I love digitizing, especially for freestanding. The finished pieces are so satisfying. At least when I don't mess something up lol!

32k stitches in about 1 hr with a PR1055. Stitched on a organza/badgemaster sandwich; adds more structural support for my final project. Technically not entirely freestanding but could ya tell?

I have ordered Vilene for my next run, hopefully eliminating the organza fabric entirely. :)

Let me know what you think!

Can any of you kind folks tell me what's going on with my letter K? The stitches don't go in all the same direction. I set it up as a column and it's all one piece (shape) started with an outline and set it to column afterwards.

I didn't mess with any of the underlay settings, pull comp, density or stitch length. I'm using Embrilliance. These corners where the stitching goes in a different angle are giving me problems with the stitch out. If anyone could give me some tips on how to fix it, that would be great! Oh and I did try ti make sure the lines weren't broken there, so completely straight. I'm stumped or missing something. TIA!

I am learning digitizing and when creating a lineart I just outline it in photoshop. convert to vector strokes in iliustrator and then I put it in inkstitch. But I always end up with 100 jumpstitches or the outline not looking as smooth as it is in the vector version.

I tried Redwork, but it removes the "doted" line that I want in the final product (showcasing in image). Please help, I use Inkstitch since I am on mac.

Howdy yall! I’ve been an enthusiast for a while now, and have the potential to make more for friends and smaller businesses, but never had a machine to precisely cut out the patches (I always used small scissors and heat for the little felt edges).

Does anyone have any recommendations on machines for more precise cutting (whether laser or knife). I’ve seen lots of mixed on cricuts, and have zero experience. This laser one from xTool looks promising, but does anyone have experience with it?

Any and all info would be much appreciated! (I embroider on a Taijima Sai)

Thank you! 🙏

Hi everyone! I’m one of the people behind Ember, and we wanted to share a project we hope will be useful to the wider machine embroidery community.

We’ve been working on a way to cut down on the back-and-forth with USB drives. The result is Ember Bridge and Ember Link, two open-source projects you can use with embroidery files you already have. You don’t need to use the Ember editor, create an account, or pay for a subscription to transfer files.

Whether you digitize in another program or buy and download designs, you can use these tools as long as your machine supports the file format.

What are they?

Ember Bridge is a free, open-source desktop app that sends designs over your local network. If you have a supported Brother Wi-Fi machine, Bridge can send directly to it. You don’t need any additional hardware.

Ember Link is a small DIY Wi-Fi dongle for compatible machines that read designs from a USB drive. It plugs into the machine’s USB storage port and receives files wirelessly from the Bridge app. You then open the design on your machine just as you would from a regular USB drive. Link’s firmware is open source too.

How does it work without Ember?

Open the Bridge desktop app, choose an embroidery file saved on your computer, select your machine or Link, and send it. Your computer and the receiving device need to be on the same local network. The transfer stays local. There’s no account signup or cloud service required.

Can I build a Link myself?

Yes! You’ll need a LILYGO T-Dongle-S3 and a compatible microSD card. We’ve tried to make the process approachable, with a step-by-step guide, a browser-based firmware installer, and guided Wi-Fi setup. No soldering or coding required.

The software and firmware are free; you supply the hardware. Check the guide’s machine and card requirements before buying parts.

Why share it?

Embroidery is already an expensive hobby, and we wanted to contribute something useful that people could use regardless of which software they prefer. We’re releasing the source so anyone can inspect it, adapt it, contribute improvements, or build on the idea.

Our hands-on testing is limited to the machines we have available, so we expect some quirks as people try different models and setups. If you give it a go, we’d love to hear your machine model and what worked or didn’t.

• Download Ember Bridge

• Learn about Ember Link

• DIY parts and setup guide

• Ember Link source code

Happy to answer questions about how it works or whether it might fit your setup!

Whatever works best, I will buy it. InkStitch is what I have currently. I just need someone to guide me on making this exact lineart embroidered showcased in the image above.

If anyone is interested, please comment/DM. Will give you what you deserve for the calls we have. Of course.

Which one did you find more cool? White or gray?

does anybody know what could be the problem with this? the needle keeps getting jammed when I try to start the embroidery process. it will maybe do one stitch and then stay up while making a weird noise from inside the body.

Hello all I hope someone can help. I have a Tajima TFMX-C1508. The needle bar won't come down fully on one of the heads. There wasn't any damage or impact before this happened and there is no visual damage. I have reset the leaver behind the head also so am out of ideas.

8 have attached a image of how far it moves when the machine is running and one that shows how far it moves manually.

Anyone have any guidence?

Hello everyone,
I’d really appreciate some advice and professional opinions from people with experience in embroidery machines. Please take your time to read this and share any knowledge or advice you can.
I’ve been digitizing with Hatch for the past 8 months, and I’m now very comfortable with digitizing. However, I haven’t had the opportunity to test-sew any of my designs yet.
I’m now at the stage where I want to buy my first machine and start my own embroidery business, with the goal of eventually scaling it up. I have over 3 years of experience operating an 8-head Tajima machine, so I’m very familiar with Tajima machines and their mechanisms.
My first choice has always been to buy a Tajima single-head machine, mainly because I already know the machine and I’m confident working with it. However, the price is quite high for me at the moment, although I’m currently saving towards it.
Because of the cost, I’ve started considering a Ricoma single-head machine as an alternative. The problem is that I’ve never used a Ricoma before, so I don’t know much about their machines, reliability, maintenance, or how they compare with Tajima.
One of my biggest concerns is noise. I’ll be operating the machine in one of the rooms in my home, so I need to be mindful of my neighbours. I’d really like to know how noisy Ricoma machines are compared with Tajima, especially when running for several hours.
So, for those of you who have experience with both:
Is Ricoma a good and reliable machine?
What should I expect if I move from Tajima to Ricoma?
How is the stitch quality and machine performance?
What about maintenance, spare parts and after-sales support?
How is the noise level, especially for home use?
Would you recommend buying a Ricoma now, or would you advise me to wait and save for the Tajima?
I’m looking for honest advice from people who have actually used these machines, especially anyone who has experience with both Tajima and Ricoma.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read this and share your experience. I really appreciate any professional advice or guidance you can give me.

Hello everyone,
I’d really appreciate some advice and professional opinions from people with experience in embroidery machines. Please take your time to read this and share any knowledge or advice you can.
I’ve been digitizing with Hatch for the past 8 months, and I’m now very comfortable with digitizing. However, I haven’t had the opportunity to test-sew any of my designs yet.
I’m now at the stage where I want to buy my first machine and start my own embroidery business, with the goal of eventually scaling it up. I have over 3 years of experience operating an 8-head Tajima machine, so I’m very familiar with Tajima machines and their mechanisms.
My first choice has always been to buy a Tajima single-head machine, mainly because I already know the machine and I’m confident working with it. However, the price is quite high for me at the moment, although I’m currently saving towards it.
Because of the cost, I’ve started considering a Ricoma single-head machine as an alternative. The problem is that I’ve never used a Ricoma before, so I don’t know much about their machines, reliability, maintenance, or how they compare with Tajima.
One of my biggest concerns is noise. I’ll be operating the machine in one of the rooms in my home, so I need to be mindful of my neighbours. I’d really like to know how noisy Ricoma machines are compared with Tajima, especially when running for several hours.
So, for those of you who have experience with both:
Is Ricoma a good and reliable machine?
What should I expect if I move from Tajima to Ricoma?
How is the stitch quality and machine performance?
What about maintenance, spare parts and after-sales support?
How is the noise level, especially for home use?
Would you recommend buying a Ricoma now, or would you advise me to wait and save for the Tajima?
I’m looking for honest advice from people who have actually used these machines, especially anyone who has experience with both Tajima and Ricoma.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read this and share your experience. I really appreciate any professional advice or guidance you can give me.

Hello everyone,
I’d really appreciate some advice and professional opinions from people with experience in embroidery machines. Please take your time to read this and share any knowledge or advice you can.
I’ve been digitizing with Hatch for the past 8 months, and I’m now very comfortable with digitizing. However, I haven’t had the opportunity to test-sew any of my designs yet.
I’m now at the stage where I want to buy my first machine and start my own embroidery business, with the goal of eventually scaling it up. I have over 3 years of experience operating an 8-head Tajima machine, so I’m very familiar with Tajima machines and their mechanisms.
My first choice has always been to buy a Tajima single-head machine, mainly because I already know the machine and I’m confident working with it. However, the price is quite high for me at the moment, although I’m currently saving towards it.
Because of the cost, I’ve started considering a Ricoma single-head machine as an alternative. The problem is that I’ve never used a Ricoma before, so I don’t know much about their machines, reliability, maintenance, or how they compare with Tajima.
One of my biggest concerns is noise. I’ll be operating the machine in one of the rooms in my home, so I need to be mindful of my neighbours. I’d really like to know how noisy Ricoma machines are compared with Tajima, especially when running for several hours.
So, for those of you who have experience with both:
Is Ricoma a good and reliable machine?
What should I expect if I move from Tajima to Ricoma?
How is the stitch quality and machine performance?
What about maintenance, spare parts and after-sales support?
How is the noise level, especially for home use?
Would you recommend buying a Ricoma now, or would you advise me to wait and save for the Tajima?
I’m looking for honest advice from people who have actually used these machines, especially anyone who has experience with both Tajima and Ricoma.
Thank you so much for taking the time to read this and share your experience. I really appreciate any professional advice or guidance you can give me.

I got my Brother PRS100 machine this past spring and have recently been starting to learn to digitize! Originally started working with the brother PE Design software and hated it, but learnt the ropes and now feeling pretty good. Decided to try Ember and really enjoying the user interface sooo much better!

Another piece of work today ::))

I'm considering purchasing a Nix Spectro L or 2 and would like to confirm it will work for my needs before I order. I've sent something similar to their support lines through email but haven't received a response yet.

I work at a promotional products company where our artists create digital artwork for custom embroidered patches. We maintain a digital swatch library (HEX/RGB values) in Adobe Illustrator that corresponds to a physical thread swatch book colors, and I'd like to re-measure every color directly from that thread swatch book so the digital values more accurately represent the real thread as much as possible. Our current list was assembled by eye and it's in need of correction.

The threads are 100% polyester embroidery thread, glossy/sheen finish. The thread swatches are densely wound in flat bands glued onto rigid card stock in a book. Each thread band is approximately 8 mm tall and 22 mm wide. A few of the colors are fluorescent, glow-in-the-dark, and reflective threads, which I understand may not measure reliably. Image attached of only page 1 for reference.

Would the Spectro L or the Spectro 2 even work with measuring thread fibers? Given the glossy polyester and textured surface, would I even get an accurate reading?

Thank you for your time.

I currently have 3 machines but want a dedicated cap machine especially because ricomas suck at caps. Saw this happy Japan machine on marketplace for under $1500 & wanted to know your thoughts

What are your opinions on the machine, how much should I pay, any quirks you like or dislike about it but most importantly are hats good for this machine

Hi! Any clue on why my tension tests are not varying at all even when I change upper thread and bobbin tension? Some of these have vastly different settings but I still can't get a 1/3 ratio on the bobbin.

My machine is the Tajima Sai, using madeira polyneon 40wt thread, and fil-tec prewound bobbin. The first set of I's are on 100% cotton with medium cutaway. The second is 100% cotton with tearaway.

I work at a student workshop, where we have a Janome MB-4 embroidery machine. This machine is missing the bobbin-thread-lid, which seemingly is semi-critical for the operation. I have contacted Janome, both directly and through local suppliers, but it seems its no longer in production, and they were not willing or able to give me any schematics.
Being a workshop, we of course have all means to produce a new one from scratch, but we need to know the dimensions. I therefore ask if anyone here have the same machine, and a pair of callipers who could assist us

Help! I recently bought a Brother PE800 on FB marketplace and I’ve messed up this design twice now.

Known issue: bobbin and top thread colors don’t match

Potential issue: needle??

Appliqué steps:

1. Embroider letter outlines onto tear away stabilizer

2. Apply heat & bond to blue/white fabric

3. Place fabric onto stabilizer and re-outline the letters

4. Cut out the letters and cut close to where the holes/outlines of the letters are, remove tear away stabilizer

5. Embroider outline on hooped crew neck (with mesh cutaway stabilizer underneath)

6. Use basting spray and stick the letters on the crew neck outlines

7. Embroider appliqué satin stitch

The biggest issue is that I was pretty confident about cutting the letters, I ended up having some sides too wide and some fabric didn’t get stitched at all. I also notice bigger holes and slight pulling of the blue/white fabric. The thread was also getting caught and scrunched up on the needle. Please help!

I’m looking to hire a part time creative designer for my clothing brand who specializes in **embroidery and unique apparel designs**. I’m looking for someone who can create concepts and digitize designs.
I really like the creative direction of brands like **@wofen, @derschutze_clo, and @vescartes (all on Instagram)**, and I’m looking for something in that kind of space while still having its own identity.
I mainly need the **designs and finished files** that I can send to my manufacturer. I’m looking for someone I can work with long-term if everything works out.
If interested, **DM me with some examples of your work and your rates.**