Simple Solutions for Novice Digitizers

Understanding the basic responsibilities of a digitizers, as well as concepts such as stitch types and push/pull compensation, can take the intimidation factor out of complex jobs. May 02, 2011
By Ed Levy, Contributing Writer

Using this picture as an example, if the angle lines were as drawn on the shape, the stitches will pull in at the end of the angle and push out in the direction of the actual sewing.

While embroidery digitizing may be technical in its execution, the theory behind it is rather simple: It involves working with a series of individual shapes that comprise a complete design. Novice digitizers often will become overwhelmed when looking at an upcoming digitizing job because the natural instinct is to look at the design as a whole. Instead, they should break the design into a series of individual sections, then break those sections into individual shapes, which often serves as the collective basis for even the most complex designs.

Digitizing often can involve a series of fluctuating factors; thus, the one constant is that no two designs are alike. In fact, the same design often is treated quite differently when it is sewn on different material. As such, there is no magic recipe that is the perfect solution to creating a great, digitized design.

Consider the following points about the digitizing process:

• Technology is only as good as the person using it.
 
• To fully understand the digitizing process, you must go back to the basics.

• About 75% of the digitizing process is preparation, which is done without the help of a computer.

• Understanding stitch types, characteristics, interactions and uses is vital to creating quality designs.

A Digitizer's Role
Everyone would be an accomplished digitizer if what was created on the screen actually transferred to the garment. Digitizers have two primary areas of responsibility. First, they must be artists, creating designs that have visual appeal and have the best stitch types selected for shapes in the design. Depth and dimension should be used for the most realistic and eye-catching designs possible. However, the best looking design in the world won’t have much value if it is a nightmare to run on the embroidery machine.

Thus, the digitizer’s second area of responsibility is that of being an engineer or architect. The digitizer directly controls the travel path and efficiency of the embroidery machine, including each color change, trim, lock stitch setting, underlay and design. If you create and execute the proper blueprint, the machine will hum along. Make mistakes in this area and a great design quickly can become a nightmare. A design that looks and runs great is of equal importance to the digitizer.

Ultimately, digitizing’s role in embroidery is to control the sewing process. A digitized design is nothing more than a set of commands to operate the machine. The machine doesn’t understand stitch types, texture, underlay, etc. because it only knows the “X” and “Y” coordinates for each needle penetration. Remember the following three things:

• To be a good digitizer, you must think like the embroidery machine.

• Everything you do has an impact on the machine.

• Visualize the sewing process as you create it.

With modern technology, you may wonder why I’m advising you to hand draw artwork for digitizing? The answer is because if you can think a design through, and calculate your color changes and travel paths prior to completing your first design segment, you are more likely to succeed in your digitizing efforts.

Here’s another piece of advice: The Zoom function in your digitizing software is a great way to focus on specific areas in a design, but the key factor is how it looks at a normal size. Zooming in too much can lead to excessive time spent trying to perfect details that have no effect on the final appearance. Also, it’s quite possible to create things on the computer that can’t be sewn by a machine, so the Zoom function can make it easy to lose sight of reality.

Stitch Guidelines & Push/Pull
The minimum safe size for a column stitch is 1mm. As you gain experience, you can reduce the minimum to about 0.8mm and still end up with a satisfactory column. The maximum safe size for a column stitch is 8mm to 10mm; anything larger is more susceptible to snagging. Lettering that is less than 0.6mm (0.25 inches) is considered to be small lettering.

Create a design with the fewest trims and color changes to maximize your embroidery machine’s efficiency. Start with larger areas and work toward smaller ones. On difficult fabrics, you may need to separate a design into a series of sections to ensure proper registration. For hats, work from the center moving outward and, when possible, from the bottom moving upward.

Compensating for the push and pull phenomenon also is important in digitizing. When I refer to push and pull, I’m talking about manual adjustments and not software settings. Your digitizing software has features to add pull compensation to a design. However, to understand using the automatic settings, you must know how to control push and pull manually.

Stitches will shrink (pull) and expand (push) depending on the direction of the sewing. However, the amount of push and pull that occurs depends on the stability and flexibility of the material onto which you are sewing a design. For example, denim will have less of a push or pull than fleece.

If stitching is vertical, then the stitches will pull in at each vertical end and will push out on the sides (Figure A). An easy way to tell how a shape will pull or push is to zoom in on the stitching. If you see the stitch ends (Figure B), that is a point where the design will pull, or shrink. If you see the stitch side (Figure C), that is a point where the design will push, or expand.

When digitizing, place your points roughly 80% to 90% to the outside of the border (depending on the thickness of the border) for places that will pull. Place your points roughly 0% to 5% to the inside edge of the shape where the stitches will push. In many cases, you will end your stitching prior to the beginning of the border, but not usually more than 0.4mm (0.02 inches).

If you have sewn a design and you ended up with a gap between the fill and the border, it is a result of pull or shrinkage. Conversely, if some of your design’s fill extends beyond the border, it is a result of the push, or expansion.

Underlay
Proper underlay is one of the most important elements in a good design. Underlay stitches are used as a foundation and are placed under the regular stitching. Ask yourself a few things when applying underlay: Do I need it to provide stability to the fabric? Do I need to adhere the backing to the fabric? Do I need to lay a foundation for better top stitching?

The more you answer “yes” to these questions, the more important underlay is to your design. If you have a fill with lettering on top, underlay is not needed on the lettering to adhere the garment and provide stability because the fill already is performing that function. Do you need to adhere the backing to the fabric? No, because the fill is doing that. Do you need to lay a foundation for better top stitching? Yes. Since “yes” was the answer to only one question, you would need minimal underlay on the lettering, and in some instances none at all, for this example.

The rule of thumb for underlay is that the less stable the material, but the more stretch it has, the more underlay it requires. For example, thick, unstable materials like towels would require more underlay than cotton dress shirts.

As previously stated, there is no magic formula for creating a design, however with careful planning, adjustments for distortion and developing an efficient machine roadmap, you will be well on your way toward creating great digitizing that looks great and sews great.

Ed Levy is director of software products at Hirsch Intl. and owner of Digitize4u, an embroidery, digitizing and consulting firm in Montoursville, Pa. For more information or to comment on this article, e-mail Ed at ELevy@hirschinternational.com.



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