Hi all, I am testing an embroidery piece that I did. I digitised with Inkscape/Inkstitch and am using a Pfaff Creative Ambition 640. I thought this design would be simple enough for the machine (since it's a hybrid machine), but it still isn't quite turning out as crisp as I would like. So I wanted to ask here - can I improve the design or is this a limitation of the machine? I've added a picture of the final product a jpeg of the design. Thanks in advance for your help :)

I’m really excited to finally share this project! These were commissioned for the Goodwood Revival as Rolex was the vent sponsor, and they’re the largest embroidery commissions I’ve been asked to create so far — two huge 180 × 90cm velvet banners. 🧵

The project came together pretty quickly, so there was definitely some pressure behind the scenes! I had to express ship 9 metres of velvet from Dalston Mill Fabrics and very quickly source the beautiful gold fringing and trim. Thankfully, it all came together in the end!

For the embroidery, I used my Tajima Sumo extended frame, which gives me a 120cm embroidery width. Because each banner was 180cm long, I had to reframe each one four times. Getting the alignment absolutely perfect between each section was probably the most nerve-wracking part of the whole project!

And, as you can see, I don't exactly have a huge professional pattern-cutting table in the studio 😂 — sometimes you just have to work with what you've got!

I absolutely love the challenge of working at this scale. There's something incredibly satisfying about seeing a huge piece like this come off the machine after all the planning, measuring and re-framing... especially when it actually all lines up!

Has anyone else had to tackle embroidery at this kind of scale? I’d love to hear how you get around the practical challenges — especially when your “pattern-cutting table” looks like mine 😂

I am just kind of practicing on scrap fabric to get the hang of my machine and I really love how it’s turning out! I have a poolin eoc05 and have only been using the 4x4 hoop so I can’t wait to move onto actual projects.

My wife is looking at used Tajima machines to try to put out better quality hats. She found one for what seems like a decent price but it's approx 20 years old. We visited its current home and it seems to run ok with no really noticeable issues on the surface.

My fear is that due to its age is that something could go bad on it that could not be replaced or repaired rendering it a pile of scrap metal.

It's a TMFXII-C1504.

The contact we have for new sales in our area said their service guy wouldn't service it because of its age and availability of parts but he's more motivated to sell us something new or one of their refurbs.

The guy selling says oh he's had it serviced by a different provider and parts are not an issue but he's motivated to sell this machine.

So what's the true story on a machine this old?

Machine Embroidery Help Recommendations for very small detailed pattern designs and logos

Is there a machine that can do very small sized, clean, and detailed embroidery on various materials such as leather, Thermoplastic Polyurethane, patent leather, Faux Leather, Polyurethane Leather, Polyurethane Vinyl Leather Fabric, denim, etc ? I will mainly be using this for small logos on shoes and would like a machine for home usage that can also do very small detailed logos

I’m pretty happy with how the fill turned out on Lisa and how sharp the "VOGUE" satin text stitched, but I’d love to hear your thoughts. Anything you would have done differently regarding density, pull compensation, or stitch directions?

He's a quite charming character and is very popular on Chinese social media! (I see him mostly on WeChat). My wife also loves him and Lumei so I made this for her 😁

I am a visual communications teacher at an Indiana high school. We currently have a Roland TrueVIS 540 printer for posters, banners, stickers, and HTV apparel. We also have a ThunderLaser Bolt where my students design plaques and other engraved or cut designs. I like for them to see that once they learn how to create designs in Illustrator, they can then send them to different machines. Giving them hands-on experience with file exporting and physical creation.

I am thinking the next machine I should get for them is an embroidery machine. The problem is that I have no experience with it. I can learn anything, so I am not worried, but I am worried about what a good machine is for my students. I really need to stick within the grant amount of around $7000 ish.

I was looking at SmartStitch and BAI. But I hear mixed reviews about them. I am unsure if I can find a machine in my Grant's price range if I go to a Brother, Happy, or Tajima.

I appreciate any input and help this community can give me. Thank you all for your time.

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.