Impressions - August/September 2023 - 45

From left: The original design, the prescribed
stitch pattern and the final design. Images
courtesy of Erich Campbell
create a design.
Though this was once executed one stitch
at a time, modern digitizing software allows
you to create shapes via an object-based
method very much like that used by vector
graphics software, with the notable addition
of embroidery-specific parameters applied
on a shape-by-shape basis that fill each shape
with stitches.
Digitizing software provides the tools
not only to draw, but to assign and visualize
stitch types, stitch length, stitch angle,
density (spacing between lines of stitches
that " fill " an area), entry and exit points for
each shape, underlay (support stitching),
and various other nuanced qualities that
govern the look of a block of stitches and
the behavior of the routines that fill shapes
within them.
The Feature No Software (Really) Has
Despite the best attempts of great minds,
digitizing software doesn't automatically
convert an image to a high-quality, efficient
embroidery design without at least some
additional input or refinement. Though it
may happen soon, there's no process at the
time of this writing that can analyze an image
and create a design that runs efficiently
and keeps all outlines and shapes properly
registered with the aesthetic quality and
consistency provided by a skilled digitizer.
In particular, no current automation
uses the material qualities of thread and
the dimensional quality of embroidery to its
best advantage. This isn't to say automation
hasn't improved, nor that it can't assist you
in the creation of embroidery, but that the
best quality embroidery is not attained by
a one-click process.
At best, automation may help a digitizer
create basic shapes or assign stitch values that
are a reasonable starting place for editing and
refinement when applied to simple images.
At worst, it results in embroidery that runs
poorly and betrays the lack of care taken in
creation. Automation can help us handle
simple tasks, but it can't be counted on for
highly detailed designs, subtle shading and
details or the interpretation of photographic
art into embroidery without compromise.
It's not a bad thing, but it's also not a replacement
for knowing how stitches work
and actively choosing where they should
go and how they should be configured.
Siren of the Screen
One of the chief problems new digitizers
face is the fact that embroidery distorts
during the stitching process. This unavoidable
distortion means anything that looks
perfect on-screen will look distorted at
the machine. The screen is misleading. Any
shapes, registration of outlines and blocks of
color or otherwise perfectly aligned lettering
in your embroidery file will be distorted,
out of registration or worse when it stitches.
There are two critical lessons all digitizers
should learn before they ever set a stitch:
1. All embroidery distorts, albeit
to differing levels depending on the
design, garment and stabilizer used.
All stitches get slightly shorter under
tension, meaning columns get narrower,
borders thinner and fills pull back
from their onscreen edges in what is
known as " pull " distortion. Blocks
of stitches, on the other hand, will
expand in the angle perpendicular
to the " stitch angle " at full coverage
as the threads cinch down and flatten
to a single layer in what is known as
" push " distortion. We must therefore
compensate for these forces in our
interpretation of the art, increasing
overlaps, thickening columns and
" squashing " shapes.
2. The product of a digitizer is the
embroidery, not the file. The file
is a means to an end. What it looks
like is immaterial if it doesn't result
in efficient, attractive embroidery on
the intended garment.
Bottom line: Don't let the look of the
on-screen preview lead you astray. Focus
on the stitches, not the file!
How Digitizing is Done
Understanding that digitizing is not simply
a process of import and conversion, we
can move on to what it really is: a process
of determining the best way to represent
a piece of art in the medium of thread
and then creating an actual interpreted file
with that in mind. The process ends only
when a final embroidered sample can be
reliably stitched on the intended garment in
a method that is efficient, technically sound
and aesthetically pleasing. What follows is a
breakdown of the steps it takes to get from
art to embroidery.
Art Analysis: Interpreting art into stitches
starts with the source. Digitizers import
either a vector or raster graphic into their
software, sizing it to the intended finished
size of the decoration. Thread has set physical
dimensions, making for relatively strict
maximum and minimum sizes for certain
stitch types to maintain quality and stitch
correctly. This means scale is critical. The
digitizer will review the art at scale, taking
note of design elements poorly suited for
embroidery and making suggestions to the
customer for potential alterations. The digitizer
will then secure approval from the
customer for any necessary changes before
creating the file.
Planning and Pre-Sequencing: With
changes approved, the digitizer plans the
Aug./Sept. 2023
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Impressions - August/September 2023

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