Embroidery Process¶
I first visited Aaron Logan’s documentation and Ryan Zhou’s website to learn more about the different softwares and processes required for embroidery. Then, I tried to download SewArt, which was the software that they both used. However, it was paid, and was difficult to download on a Mac. I followed these instructions for the download procedure. It turned out that SewArt is a Windows-only application, and I must install a software that supports Windows on Mac, such as Bootcamp. The install procedure turned out to be very complicated, and I switched to Ink/Stitch, as seen below.
Software Download and creating the design¶
I decided to use Ink/Stitch, which is compatible with Inkscape. In fact, it is an extension for Inkscape that enables you to save the files in a .pes format readable by the SE600.
I used this video as a helpful tutorial on how to download Ink/Stitch. To download it, you must download Inkscape first, because it acts as the base software. Fellow Fab student Griffin Orsinger’s website was helpful as well since he used the same software as me.
Online, I found a vector image of Elmo, who I intend to embroider, and saved it as a .png file:
I then imported it into Inkscape, and made an Import layer. This acts as my bottommost layer and I will create the traces and fillings for the design on the layers above the import layer. I used the Pen tool in Inkscape to traces to form the different shapes in the design, which will later be filled with the corresponding colors. Then, I switched to Node View to edit the traces and move around the points. I color coded the traces and here is the outline for elmo:
Although there are overlaps, Ryan told me that it would be fine because the tearaway sheets used for the embroidery process will be thick enough. Then, I used the fill tool to fill in the shapes with corresponding colors. Here is the result:
Notice that I made the outline black and they are all closed shapes. I went to Extensions –> Ink/Stitch –> Params and created a realistic view of what elmo would look like when stitched:
Here are the final layers in Inkscape I made:
Notice that I made the trace layer at the top, followed by the fill layer, then the import layer. The way the machine worked is that it will embroider the lower layers first and then move to the upper layers.
I saved my design in a .pes format to a USB drive and stuck it into the SE600 to embroider it.
Setting up the Machine¶
This tutorial helped me a lot in the Machine setup. But the machine itself has diagrams and instructions that help you how to wind the thread:
I then threaded the needle by pulling down the lever on the left, although sometimes it doesn’t work and you need to manually thread in the needle:
Next, I prepared 2 sheets of tearaway sheets to embroider on. I pressed them into a plate-like dish and secured it using the set screw built into the side.
Then, I inserted the dish into the base of the machine. This is my final setup:
I pulled up elmo on the screen of the Embroider and it showed me the times to embroider it and when to switch colors:
Initial Cut¶
I moved down the needle to the pad and readied the machine to embroider. However, right away I noticed a problem. The screen displayed this error message:
Ryan told me that there needs to be a bobbin at the bottom of the embroider plate in order to embroider the bottom of the tearaway sheets. I removed the plate and inserted the bobbin:
Then, the machine started to operate. But I noticed that the needle is cutting through the fabric fairly quickly, and the first shape, which was Elmo’s nose, is starting to been cut out:
Ryan said that this should be fine because the machine will just smooth out the places where there are inaccuracies. But, it didn’t. After a while, the needle came out as it was embroidering, which bent it:
At that point, I was super frustrated because this problem literally didn’t happen to anyone else, and I was the first person to experience it. I loosened the screw next to the needle, and following instructions from Reddit, made sure to insert the needle with the flat side facing the back:
However, since the needle is bent, whenever I switched the color of the thread, I must manually thread the thread through the needle using tweezers. The needle also keeps missing the tearaway sheet and there was a whole minute of it not cutting on the sheets. Then, at one point, the board moved and one the whole sheet nearly came off. At the point, I became worried and stopped the embroider machine. It turned out that the thread became caught at the base of the machine, where there are other pieces of machinery. Here was the result:
I ripped the fabric out of the base by continuously pressing the cut button the machine to cut out the existing thread. I decided to try again.
Second Cut¶
I did not change the design, and instead tried to make a second cut. I threaded the upper thread, and started the cut. However, the machine keeps telling me to “recheck the upper thread”. I did this many times, but it keeps stopping the embroider due to this error. In the end, I ignored the message and kept on embroiding, which turned out to be a bad idea. Unsurprisingly, the bobbin became caught in the base of the machine and messed up the whole thing. I stopped the machine and ripped away the tearaway sheets. But the elmo patch was harder to get out because the threads were caught:
In the image above, the bobbin is tilted into the machine, which is abnormal and the result was nasty as well.
I visited the online forum for the SE-600 and came to the conclusion that I needed a simpler design that had no overlaps and I probably need to switch the needle too, as it became dent in the first cut.
Final Cut and Second Design¶
So, I decided to use a smiley face as my design. Again, I created traces for it in the Trace Layer, above the import layer:
I color coded the fill areas and this was my fill areas for the smile:
I cut out the inner circle in the 2 concentric circles to leave out the red ring. Unlike last time, I deleted the trace layer because I figured out that all trace layers will only be embroidered by a thin line on the actual machine. This is the final design:
This is the patch for the design:
These are the layers for the design, where I moved the trace paths down into the import layer:
I saved it as a .pes file and put it into the machine, using the same setup as last time. This time, however, I switched for a different needle that wasn’t bent. I inserted it with the its flat side facing towards the back.
Here is the machine embroidering the smiley face:
This time, the machine didn’t have any problems, although the upper thread at the top did come loose a little bit. I held the thread with my fingers to make sure no knots occurred and the thread was straight.
Final Results¶
The smiley face came out well:
Here it is on the back:
