Compiled Embroidery Skill Articles

10/28/2016 Getting Started Part 2 ­ Troubleshooting Bad Embroidery Embroidery Article
The fabric bounces up and down with the needle when stitching; threads and needles break:
This problem is referred to as “flagging” and is most often due to a bent needle; change the
needle. It can also be caused by poor hooping; fabric should be taut like a drum skin, not too tight
and not too loose.
Small pressed wrinkles on fabric where it was hooped:
This occurs if you put the smooth end of the ring in and then tilt and push in the screw opening
and the hoop is too tight. The hoop “bites” the fabric. T ry placing the screw adjusting area first and
easing the hoop into the top with a firm, not extreme fit.
A ring of compressed fibers occurs on the garment where it was hooped:
Spray with a bit of Magic Sizing and wipe with a clean cloth or brush with a soft bristle brush. If you
have many items to stitch on the same type of fabric, take preventative steps by first wrapping the
hoop rings with athletic tape if you have numerous items to stitch of the same design. Or if the job
is for only one or two items, hoop a sheet of tear­away on top of the hooped item, then cut or rip
out the center where it will be embroidered, leaving the fabric protected by the tear­away where it’s
sandwiched between the hoop rings. Y ou can also eliminate this issue by hooping only the
backing that has been sprayed with an adhesive and then lay the item on the sprayed backing
and over the outside of the hoop, and use a few pins to secure the fabric at the inside edge of the
hoop. A magnetic closing hoop also works well to avoid hoop marks.
Thread keeps fraying and breaking:
Check for a damaged needle and make sure the machine is clean of lint and threaded correctly. If
the problem continues, change to a dif ferent spool; thread left in the sun or stored improperly in a
dry environment will become brittle. Also, slow down the machine when necessary , such as for
stitching small lettering and other tiny elements, or when using metallic threads.
Stitches show in the software but the machine doesn’t sew them:
The area where the machine is omitting stitches is likely a satin stitch column that was digitized
much too wide for various models of home machines; decrease the size of the design slightly to
create a thinner column or if editing is possible, change the satin stitch column to a random fill
stitch.
The colors that the machine says to use are wonky:
Most commercial digitizing systems do not save a color palette in the design data; they only save
the color stop commands. So, when the design is converted to dif ferent machine formats, true
thread colors for each machine model are not included. Even though some digitizing programs
have started to include more accurate “colorways” for dif ferent formats there are oodles of
beautiful quality designs available that were digitized during a time when saving the appropriate
colorways was not an option on any software. Adjust the colors in your software, and then save
the design. Your software will retain the colors you have chosen so when you read the newly
saved file back into your software or your machine, your preferred colors will be displayed.If you
don’t have software that allows adjusting colors, refer to the color chart text file that accompanies
each design for the appropriate color sequence. For a multi­needle machine, set the appropriate
needle for the color number; or for a single needle machine, line up the cones of thread on your
work table in the correct sequence to help you know which color to choose next when the machine
stops for a color change.
The design file is not recognized by software and/or machine:
The design may be too large for the machine’ s sewing field limit or the design might not be
centered properly, or the format isn’t saved in a compatible version for your machine. First, be
sure that the design will fit within your machine’ s sewing field limitation and be sure that the
design is centered.If both check okay, the file likely needs to be converted to your machine format
again in order to create an understandable version for your software and/or machine. You can try
downloading the commercial DST format that is recognized by most all software programs and
save the file again in your machine format. (Note, DST format does not retain a color palette, so
colors will not appear accurate.) You can also contact EmbroideryDesigns.com customer service
and our design support team will create a usable format version for your machine.
The embroidery on the final garment has too many mistakes and looks terrible:
You might choose to simply toss the item, but I recommend saving it to use for future test sewing.
If the item is irreplaceable, keep in mind stitches can be removed. On the backside of the
embroidery, using a small sewing scissors that fit comfortably in your hand, very carefully snip the
majority of bobbin thread, and then on the top side, brush away the stitches with your hand or soft
https://www.embroiderydesigns.com/emb_learning/article/1
bristle brush.
165/getting­started­part­2­­­troubleshooting­bad­embroidery
To remove knots that remain behind, poke a pin
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through the knot to loosen and lift
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