing machine then stitches the design out, creating a simple piece of artwork in very little time. The actual creation of the embroidery is by far the easiest part of the process.

Embroidery isn’t all that hard these days, because of digitizing. It has actually become faster and easier for many of us. Embroidery digitizing is basically putting in digital data into a computer with a digital file or scanned image and then creating stitch types, directions, density settings, and adjustments to make perfect embroidery. It’s like recreating an image or a pre-made pattern with the help of a digitizing software or program and saving it as an embroidery machine code.

The first step towards embroidery digitizing is to know what type of embroidery software to use for the project. We can find embroidery digitizing software on the Internet. Once you have your program ready, you can scan in the artwork you want embroidered and start digitizing the image. You can use any image for the project — scanned from a magazine, a personal drawing, etc. Part of the digitizer’s job is to make adjustments on the settings to make perfect embroidery.

Check the settings of the digitizer, as it should be programmed to lay out and make adjustments on the different stitch types to use, as well as the stitch directions, and density settings. It should also make considerations for the type of fabric to use. The digitizer will also do some “pathing”, or mapping, where the starting point for the stitching is determined along with the path of the stitches and the end point. This is how the digitizer became something of a “puncher” in embroidery. It lays out the map through which the embroidery machine follows through.

Preview the result of the digitized artwork after you’ve made the necessary additions, alterations, and adjustments. See that the image is clean. Zoom in if you have to. If there’s anything that’s out of place or incorrect, then make the necessary adjustments. When you’ve found the result satisfying and correct, only then do you go ahead with the embroidery. Make sure your machine will be able to read your file to transform it into stitches. This machine code is entered into the embroidery machine to be sewed onto the fabric.

Many people now experience easy and faster embroidery because of today’s computer technology and embroidery digitizing. It only takes a while to learn embroidery digitizing, that even a beginner in embroidery will be able to make a beautiful piece.