Embroidery Sewing Machines

[ljql_5969]

Anyone have one of these? Are you good at creating your own sewing designs?

This is totally non-Disney related but I know there are many creative people here so I thought I would post.

I have a sewing/embroidery machine and my brother wants me to make the coaching staff of his daughter's softball team some t-shirts with their team name on the pocket and the words "Coaching Staff" on the sleeve.

I have a Janome 9500. And I have the software that goes with the Janome. But, I think there are better design software packages out there. Does anyone know more? Help. I am still learning and he thinks this is so easy but I cannot just take a bitmap file that he sent me and put it on my sewing machine. It has to be converted to a sewing file and it is not as straight forward as it sounds (at least I have not found it to be)!

Thanks!

 

[kc10family]

Anyone have one of these? Are you good at creating your own sewing designs?

This is totally non-Disney related but I know there are many creative people here so I thought I would post.

I have a sewing/embroidery machine and my brother wants me to make the coaching staff of his daughter's softball team some t-shirts with their team name on the pocket and the words "Coaching Staff" on the sleeve.

I have a Janome 9500. And I have the software that goes with the Janome. But, I think there are better design software packages out there. Does anyone know more? Help. I am still learning and he thinks this is so easy but I cannot just take a bitmap file that he sent me and put it on my sewing machine. It has to be converted to a sewing file and it is not as straight forward as it sounds (at least I have not found it to be)!

Thanks!

I have the ULT2003D by Brother, I can not digitze so I have paid people in the past to do something I want, it was only about $60.00 for the design in 3 sizes.
I have lost my favorite links to all the emboidery sites I visit, sorry I would post them for you if I had them.
What I would do is google for free softball designs.

http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&lr=&ie=ISO-8859-1&q=free+embroidery+designs&btnG=Search

AnntheGran has a lot of great free designs.

Do you have a design you want?
Did you DB give you much more to work with?
Do you get to do what ever you want with this?
I will look in the designs I have on file and see what I can come up with.


If it's just words you need I can try to met that to you.

Let me know.

I don't know if I helped or not. I think I was just talking a lot.

 

[musicmama]

My sister and I both have the Viking Designer I machineand the Viking 3-D Embroidery Studio software, including the digitizing program. She is working at making her "hobby" a full-time occupation. The 3-D Studio is basically easy enough for a non-crafty like me to be able to resize a volleyball design that I purchased to create my DD's team practice shirts last season. The software included a bunch of different fonts, so that worked. I'm not sure, however, if it supports saving in other than the Viking formats.

I would definitely recommend Embroidery Library or Ann the Gran for the softball design itself. Your machine probably has the fonts to do the text with. One thing, it's not easy to do sleeves without taking the seams apart. For that reason, I stuck with a simple centered design for the girls for my first try. I'm experimenting with pocket toppers right now in the hopes we can try that for next season.

Good luck.

 

[ljql_5969]

Thanks for your help. Like I said, I have software, but I think there is better software on the market. And of course my big brother thinks that with 2 snaps, I should be able to just create something. I have made some T-shirts and sweatshirts, but they were made fom designs that I got from sets I purchased so I wasn't creatng the design myself, just puttin it together with some words and then transferring it to the machine to design.

Anyway, thanks again!

 

[challada]

I have an embroidery only machine as well as the software....but it drives me CRAZY when friends come up to me w/a picture or coloring book or whatever and say "can't you just do this on your machine?"

well......NO!

I think people think that I magically wave the piece of paper in front of the machine and it knows exactly how to make whatever is on the paper!

I'm pretty tired of explaining the whole converting files, etc thing to folks so I just say "no, my machine doesn't do that" now!

 

[idofabric]

Oh, my goodness! I am soooooo happy I am NOT the only Diser with an embrod. machine! And not the only one that has problems!
Having said that I have to agree with who ever said to check Ann the Gram, I have had design software since the first New Home/Janome in the early 80's and have a Vik Hus. Designer 1 with 3 D studio... and I am still not good at this.
However, I have found that it pays to play with the software. And I have several friends that have Janome, Design 3D and a independent software... and most of them like the independent software the best. I think it is Amazing Designs studio, or something and is under $300 -$400 and is easy to use... They have no idea about copyright laws!
I have used some simple outline designs to make machine appliques, where you sew down the fabric with the first stitches, then go over the edeges to finish them.
And I have made my self a ton of T's with my software using designs that are circles of flowers or wreaths to make the classic Mickey head... for Food and wine. They turn out well, and a few CMs wanted to know where I had bought them last year. Just remember that the ears are a little more oval then round and check the ratio of head to ears.
If you do this with small one color designs you can sprinkle them all over jeans, T's, dress, socks, towels, and bags for a really cute design. And try using multi color thread. I also match my bobbin to my sewing thread...
Best of luck...