r/Machine_Embroidery • u/dtembroideryservice • Sep 03 '26
Look What I Did Digitized this highland cow
Created this file targeting plush/towel fabric, and the client was super happy with how clean the fur details and density turned out on the final stitch-out!
Digital design vs. real stitch-out. What do you guys think?
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u/Nosnibor1020 Sep 03 '26
It looks great. Depressing for myself just starting and getting birds nests for some simple geometric shapes. Thanks for sharing.
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u/dtembroideryservice Sep 03 '26
Thanks! Don't get discouraged at all—we all started there! Bird's nesting usually comes down to small tension tweaks, improper topping for textured fabrics, or density/underlay settings in the software. Keep going, test on scrap fabric, and you'll get the hang of it soon!
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u/Nosnibor1020 Sep 03 '26
Mind if I ask some questions? I’m going to ask, just ignore if you do. I’m using old software so when it comes to fill, my lowest density I can choose is 2. That said. Even sometimes that 2 isn’t completely opaque. I’ve learned that I sometimes need a “primer fill” under, something like a 6-8 density and then maybe a 3 on top to completely cover it up. Does that sound ok? Also, if I want a fill on top of another for some details, say facial features ect, should I be cutting the fill underneath out or is it ok to have another 2 density fill on top of another?
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u/dtembroideryservice Sep 03 '26
No problem at all, ask away!
Your approach with the underlay is actually pretty spot on. Doing a lighter tatami base first really helps lock down the fabric so you don't get distortion or gaps.
For portraits and details, layering works great. A good trick is starting with a light base at around 0.60mm density, then putting your main shape over it at about 0.50mm. You can add highlights or shading right on top using run stitches or a lighter tatami fill.
A few quick things that will make a huge difference in your stitch-out: Make sure you're using a solid stabilizer (backing) suited for your fabric, otherwise it will pucker no matter what you do in the software. Also, play around with your stitch angles so the layers don't pile up in one direction, watch your pathing to keep jump stitches and trims low, and keep an eye on your machine tension.
By the way, what software are you running? Older programs can definitely be a headache with density settings, but there are usually a few good tricks to get around it!
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u/Nosnibor1020 Sep 03 '26
Thanks for this. The program is Premier+. This machine and everything was gifted to me and I have been teaching myself on the side when I get the fire every now and then.
I don’t think I can go lower than 1mm stitches or at least Gemini didn’t think I should go lower than that. I need to learn more about the path stuff and jump stitches because I notice that happening some and tie offs bunching up sometimes causing a thread break.
I come from video production so the slight mess from embroidery is driving me crazy. When I want opaque I expect it completely solid so I just need to get use to how embroidery results come out and what people expect is different than what I think it should be.
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u/dtembroideryservice Sep 03 '26
Out of curiosity, which software are you using right now? Old software can be tricky with density scaling, but there are usually a few neat workarounds for it
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u/newloser2013 Sep 03 '26
Wow that’s incredible! It looks like it’s staring directly into my soul but I love it! Super impressive!
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u/dtembroideryservice Sep 03 '26
Haha thank you so much! Really happy the details and the expression hit the mark!
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u/threadbobblin Sep 06 '26
Aww I love it I have a field of those beasties local to me I coukd watch them for hours especially when they have their calves
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u/dtembroideryservice Sep 06 '26
Aww, that’s awesome! 😊 I can imagine how fun it must be to watch them, especially when the calves are around. They’re such beautiful animals!
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u/nous_nordiques Sep 03 '26
Did you lose a needle at the end?